Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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37 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, January 2, 2008
As a kid I used to collect and read Mad Magazine avidly even after Sister Miriam Lucille warned me that "they [MAD] were pink around the edges" because they made fun of our American heritage. Sister Lucille, I'm sure, never could see the humor that caused us to laugh and chuckle our way through grade school. And it wasn't until now, forty-plus years later that I could appreciate how sophisticated their humor and satire really was and still is.
Seeing the silly face of Alfred E. Newman wearing a tee shirt that reads "I'M WITH STUPID" with a red arrow pointing to the man he is standing next to, namely George Weasel Bush, was an irresistible impulse to turn back the clock toward my youth to see if the magazine could tickle my funny bone as it had so many years earlier. It did.
First, there is a tremendous amount of work that goes into a publication of such detail and volume. I will bet that these Mad writers and cartoonists go through at least a couple of cases of beer before they come out with the finished product.
You can appreciate its level of sophistication with its "Pirates of the Constitution" with cartoons of Bush, Cheney and Rice in Johnny Depp style dress, the play on the Gap commercials with Fi(red) and Disappea(red), or the comparison of George W. to each president in American history. This requires a phenomenal amount of work and knowledge. And Cheney with a sadistic look in hunting garb, was an especially creative cartoon. My favorite: $9.99 US (Cheap) $11.99 CAN (Cheap, eh?)
As we find truth in humor, we also find truth that is not so humorous, but should not be forgotten. Seeing a caricature of George Bush, on a stage, in a tux, saying: "Hmm ....No Weapons of Mass Destruction here..." and then thinking: "Hoo Whee! What a tough crowd!" is not funny when the audience consists of rows of flag-draped coffins. Nevertheless the reader cannot miss the message of a president who has cost the lives of so many over missed or cherry-picked intelligence, and then, makes light of it. That is an accurate portrayal of sick humor that is Bush's and not MAD's. The writers also remind of us of certain utterances such as "I'm not going to change, see? I'm not trying to accommodate. I won't change my philosophy or my point of view. GWB: Feb. 7, 2004. And we certainly have paid a high price for such a train of thought.
So, with another one year plus left with George W. Bush as president, I have to parody Alfred E. Newman and ask: "What, me worry?"
Well, yeah, I really do.
But, I wouldn't worry about buying this issue. It's destined to be a classic.
Happy New Year!
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16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Another MAD winner, July 6, 2007
THE MAD WAR ON BUSH is some very funny stuff about our current president that I think people of all ages would enjoy. There's a lot of variety here, with everything from comic strip spoofs to photos with made-up dialogue, to a Dr. Seuss version of the White House. One of my favorite segments is entitled "MAD's Handy Glossary to the War On Terror," where, for instance, Mission Accomplished is defined as "The White House definition of knocking over a statue" (Saddam's, if you recall). Another of my faves is "The Bush Campaign's TV Commercial if He Was Running Against Jesus," which has W criticizing some things that Jesus actually said. A riot! The two fold-out posters in here, which each measures 16 X 10.5 inches, are nice extras that I've already framed for my wall. One has Bush as Uncle Sam, holding a set of headphones to one ear while saying "I Hear You Thanks to Unwarranted Wiretapping," and the other is the Iraq War made to look like a Star Wars poster. I did give the book 4 stars, though, because while much of it is great stuff, I don't feel like it all is. And if you already buy every copy of MAD Magazine, I believe all or most of this book is reprinted from there. However, I should note that MAD's editor, John Ficarra, says in the preface that MAD pokes fun at all presidents, not just conservative ones. OK, whatever you say, John!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A lot funnier than Michael Moore, October 17, 2007
Not always the articles I would have chosen, but overall funny and on target. One of my favorites is the campaign ad if he were running against Jesus. It really lampoons political ads in general.
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