Royal Flush Issue #2 $8.95 For more information, visit www.numberfoundation.com or contact The #Number Foundation 97 Clinton Street Suite #1B New York, NY 10002

Royal Flush is a bi-annual comic zine issued by New York's #Number Foundation, who insist on slapping that gratuitous pound sign in front of their name, and this Summer 2002 issue stacks up pretty well. The first thing you notice about any publication is the packaging, and the Foundation did a swell job with this high-stock-papered, glossy-covered little puppy. Big pages and a quality binding that doesn't swallow up words or wear out too quickly give the kind of quality you'd expect for the slightly bloated price tag, and streamlined layouts and an almost complete lack of ads put the stamp of professionalism on these pages.

The first thing the content reminded me of was Mad, only with less clutter in the design. Most of the comic strips are parodies, or contain some sort of satirical element, like "Hispanic Batman" and the fake advertisement for a movie called "Strapped and Capped". The writers have created a cast of plucky characters that should have staying power from issue to issue, such as The Tater Tots, an adolescent garage band, and Jewish special ops force Mitzvah 4.

Of course, I still haven't answered the question that's probably burning in your mind: is Royal Flush funny? Well, it's kind of hit or miss in this issue. Some strips have potential but don't quite pan out. "Hispanic Batman" cracked me up for the first couple of pages, with villains like El Pequino and Senor Que, and somehow there were no boneheaded Hispanic stereotypes, but the plot runs out of rope once the expository introductions are complete. The concept of danger at the Latin American Grammys isn't all that bad, but most laughs are of the predictable and cheap variety, making the final product a bit of a letdown. Doctor Cowboy follows the strong start/weak finish blueprint, and a few strips, like Lone Wolf in Dreamland, never get the ball rolling to begin with.

Royal Flush's biggest problem is their penchant for lowbrow humor. While far from offensive, the zine is filled with potty jokes, swearing and sex, which can all be funny in their own capacity, but not when they are the only jokes. Bawdy humor is not envelope pushing unless there's a greater point being made. To invoke classic literature again, Candide is racier than anything found in these pages, but the reason it caused such an uproar in monarchial France, and is still read today, is its social commentary and philosophical conclusions -- not the scene where a lady has half of her ass ripped off and eaten by monks. This issue's opening editorial actually addresses the fact that the strips are toilet humor for the average Joe, but why not elevate the average Joe instead of catering to his empty perception of life? If the crudeness were limited and balanced with actual wit, hilarious characters like the old man in Wide Ide that talks about "taking it up the ass like a banshee" would be all the more amusing.

On occasion, Royal Flush's writers take on weightier subject matter -- like fat actors! "Do the Truffle Shuffle" is a great piece on portly funnymen that references a number of great movie moments. There's also an interview with artist Keon Singlehurst, who actually has a bit of an agenda with his work. It's a brief piece, but fairly informative, and there are some great shots of Singlehurst's art. There's a music section too, with one legitimate article on Dead Dean (yeah, I've never heard of him either) and a mock piece on Van Halen that's pretty darn funny.

Speaking of music, a compact disc (or "disk", as it's spelled throughout the magazine) is included, though in all honesty it's an expendable feature. The disc has a whopping 24 songs, many of which are related to characters in the comics and most of which suck. You can't fault the comp for lacking variety -- you've got your metal, your punk, your balls-out rock, and improv band that claims, in their bio, not to practice, and two of the most unlistenable rappers these ears have ever heard. The punk bands are the best, even if their songs are all more than a little interchangeable, but I couldn't see anyone wanting to listen to the CD more than a couple of times.

The best thing about Royal Flush is that anyone can get wrapped up in it, comic fanatic or not, making it a very versatile zine. Much about it is top-notch, but the writing has miles to go. If anything, at least it's not full of stale super heroes and gratuitously large-breasted women.

-- Phillip Buchan