The first issue of Happy Hour from Ahoy Comics is an opening gambit that will have your jaw dropping at the sheer absurdity. Or, if you’ve been following US politics, you might not find this comic world to be too absurd at all. Happy Hour, written by Peter Milligan is sadly, very timely.
The concept is a world in which happiness is a government mandated thing, and if you aren’t happy, you get tossed into an Readjustment Center. Yeah, that is as creepy as it sounds. Considering the day I chose to read this, I gotta admit that there were parts of this story that were hard to read. Mostly because really, some of the actions taken are not at all far fetched.
To go with the story of the Joy Police and a government ready to give electroshock therapy to anyone not happy enough, the art by Micheal Montenat brings it all to life. It will probably take me a day or two to let go of the image of the women laughing uproariously at the idea of a grandmother’s cancer getting worse. And then of course there is the doctor grinning as he talks about nearly messing up a important bran surgery. Another image that seems eared to my brain. (as an aside, is that doctor meant to look like Clooney?)
For a first issue, Happy Hour comes out swinging. If you can get past the abject horror it can leave you with, it’s definitely worth the read. Happy Hour #1 drops today from Ahoy Comics.
