Wacky Raceland
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''Wacky Raceland'' is a
comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
series that re-imagines the cast of ''
Wacky Races Eccentricity (also called quirkiness) is an unusual or odd behavior on the part of an individual. This behavior would typically be perceived as unusual or unnecessary, without being demonstrably maladaptive. Eccentricity is contrasted with norm ...
'' competing in a desert wasteland, reminiscent of the ''
Mad Max ''Mad Max'' is an Australian post-apocalyptic Action film, action film series and media franchise created by George Miller (filmmaker), George Miller and Byron Kennedy. It began in 1979 with ''Mad Max (film), Mad Max'', and was followed by thre ...
'' film series, full of obstacles, towards a single goal, Utopia, mankind's last safe haven. It is also one of four comic books introduced by
DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...
in 2016 as part of the comic book initiative ''
Hanna-Barbera Beyond ''Hanna-Barbera Beyond'' is a comic book initiative started in 2016 by DC Comics that consists in a line of comic books based on various characters from the animation studio Hanna-Barbera. Publication history On January 28, 2016, Dan DiDio and Ji ...
'', along with ''
Scooby Apocalypse ''Scooby Apocalypse'' is a monthly comic book series published by DC Comics, which began in May 2016. It re-imagines the characters from the ''Scooby-Doo'' franchise, particularly the 1969 TV series ''Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!'', setting them in ...
'', ''
Future Quest ''Future Quest'' is a crossover (fiction), crossover comic book series published by DC Comics, as part of the comic book initiative ''Hanna-Barbera Beyond''. The series features characters from various animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera, s ...
'' and ''
The Flintstones ''The Flintstones'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions. The series takes place in a romanticized Stone Age setting and follows the activities of the titular family, the Flintstones, and their next-door neighb ...
''.


Premise

Official premise by DC Comics: ''The world has ended, but the race has just begun! Penelope Pitstop, Peter Perfect and the rest of the Wacky Racers vie for the finish line in a contest where the winner takes all and second place is death. Today’s trial: the shattered maze of freeways known as the Überpass, where they’re beset by giant sand beasts, mutated insects, and worst of all, Dick Dastardly’s murderously poor sportsmanship. The last thing they need after surviving the race is a brutal bar fight in a local dive, but that’s just what they get!!''


Characters

*
Dick Dastardly Dick Dastardly is a fictional character who has appeared in various animated series by Hanna-Barbera Productions from 1968 onward. Dastardly's most famous appearances are in the series ''Wacky Races'' (his initial appearance) and its spin-off, '' ...
and
Muttley Muttley is a fictional dog created in 1968 by Hanna-Barbera Productions; he was originally voiced by Don Messick. He is the foil to the cartoon villain Dick Dastardly, and appeared with him in the 1968 television series ''Wacky Races'' and its 196 ...
– Drivers of the Mean Machine, Dick Dastardly and Muttley are known by the other racers for being the biggest cheaters there are, not to mention the biggest bastards there are. Before the apocalypse, Dastardly was a world-renowned
pianist A pianist ( , ) is an individual musician who plays the piano. Since most forms of Western music can make use of the piano, pianists have a wide repertoire and a wide variety of styles to choose from, among them traditional classical music, ja ...
called Richard D'Astardlien, who lost his wife and son due to his cowardice during a
nanite A molecular machine, nanite, or nanomachine is a molecular component that produces quasi-mechanical movements (output) in response to specific stimuli (input). In cellular biology, macromolecular machines frequently perform tasks essential for l ...
attack. As for Muttley, he is a mutated and robotically-enhanced
dog The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's nearest living relative. Do ...
whose intelligence and aggressiveness were slightly enhanced thanks to his exposure to the "SC-00-B2" serum, created in the Butcher Shop as one of the many projects overseen by Professor Pat Pending. *
Penelope Pitstop Penelope Pitstop is a fictional character who appeared in the 1968 Hanna-Barbera animated series ''Wacky Races'' and the spin-off ''The Perils of Penelope Pitstop'', and was voiced by Janet Waldo. She also appeared in the 2017 reboot of ''Wacky ...
– Driver of the Compact Pussycat, Penelope Pitstop is a tough, no-nonsense young girl who takes no orders from anyone and sees herself as a strong and independent woman in a world where the strongest prevail. She has a close bond with her car, stating that they are full-time partners in the race, looking out for one another. Before the apocalypse, Penelope lived in the Greek island of
Aegina Aegina (; el, Αίγινα, ''Aígina'' ; grc, Αἴγῑνα) is one of the Saronic Islands of Greece in the Saronic Gulf, from Athens. Tradition derives the name from Aegina (mythology), Aegina, the mother of the hero Aeacus, who was born ...
, with her mother and her sister, who were killed by a
tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater explo ...
that destroyed the island. * Peter Perfect – Driver of the Turbo Terrific, Peter Perfect is seen by the other racers as
Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...
's last
Boy Scout A Scout (in some countries a Boy Scout, Girl Scout, or Pathfinder) is a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split ...
, mostly because of the way he acts, upholding the rules of
chivalry Chivalry, or the chivalric code, is an informal and varying code of conduct developed in Europe between 1170 and 1220. It was associated with the medieval Christianity, Christian institution of knighthood; knights' and gentlemen's behaviours we ...
. Unlike most of his fellow racers, Peter believes that even though the world has ended, it does not mean one should act and behave like a savage. A natural driver, he is also a bit of a scaredy-cat, trying to make a good impression in front of Penelope, whom he has a soft spot for. * Professor Patrick "Pat" Pending – Driver of the Convert-a-Car, Professor Pat Pending is an erudite and slightly insane
scientist A scientist is a person who conducts Scientific method, scientific research to advance knowledge in an Branches of science, area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, ...
who, in the past, was head of the projects and scientific experiments conducted in a private research facility called "the Butcher Shop". Among those experiments were some of the individuals that would later join the Wacky Race, as well as creations that caused the end of the world. With an insane yet brilliant mind at his disposal, he makes his job keeping the racers alive; for secretly, he needs them to accomplish a goal that he set for himself a long time ago. It is revealed that he subliminally programmed the Announcer to create the Race (and the racers) so that he would have an army to destroy her. * The Ant Hill Mob – Drivers of the Bulletproof Bomb, the Ant Hill Mob are a group of gangster-like albino midgets with a hive mind mentality composed of seven members, named I to VII, with V (pronounced Vee) as their leader. Although sharing a hive mind, the seven members of the Ant Hill Mob can think and act for themselves separately. They were part of an experiment conducted by Professor Pat Pending in the Butcher Shop, which manufactured them in a cloning facility in order to be used as cheap manpower for the military. * Lazy Luke and Blubber Bear – Drivers of the Arkansas Chug-a-bug, Lazy Luke and Blubber Bear are a duo of hunters who lived up north. Having been friends ever since they were kids, they have always looked out for each other. Luke is an alcoholic who drinks in order to forget the horrors he sees (he carries around a map with the locations of all the bars in the Wasteland), while Blubber is half-human, half-bear as a result of the Announcer's surgery to piece him back together after a grizzly bear attacked the two friends, nearly killing him. * The Red Baron – Driver of the Crimson Haybailer, Red is a
narcissistic Narcissism is a self-centered personality style characterized as having an excessive interest in one's physical appearance or image and an excessive preoccupation with one's own needs, often at the expense of others. Narcissism exists on a co ...
,
homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred or antipathy, m ...
sociopath Psychopathy, sometimes considered synonymous with sociopathy, is characterized by persistent antisocial behavior, impaired empathy and remorse, and bold, disinhibited, and egotistical traits. Different conceptions of psychopathy have been u ...
with
Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
tendencies, always referring to his motherland and how
Adolf Hitler Adolf Hitler (; 20 April 188930 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician who was dictator of Nazi Germany, Germany from 1933 until Death of Adolf Hitler, his death in 1945. Adolf Hitler's rise to power, He rose to power as the le ...
was right about eradicating certain kinds of people off the face of the planet, while stating that he himself is the living proof of
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
's Master Race. Before he joined the Race, Red was a professional gambler, having ripped off some of the most powerful men and women in
Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
. He was also in love with the daughter of Las Vegas' most powerful man, the Colonel, who accidentally killed his daughter when she placed herself in front of a bullet meant for Red. He has a particular hatred for Sergeant Blast. * Rufus Ruffcut and Sawtooth – Drivers of the Buzz Wagon, Rufus is a gay lumberjack who believes in the old saying that "bigger is better". As for Sawtooth, he is a small androgynous street urchin who fancies all kinds of knives and whom Rufus adopted as his protégé. * Sergeant Blast and Private Meekly – Drivers of the Army Surplus Special, Sergeant Blast and Private Meekly are an unstoppable duo, familiarized with all sorts of military tactics and an amazing arsenal at their disposal. Sergeant Blast is a transgender woman and spends her time reminding the others that although she is transgender, that makes her no less worthy than anyone else. As for Private Meekly, he is a weapon enthusiast, who sticks around Sergeant Blast not because he fears her, but because he respects her. * The Gruesome Twosome – Drivers of the Creepy Coupe, the Gruesome Twosome are a duo of freaks who resemble monsters, with Little Gruesome resembling a green-skinned vampire and Big Gruesome resembling a Frankenstein monster-type gladiator. Not much is known about them, except for the fact that Little Gruesome is able to control a swarm of bats that do his bidding, while Big Gruesome has incredible strength. * The Slag Brothers – Drivers of the Boulder Mobile, the Slag Brothers are a couple of Neanderthals who were brought back to life through the experiments conducted by Professor Pat Pending in the Butcher Shop before escaping it. Although they were frozen in ice for thousands of years, both Rock and Gravel Slag are able to understand English and speak it through the use of caveman expressions, thanks to a series of brain surgeries conducted by Pat Pending. Having lived off the land in the past, the two men are incredible scavengers and hunters. * The Announcer – The mysterious host of the Wacky Race. The Announcer turns out to be Professor Pat Pending's wife, Angelique Pending, who lost her body in an accident during the Slag Brothers' rampage through the Butcher Shop. In order to save her, Pat Pending removed her brain and placed it in a special container, which allowed her to live. Unfortunately, the lack of a physical body resulted in her going insane, unleashing an apocalyptic event on Earth, which turned it into a wasteland.


Reception

''Wacky Raceland'' has had generally favorable reviews, with critics praising the art as well as the story.


See also

* ''
Wacky Races Eccentricity (also called quirkiness) is an unusual or odd behavior on the part of an individual. This behavior would typically be perceived as unusual or unnecessary, without being demonstrably maladaptive. Eccentricity is contrasted with norm ...
'' * ''
Hanna-Barbera Beyond ''Hanna-Barbera Beyond'' is a comic book initiative started in 2016 by DC Comics that consists in a line of comic books based on various characters from the animation studio Hanna-Barbera. Publication history On January 28, 2016, Dan DiDio and Ji ...
''


References

{{Hanna-Barbera , state=collapsed 2016 comics debuts Comics based on television series Comic book reboots DC Comics titles Post-apocalyptic comics Hanna-Barbera comics Wacky Races