THE FLINTSTONES (2016-) VOL. 1 - Mark Russell & Steve Pugh

As a child (as an adult, for that matter), I lived for two cartoons (sorry, that's what us dinosaurs called "animated series" when I was a mere baby brontosaurus): "Speed Racer" and "The Flintstones".  Both have remained rabid favorites as an adult, the residents of Bedrock so familiar and familial to me by now, even cover of this graphic novel (comprised of the first six comics of the series) alone had me worried about what modern day might wrought on the world's (and my) most beloved prehistoric family.  Here, the Flintstones and Rubbles have both grown up - literally, Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm are teenagers now - but the genius of what writer Mark Russell and artist Steve Pugh have created here reveals itself in some brilliant political and social satire, the goings-on of Fred, Barney and their families mirroring our own times.  Whether tackling politics, obsessive consumerism, the right to marry, genocide/war, organized religion, gentrification, or the objectification and abuse of animals, in comic book form Russell and Pugh have cast both satirical and critical eyes on today's society, mirroring the 21st-century in the dinosaur age - up to and including unique and ingeniously creative back stories behind how the Flintstones got Dino and the Rubbles became parents.  Illustrated in just as coarse and "caveman-chic" a style befitting its subjects, the pages reflect the times and draw you that much more into the stories: Fred still trying to get ahead at the quarry (Mr. Slate is, like, three times the douchebag here as in the cartoon), with Barney as his dopey sidekick and Wilma this time showing off an artistic bent as well as her own kind-of-cool backstory (Betty, by comparison, is severely relegated to almost an afterthought of a character here).  Extremely well-crafted with obvious love for the original, this is a new retelling of "The Flintstones" for our times that somehow never loses - at its heart - any respect for the source material.  4.5/5 stars

Note: I received a free ARC of this title via NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.