Lola XOXO: The Complete First Volume

On the day of the nuclear apocalypse, young Lola was travelling alone by airplane to visit her grandmother in Chicago. But the child's plane had to divert to another city. At the airport, a kind man agrees to take Lola to see her nana. But when news of Chicago's destruction breaks, the man becomes Lola's caretaker.

Flash forward and Lola is now a teenager. Along with her adoptive father, Lola travels through the wasteland in hopes of one day finally making back to Los Angeles to her true parents. Unfortunately, this region that was once the American mid-west is filled with the most vile inhumanities ever encountered on earth. And when her guardian is kidnapped, Lola may have to stoop to the level of those dregs of incivility in order to get him back!

Last Christmas, my wife got me a couple of Comic Book Bento Boxes. They're essentially graphic novel grab bags. You can buy boxes individually or do a subscription service of 3,6 or 12 month. 

This book was in one of those boxes. I forget the theme. I think it was something about comics set in the future or something like that. It was produced by Aspen which isn't really a publisher that has impressed me over the years. One reason is because how founder Michael Turner is like the Tupac Shakur of comic books. The artist died in 2008. Yet it seems that he continuously has new series coming out every year. I can't figure out if he was that prolific or if someone is ghosting for him (no pun intended.)

Anyways, I actually like Lola XOXO. The story was pretty good. The concept was fairly original. Though I felt like there were elements of that very short-live NBC series Revolution mixed into this. That Eric Kripke series debuted in 2012, about 2 years before this comic book debuted. So there's a possibility that Lola XOXO creator Siya Oum was influenced by it in some way. 

Oum's art is really, really good. Lola is drawn in a cheesecake, but too non-defenseless, way. Each scene has amazing detail. Want proof, examine how comprehensive the city in the background of the cover image is. It's utterly amazing!

I would like to read the other 2 series in the Lola XOXO franchise. I'm not planning on keeping this book. But I surely would not mind a couple of return trips to learn if Lola finds her parents or not. My guess- she returns home but finds out they went east to find her. That would be a freaking awesome twist!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Choose Your Own Aspen Adventure #1 (HCF 2017)

Every Halloween ComicFest, Aspen Comics does something for kids. While I think it's great to appeal to the next generation of comic collectors, Aspen isn't really known for it's all-ages titles. What appealed to me was the 'Choose Your Own Adventure' aspect of the title. As a child of the 80s, I was in love with those paperbacks that allow you, the reader, to control the plot of the story. 

Marvel has been perfecting this type of story over the past couple of years. They seemed to be the only publisher doing such comics. So to see another publisher finally tackling the concept intrigued me. Unfortunately, this is NOT a Choose Your Own Adventure comic book.

In this 2017 special, an amateur magician accidentally sends a group of wild and mystical animal pals into two places unknown. As the two groups try to get home, you the reader help them on their quest by solving puzzles, riddles, and other cool activities. 

While writer Vince Hernandez builds the activities up as helping to forge the destinies of the animals, there's nothing here to alter their outcomes. Usually with a Choose Your Own Adventure, the reader must decide to that the character left or right. Going left might result in finding the lost treasure. While going right might cause the protagonist to fall into a pit of vipers.

By saying something like 'help the animals through a maze' doesn't change the characters' destinies. That's not the case here as this really more of an activity book. Don't get me wrong, I like the idea of an activity book comic book. But don't sell me a Choose Your Own Adventure if there's nothing in it that if left up to me to decide. 

This comic offering from Aspen had promise but it lied. Still, it was a fun read. The characters were adorable and the fun and games was something I would have killed for as a trick-or-trick prize. The book is just not what I was sold on.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 7 out of 10 stars.