A solid, action-filled comedy with a crucial message.
A young boy tries to figure out how to prove himself in a world of superheroes in this graphic novel series opener.
When he’s not inventing his own problem-solving gadgets, Leon is studying superheroes, daydreaming, and hanging out with his best friend, Carlos. In this universe, some people just have superpowers and some don’t. Clementine, the bully hall monitor, for example, can shape shift, and one-eyed Thaddeus grapples with the legacy of his villain grandfather. To his dismay, Leon himself doesn’t have any superpowered abilities, though he dresses in a spiffy matching ensemble of bright green glasses, cape, and gloves. He wonders about his place in the world as an ordinary person and his ability to make a positive difference. Thankfully his loving mother is there to offer support. In addition, something strange is happening with students who can’t look away from their cellphones, and Leon might be the only one who can help save the day. This is a silly and fun-filled story with a heartwarming throughline about not needing special abilities to have an impact on one’s community. The art uses exaggerated features and expressions to produce a comical, cartoony style that fits with the jovial plot. Leon is Black, and the supporting cast is racially diverse.
A solid, action-filled comedy with a crucial message. (Graphic fiction. 8-11)Pub Date: Oct. 4, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-338-74415-6
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Graphix/Scholastic
Review Posted Online: Aug. 16, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2022
Dizzyingly silly.
The famous superhero returns to fight another villain with all the trademark wit and humor the series is known for.
Despite the title, Captain Underpants is bizarrely absent from most of this adventure. His school-age companions, George and Harold, maintain most of the spotlight. The creative chums fool around with time travel and several wacky inventions before coming upon the evil Turbo Toilet 2000, making its return for vengeance after sitting out a few of the previous books. When the good Captain shows up to save the day, he brings with him dynamic action and wordplay that meet the series’ standards. The Captain Underpants saga maintains its charm even into this, the 11th volume. The epic is filled to the brim with sight gags, toilet humor, flip-o-ramas and anarchic glee. Holding all this nonsense together is the author’s good-natured sense of harmless fun. The humor is never gross or over-the-top, just loud and innocuous. Adults may roll their eyes here and there, but youngsters will eat this up just as quickly as they devoured every other Underpants episode.
Dizzyingly silly. (Humor. 8-10)Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2014
ISBN: 978-0-545-50490-4
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Scholastic
Review Posted Online: June 3, 2014
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2014
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Epic lunacy.
Will extragalactic rats eat the moon?
Can a cybernetic toenail clipper find a worthy purpose in the vast universe? Will the first feline astronaut ever get a slice of pizza? Read on. Reworked from the Live Cartoon series of homespun video shorts released on Instagram in 2020 but retaining that “we’re making this up as we go” quality, the episodic tale begins with the electrifying discovery that our moon is being nibbled away. Off blast one strong, silent, furry hero—“Meow”—and a stowaway robot to our nearest celestial neighbor to hook up with the imperious Queen of the Moon and head toward the dark side, past challenges from pirates on the Sea of Tranquility and a sphinx with a riddle (“It weighs a ton, but floats on air. / It’s bald but has a lot of hair.” The answer? “Meow”). They endure multiple close but frustratingly glancing encounters with pizza and finally deliver the malign, multiheaded Rat King and its toothy armies to a suitable fate. Cue the massive pizza party! Aside from one pirate captain and a general back on Earth, the human and humanoid cast in Harris’ loosely drawn cartoon panels, from the appropriately moon-faced queen on, is light skinned. Merch, music, and the original episodes are available on an associated website.
Epic lunacy. (Graphic science fiction. 8-11)Pub Date: May 10, 2022
ISBN: 978-0-06-308408-7
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Katherine Tegen/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: Feb. 8, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2022
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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