Pantalones, TX: Don't Chicken Out

Yehudi Mercado works in film and animation with a slacker comedy Texas twist.  His new graphic novel Pantalones, TX: Don't Chicken Out is goofy, silly, strange, and a whole lot of fun.

Chico Bustamante, a go-kart riding rebel kid in Pantalones, Texas, gets under the skin of sherrif/mayor/judge/school principal/chicken shack owner Cornwallis.  On his quest to become a Texas legend, Chico relies on his friends and his faithful dog Baby T.  Maybe he'll ride a giant chicken, or maybe he'll challenge the chicken to a race.  And maybe he'll become a legend in the end.

This is probably unlike anything you've read before.  In attitude, it reminded me a bit of Bart Simpson's antics, at the same time more absurd and friendlier than the Simpsons.  (Texas is the Friendship State, after all.)  Pantalones, TX is appropriate for all ages, in terms of language and content, but some the humor might go over the heads of younger readers.  I liked it.

Yes, that's Chico at his bar mitzvah, with the rabbi in a grass skirt.What else would he wear?

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the complimentary review copy!