Hank Ketcham's Complete Dennis the Menace 1951-1952

Dennis the Menace was arguably the greatest single panel comic strip of all time (sorry, Family Circus fans). This book reprints every panel from the first two years of the strip's existence. Sunday pages are not included, since those are not single panels and wouldn't fit in the book. This is great stuff; really funny. If you like Dennis the Menace, you'll love this book.

I was a little worried when I bought this book as I thought since I had grown up with some of the later Dennis Cartoons, Going back this far might not be as enjoyable as I found it. I had some trouble going back and looking at the old Peanuts. Not quite as good as they became later on in my estimation. However this Book is a masterpiece by Ketcham. Dennis may be Younger but is still as funny as ever. It's kind of cool to watch the characters looks and personalities take on shape. This book has me smiling on almost every page and on many totally laughing until my eyes were watering. If you like Dennis the Menace? You won't be disappointed!

Special thanks to Fantagraphic Books for making this available and to my brother-in-law for getting it for me as a birthday present! This volume features the early days of Dennis Mitchell, his dog and his long suffering parents. You won't see much of poor ol' Mr. Wilson, whom Dennis unintentionally drives crazy, although his wife Mrs. Wilson is in a few cartoons. Dennis' pal Joey and nemesis Margaret aren't seen much either. There's a brief biography (written by Brian Walker) of Hank Ketchum whom also had a son named Dennis. Walker also gives a brief biography of the Mitchell family. And, of course, there's the cartoons: the barbers hate cutting Dennis' hair: "Be fair, Bert, I cut his hair the last time!", babysitters dread him: "I'll never forget the time I sat with that kid! See this scar?", he calls the fire department when Daddy Henry is burning leaves in the yard, he often dresses up as a cowboy: "Hi, gal, I'ma hankerin' for a cookie!", he loves his cookies but hates his vegetables, brings strangers home to lunch: "Hi mom, this poor guy hasn't had a bite to eat since yesterday!", and is untidy, much to mommy Alice's chagrin: "Christmas is over, Dennis. Go in and pick up your toys... and that means every last fragment!" Is he a menace? Not really, just a fun loving, curious kid who needs a lot of attention!

A few physical humor references to teeth knocking, baseball bats, and blackjacks were a bit jarring, but the complete reprinting of Hank Ketcham's opus is infinitely superior to the sanitizing that appeared in the you know what blockbuster. Kudos to Fantagraphics Books! After only a few pages, the reader may begin to wax nostalgic for the days when weekly magazines were chocked full of gag cartoons. Brian Walker's introduction actually sheds as much biographical information on the Mitchell family as it does on Ketcham. Good job! 589 panels printed chronolgically from day one. I just hope the kid makes enough money to print many subsequent volumes. Readers may also enjoy Hank Ketcham's "The Merchant of Dennis the Menace."

The one panel gag cartoon is a classic in comic strip lore and nobody did it better than Hank Ketcham. Ketcham's talent is on full display in the first volume of The Complete Dennis The Menace. Like the Peanuts collection, this first volume is an attractively packaged hardbound edition and includes a bookmark that is attached to the spine. Instead of chapters, the cartoons are broken in months. There is some background material on how Dennis came to be and information on Hank Ketcham. Dennis is still in many newspapers. He is handled by Ketcham's former assistance Marcus Hamilton. Mr. Hamilton, the recent winner of the Reuben Award for best newspaper cartoon of the year, is one of the nicest artists in comics today. All current Dennis readers will enjoy the first appearance of this Menace. Others that have not read Dennis in while; will enjoy the flood of memories of this Holy Terror. So, take some time to visit with your 'ol pal Dennis