In the Superman rogue's gallery, Bizarro functions as an alternate-universe anti-Superman. The backward "S" on his chest says it all: Whatever Superman is, Bizarro isn't, from his unkempt hair to his tendency to say the exact opposite of what he means. So it's perfectly appropriate that Bizarro lends his name and presence to Bizarro Comics, a collection in which DC Comics lets "the world's greatest alternative cartoonists" (DC's phrase) run amok in the DC Universe, to generally entertaining, if seldom unforgettable, effect. "Alternative cartoonists" is essentially defined as cartoonists who generally don't work for DC (and a few who do). Most have similar ideas of how to shake up the DC Universe, throwing seldom-utilized characters into comic scenarios and letting shorthand absurdism rule the day. James Kochalka and Dylan Horrocks send Hawkman after an eggnapper. Andy Watson and Mark Crilley capture a race between Wonder Girl and Wonder Tot. Most of the vignettes seem less underground than retro, throwbacks to a time when comics didn't take themselves so seriously and allowed more whimsy than angst. Golden Age Superman writer Alvin Schwartz's contribution doesn't seem the least bit out of place, a telling detail. Other entries push the boundaries a bit more: Artist Jason Little and Space Ghost writer Andy Merrill stage a bathtub showdown between a toy Aquaman and a sponge pig, while Chip Kidd and Tony Millionaire's strange version of Batman (or "The Bat-Man," as they prefer) deserves an expansion. Ivan Brunetti and multiple-contributor Evan Dorkin deliver a Batman/Superman team-up that, like the whole volume, is family-friendly, but still captures some of the unsettling psychology of Brunetti's work. Horrocks' and Jessica Abel's "The Clubhouse Of Solitude" may be the most radical entry of all. In it, Supergirl and a retired Mary Marvel sit, drink coffee, wax nostalgic, and make halfhearted plans to stay in closer touch, before going their separate ways. Bizarro Comics could have used a bit more of that kind of perspective; should an alternate-alternative collection ever come about, it would do well to explore such poignant slices of super-life.