In standup terms. Gailey really commits to the bit here. And that commitment to the backdrop of a 19th century America living in fear of a bloat of feral hippopotami as people have broken and bred tamed other river horses (the Gizmos to the villainous Stripes and other Mogwai) is what's so delightful about it. Still, it's just the backdrop and I feel suckered into reading a romance novel that would've made me resentful were it not for the fact that the characters were all great, colorful and interesting.