Daniel Way knows how to write great comedy, there’s no two ways about it. His current run on the main Deadpool book has proven that he can write fresh scripts without falling into the trappings of cheesy and tired jokes that are stereotypically associated with the character nowadays, and while I haven’t read his Bullseye related books, I’ve read that they are a great exercise in black comedy. Way’s strength as a comedy writer is evident in Hit-Monkey, as the entire issue, as a whole, plays as one huge joke to the reader.

Naturally, when I read the solicit to Hit-Monkey, I thought the issue was going to be a Marvel Apes-style goofball book. You can imagine my suprise when I finished reading this, and came to the realization that this was the most drama and tragedy ridden book of the week for me. Hit-Monkey is played completely straight and serious, as it tells the origin story of the titular character. Way does a great job in telling a story that deals heavily in deep themes such as loss, tragedy and vengance, which multiplies the overall ridiculousness by 100. This book will touch you with its great drama, and then make you laugh when you realize that all these emotionally charged scenes HAVE MONKEYS AS THE KEY CHARACTERS! Its nothing new to have actual non-magic animals as dramatic characters (Pride Of Baghdad), but to have these realistic animals as the main characters in the middle of a serious hitman genesis story is something that feels genuinely funny and fresh. Dalibor Talajic’s art enhances the overall joke, as he gives the book a grim and gritty feel and portrays the monkeys involved as realistically as possible, which makes the story seem even more ridiculous and funny.

So kudos to Daniel Way and Dalibor Talajic for constructing this great joke. Some people might not get why Hit-Monkey is so incredibly funny, as there aren’t any actual jokes in the script. Instead, the entire issue as a whole plays out as a joke, since when you finish it, you will have realized that you just read a serious and dramatic comic about the heartbreaking origin of a normal monkey who becomes a gun weilding hitman. I had so much fun reading this, and I’ll be looking forward to his further appearances.