Fast, imaginative adventures that turn on a dime.
Chronicles of several heroes' worth of adventures and chaotic mythology.
Two civilizations live on opposite sides of a planet: the Crays and the Yahgeez. Whenever the Yahgeez are invaded by evildoers, they call upon the heroic Crays to save them. Crays look like doodles brought to life, with a total absence of color on their black-bordered bodies and hair. The Yahgeez have green bodies and pink, floppy hair like tropical tree leaves. Tales from the Cray heroes Craybi Craynobi and his friend Weezerd include the discovery of a chosen one who is half Cray and Half Yahgee named Crayski. Weezerd interacts with a magic orb that teaches him about the balance between good and evil. Crayski trains to become a hero alongside the greatest of the Yahgeez, Teh Tati, which is time well spent since Gwash monsters have returned from their exile on an asteroid to wage war. A giant showdown cliffhanger and promise of an eventual trilogy means more breakneck pacing and fantasy action. Pause to take a breath before it all wooshes past like a story written among archetype-blending classmates and acted out during recess. The thick outlines on the illustrations make everything stand out, which could overstimulate or enrapture from scene to scene. Adversaries include a giant green gorilla, gelatinous forms, Orblerx bandits, and a half Cray, half Gwash girl described as “pure vile evil.”
Fast, imaginative adventures that turn on a dime. (Graphic fiction. 7-10)Pub Date: Aug. 1, 2023
ISBN: 9781545810590
Page Count: 88
Publisher: Papercutz
Review Posted Online: July 13, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 1, 2023
More trampling in the vineyards of the Literary Classics section, with results that will tickle fancies high and low.
Recasting Dog Man and his feline ward, Li’l Petey, as costumed superheroes, Pilkey looks East of Eden in this follow-up to Tale of Two Kitties (2017).
The Steinbeck novel’s Cain/Abel motif gets some play here, as Petey, “world’s evilest cat” and cloned Li’l Petey’s original, tries assiduously to tempt his angelic counterpart over to the dark side only to be met, ultimately at least, by Li’l Petey’s “Thou mayest.” (There are also occasional direct quotes from the novel.) But inner struggles between good and evil assume distinctly subordinate roles to riotous outer ones, as Petey repurposes robots built for a movie about the exploits of Dog Man—“the thinking man’s Rin Tin Tin”—while leading a general rush to the studio’s costume department for appropriate good guy/bad guy outfits in preparation for the climactic battle. During said battle and along the way Pilkey tucks in multiple Flip-O-Rama inserts as well as general gags. He lists no fewer than nine ways to ask “who cut the cheese?” and includes both punny chapter titles (“The Bark Knight Rises”) and nods to Hamiltonand Mary Poppins. The cartoon art, neatly and brightly colored by Garibaldi, is both as easy to read as the snappy dialogue and properly endowed with outsized sound effects, figures displaying a range of skin colors, and glimpses of underwear (even on robots).
More trampling in the vineyards of the Literary Classics section, with results that will tickle fancies high and low. (drawing instructions) (Graphic fantasy. 7-10)Pub Date: Dec. 26, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-545-93518-0
Page Count: 256
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 13, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
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What a wag.
What do you get from sewing the head of a smart dog onto the body of a tough police officer? A new superhero from the incorrigible creator of Captain Underpants.
Finding a stack of old Dog Mancomics that got them in trouble back in first grade, George and Harold decide to craft a set of new(ish) adventures with (more or less) improved art and spelling. These begin with an origin tale (“A Hero Is Unleashed”), go on to a fiendish attempt to replace the chief of police with a “Robo Chief” and then a temporarily successful scheme to make everyone stupid by erasing all the words from every book (“Book ’Em, Dog Man”), and finish off with a sort of attempted alien invasion evocatively titled “Weenie Wars: The Franks Awaken.” In each, Dog Man squares off against baddies (including superinventor/archnemesis Petey the cat) and saves the day with a clever notion. With occasional pauses for Flip-O-Rama featurettes, the tales are all framed in brightly colored sequential panels with hand-lettered dialogue (“How do you feel, old friend?” “Ruff!”) and narrative. The figures are studiously diverse, with police officers of both genders on view and George, the chief, and several other members of the supporting cast colored in various shades of brown. Pilkey closes as customary with drawing exercises, plus a promise that the canine crusader will be further unleashed in a sequel.
What a wag. (Graphic fantasy. 7-9)Pub Date: Aug. 30, 2016
ISBN: 978-0-545-58160-8
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
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SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
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