THE TOXIC AVENGER PART II (1989)
Reviewed by Jerry Saravia
I remember years ago canvassing for a Princeton, NJ environmental agency. The idea was to promote the negative effects of air pollution around certain neighborhoods door-to-door. One neighbor told us, "There is nothing but toxic waste everywhere." When I think of New Jersey, having lived there for a good ten years, I think of toxic waste (I also lived in New Mexico, not terribly far from Los Alamos where certain nuclear bomb tests were conducted years earlier). When it comes to toxic waste in a comic-book style, nothing beats "The Toxic Avenger," a cult classic from Troma productions that became a big enough hit to feature their own mascot for their company, Toxie himself. "Toxic Avenger Part II" is not nearly as much gory, clever fun as the original but it has enough toxicity in its humor and horror to give it a pass.
For the uninitiated, Toxie (Toxic Avenger) was originally Melvin (Ron Fazio), a 98-pound weakling who got thrown into a vat of toxic waste and emerged as a muscular crime fighter with a deformed head. His job was to keep Tromaville safe from bad guys. Any time a villain was within a few yards of his path, Toxie started to have convulsions and knew it was time to kick butt. As this sequel opens, Tromaville's residents are happily dancing on the streets, manufacturing orange juice and watching presumably "Troma" films. The Center for the Blind is where Toxie works (huh?) and he is in charge of the croquet games (double huh?). Meanwhile, Toxie's blonde blind girlfriend (Phoebe Legere) has the occasional romp in the hay with Toxie. Now Toxie is consistently drinking Drano and emits toxic ooze from his body so what kind of fluids are being exchanged between the sheets? Villainy doesn't stay away for long in Tromaville when Apocalypse, Inc. wants to turn the Center for the Blind into a toxic dump. Toxie won't allow it but his presence in this town doesn't allow for the bad guys to complete their dastardly plans so they have Toxie's psychiatrist fool him into going to Japan to find his long-lost father named, are you ready kids, Big Mac. Ha!
"Toxic Avenger Part II" loses some steam in the Tokyo, Japan scenes, involving slapstick gags that incorporate smelly fish used as swords, nunchakus and everything else you can imagine. Sumo wrestlers also figure into the plot, including ninjas, but not really much inspiration. The Japanese folk react with horror to Toxie walking the streets with a broom as if he was Godzilla, but most of the shenanigans get a little tired (Toxie has a habit of literally cooking the bad guys into sushi specialties). Those who love watching full-frontal naked women, though, will not be disappointed.
But when the film returns to New Jersey in the climax, it feels revved up and actually comes closest to the manic inspiration of its opening thirty minutes. The villain who stands out is Lisa Gaye as Malfaire, who wears glittery costumes and hats that would be welcomed at Buckingham Palace! Her plans to destroy Tromaville and Toxie are delivered with ample malice and a hint of sexual tension (Gaye returned in "Toxic Avenger Part III," which was essentially left over footage from this sequel). Also worth noting is Rick Collins as the Apocalypse Inc. chairman who seethes with just enough comic timing to make one wish the film gave these actors more screen time.
"Toxic Avenger Part II" is average fare for Troma pictures and fittingly funny enough where it doesn't greatly disappoint (the David Mamet line is a howler). As they say in the film, if Tromaville had been destroyed, there would be no "Toxic Avenger Part 3." I say leave Toxie in New Jersey, our toxic waste capital where he belongs. It just doesn't have the same sting without that New Jersey swing.
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