Angel & the Ape # 1-4 (Ltd. 1991) (DC Comics)

Angel and the Ape are characters that have been around for a long time--since 1968, in fact, but I've never read much of anything with them in it.  In 1991, DC published a four-issue limited series to showcase the characters in a post-Crisis world.  Written by Phil Foglio, series keeps the characters in their very silly roots.  It's dumb-funny, but I found it surprisingly entertaining.

Issue # 1  presents Angel and (sapient) ape partner Sam as P.I.s lured into a cave involving bank-robbing apes!  There seem to be flashes of time where everyone in the city is turned into ape, except Sam who is turned into a human!  Angel's sister, Athena ("Dumb Bunny" of the Inferior 5) is a major supporting character, as she has a crush on Sam but he has eyes for someone else . . .

Okay, the important thing about Issue # 2 is that Blue Beetle and Booster Gold appear!  Only in a cameo shot, mind you, but still!  You see, Athena tries to call in the  Justice League International for help as Sam and Angel suspect there's a villain with memory or time-shifting powers at work, but Guy Gardner is so rude on the phone they hang up on him.  Classic.  Sam reveals the existence of Gorilla City, but no one he tells remembers because of a special device created to keep the city's existence a secret from humans.  And you can probably see where this is heading: (Super-)Gorilla Grodd!

Issue # 3 reveals that Grodd is Sam's grandfather.  And as Grodd notes, "I've battled the Justice League!  Back when that meant something!"  There's an amusing fight of Grodd against the Inferior 5 all done in the background of the pages.  Grodd kidnaps Sam so he can use his powers to influence a captured green glob to cull humanity . . . or something (I'm a bit fuzzy here).  And Athena snaps when she learns that Sam is in love with Angel.

In Issue # 4, Sam and Grodd vie for control of the glob, and Sam wins out by using it to give Grodd an uncontrollable craving for junk food.  It's that kind of comic.  Athena ends up with a new beau, but Sam and Angel decide to just stay friends.  There's a really good, persuasive comment on the letter page about the difference between humour and nonsense.

Overall, I liked this a lot better than I thought I would.