In this third graphic-novel installment of the imaginative fantasy/sports mashup, a young heroine must win a game of mini-golf to save a cursed kingdom.
Feisty Wiz and her giant companion, Mug, both brown-skinned, are fished out of the sea and brought ashore to a tiny village suffering terribly under a diabolical scourge that caused “famine, the plague…the game [to] all run off, and the fish too.” Believing her to be the Blue Fish of Favor, Wiz’s savior demands a wish, imploring Wiz to break the curse. The source of their torment is an evil green tyrant sent by the Archmage. Wiz soon discovers that the fearsome creature is obsessed with mini-golf and maintaining his perfect record. Challenged with saving not only the village’s livelihood, but also her life, will Wiz be able to putt her way to victory on the loathsome links? Meanwhile, Mug finds himself mixed up in a fairly mind-blowing wrestling match. This slim, oversized volume is fast and furious fun, mixing fantasy and sports in a distinct and refreshing way. Showing a mix of influences from European comics and Japanese manga, Bosma’s panels are bustling and lively with their propulsive use of sound effects and motion lines. Although it’s the third volume in the series, it is a great jumping-in point for new readers, although assume most will seek out the previous volumes for more adventures in this quirky and exciting world.
A hole-in-one. (Graphic fantasy. 9-14)Pub Date: July 11, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-910620-18-2
Page Count: 56
Publisher: Nobrow Ltd.
Review Posted Online: Aug. 7, 2017
Categories: GENERAL GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS | MANGA
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BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
In this seventh installment, the sleuths from Griswold’s Grammar School unravel yet another case involving a mysterious portal and a time-bending troublemaker.
Once again, the six young British gumshoes find themselves in the midst of something both puzzling and strange. As puberty looms, the group—three girls and three boys—has become divided along gender lines. The girls begin to watch an unusual student who is always—and somewhat anachronistically—rambling on about communists, while the boys start investigating a malevolent trio of classmates. With the discovery of a wormhole in their science lab and the changing of recent events, the group must converge and figure out a way to stop the time-traveling wrongdoers from rewriting history. As Allison’s series has progressed, the characters have aged with it, bringing increasing complexity to each case but maintaining its whimsy and never taking itself too seriously. Like its predecessors, this volume relates a complete case and works well as a stand-alone, though it has enough quiet in-jokes to reward devoted followers. Allison’s attention to detail in his characters is playful, with an especially keen eye to his protagonists’ stylish sartorial choices. However, those seeking diversity may be happier elsewhere; his mainstays are nearly all white, save for one who is black.
A delightfully quirky series whose eccentric charms haven’t faltered. (Graphic mystery/fantasy. 10-14)Pub Date: May 17, 2017
ISBN: 978-1-62010-390-6
Page Count: 128
Publisher: Oni Press
Review Posted Online: Feb. 20, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2017
Categories: GENERAL GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS | MYSTERY & CRIME
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BOOK REVIEW
YouTube sensation ComedyShortsGamer takes his signature blend of hilarity and hijinks on an unbelievable journey into the fantastical Beijing underground with his brother/nemesis, KSI.
With over 9 million subscribers and 3 billion views on his YouTube channel, Olatunji has become an icon of sorts for his idiosyncratic mix of gamer culture, internet pranks, and viral challenges. First published in the U.K. in 2017, this graphic novel allows Olatunji to bring some of the more costly “crazy ideas that go on in [his] head” into print, embracing the adolescent ridiculousness that brought him and his brother international fame. The plot: In an effort to bring the family together—and get the boys away from video games—the Olatunjis take a family trip to Beijing, where one intricate Deji-led prank leads the Triad crime syndicate to believe he may have heroic kung-fu powers and pose a threat to their takeover of the Forbidden City. All this is further complicated with a stereotypical (if not just downright problematic) pseudo-Chinese mythological quest that has world-ending implications. These characters might as well have been stolen from bad gamer archetypes: the “smokin’ hot love interest,” the street punks and the crime boss with “bad ass haircuts,” and let’s not forget Shi—a beer-drinking, cigar-smoking, woman-ogling, “very inappropriate”–talking, animated Chinese lion dog statue. A clue to the tale’s end is noted in Deji’s introductory character bio: “It’s usually some freaky twist of fate that gets Deji out of sticky situations.” This whole ordeal seems nothing but a sticky situation.
Taking advantage of a very fast-growing fan base, this outing aims to expand Olatunji’s branded empire with a video game–inspired graphic fantasy but delivers nothing more than cheap prepubescent thrills. (Graphic fantasy. 12-14)Pub Date: Nov. 6, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-4091-7428-8
Page Count: 192
Publisher: Trapeze/Hachette
Review Posted Online: Aug. 14, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2018
Categories: GENERAL GRAPHIC NOVELS & COMICS | SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY
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