Mister Miracle: The Great Escape

I write a weekly column on my blog called Family Comic Friday. I originally was going to review this for that post. But after I completed this book, I decided it wasn't appropriate for that.

In the very beginning of this book, there is a trigger warning about how details in this book involved talk of suicide and experiences of PTSD. Not to mention there's a whole academy of youngsters being trained to become soldiers by beating everyone else's brains in. But no. Neither of those reasons is why I decided not to review this for my weekly family review. It's because of the swears. They're all here. Even the BIG one of all-time- the F-Bomb!

Amazon rates this 2022 young adult graphic novel for those in grades 8-12. I'm completely fine with that. But my local library has this book put with the kids graphic novel section. I'm not one to ban books. But I do think it's my duty to let the library know that they've got this book placed in the wrong age group lest some irate parent start a protest demanding Mister Miracle: The Great Escape become the latest victim of a good ol' fashioned book burning. 

That last sentence is about as ironic a statement I can make as the planet on which this book takes place, Apokolips, would like nothing more than to eliminate any and all things considered seditious to the reign of the New God, Darkseid. So if a parent did in deed decide that this young adult graphic novel was destined for the furnace, they'd very much be enacting the despotic actions of the scum of Apokolips! Plus, with changes done to the characters, I am sure there will be some comic book fans out there wanting to cry foul! 

When I checked this book out, I actually knew very little about it's publication. Even though I check the previews of new comics and graphic novels weekly, I somehow overlooked this book. I am a huge fan of Jack Kirby and I'm doing everything in my power to collect any and everything Fourth World. So when I stumbled across this book at my LCS, I was very excited. 

The main change from this book and the original vision of Jack Kirby is the skin color of Scott Free and several other characters are reversed. At first, I thought that this might be yet another attempt by DC to be what detractors call 'woke.' But then I remembered from reading a Jack Kirby biography recently that Kirby wanted Mister Miracle originally to be black but the editors vetoed that idea. So in reality writer Varian Johnson (The Great Greene Heist) is fulfilling Kirby's original plan for the Fourth World.

See when Jack Kirby came over in 1971 to DC Comics, The King planned to make Apokolips this post-apocalyptic world that was an allegory on class warfare and face. Darkseid and his elete minions were supposed to all be white. While the dregs of Apokolips, the war dogs of Darkseid's army, were all to be people of color. The heavenly people of New Genesis, including Scott Free's real father, Highfather were going to be black (or of color) just like Scott and Big Barda. However, this vision of Kirby's Fourth World was just decades ahead of its time. I'm glad to see it coming to fruition finally, even if it did take 50 years to happen and only occurs in a Young Adult novel that probably isn't canon.

While I enjoyed the changes, I wasn't a big fan of some of the artwork. Artist Daniel Isles (Joyama) draws some characters as if they had a Muppet nose. Instead of a tip and pair of nostrils, some characters noses are completely outlined with a nose-like circle. This makes them look like Bert and Ernie with their foam ball proboscises.

I also didn't like how Scott Free was drawn in his downtime clothes, which looks like a hoodie and sweatpants. Though I wonder if these are some of Himon's Earth clothes and he's given them to Scott so that if he ever escapes to Earth, he'll fit it. If that's the case, I am okay with it. But what the heck is up with those tiny red balls that float around Scott all the time?

I loved Isles design of Big Barda. She's tall. She's rough. And she looks like I would imagine Kirby would have drawn her if the legend was allowed to use a woman of color as a model instead of Jewish chanteuse Lanie Kazan. And the twist with Granny Goodness- that was a brilliant character design that I didn't see coming. 

I did feel that the 3rd act of this book was rushed. It's a trap a lot of comic book and graphic novel writers get into. The first two acts really dive into the hierarchy of the orphanage run by Granny Goodness. The climatic last act is supposed to occur over the span of 8 days and yet maybe only 10-15% of the book's 208 pages is devoted to that time period. Wasn't bad. Just seemed rushed. 

If Varian Johnson and Daniel Isles decided to do a sequel, I would be so on board. I'm interested to see how the character of Shilo Norman would be approached- if introduced. As a compromise to bypassing his dynamic social relevant vision for Scott Free, Jack Kirby created the character of Shilo, a young black pre-teen who one day would become Mister Miracle's replacement. We've already seen Shilo don the suit of the World's Greatest Escape Artist. I'm just interested to see if the creators of this book would make Shilo white to really explore the race-switching nature of this book or if they might make Shilo be of another marginalized race like Asian or Middle Eastern. 

There's a lot left to be explored with this most authentic version of Jack Kirby's epic creations. And I'm willing to camp out to be first in line to acquire it should DC decide to green light a sequel.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

 

Great Quicksolve Whodunit Puzzles

I'm always surprised by how much death and violence and mayhem is within a mystery solve book for young readers. Encyclopedia Brown isn't that bad an offender. But Donald J. Sobol's other books- Two-Minute Mysteries, are filled with a bunch of victims. Jim Sukach's Dr. Quicksolve books are no exception.

The small town detective and his son Junior are on the scene of over two dozen crimes including stabbings, assaults and robberies. There's even a couple of mysteries involving the CIA and a trio of crimes involving the tragic demise of a 1960s rock band.

Most of the solutions were pretty easy to solve. A couple were quite tricky. And one or two had a solution that I just disagree with. To go into it further would bring about massive (and unforgivable) spoilers. So all I will say is that speculation and not fact are how Dr. Quicksolve arrives at 1 or 2 of his deductions. Sadly, poor detective work is rubbing off on the next generation as one of Junior's mysteries is solved by a 'guestimate' and not proven fact!

Seems a little unfair to me. But I am sure that's what happens in the real world too!

Two sections in this book involves a series of mysteries being grouped together. The first one had a one page set-up that took me a few minutes to figure out. It looked just like the other mysteries with a header and an illustration. But there was no blurb explaining to the reader about what aspect of the crime there was to solve. So when you get to this section of the book, don't do like I did and think that there is a page missing or a printing error. There's not. It's a transition that is just not presented to the reader very well.

While I thought that some aspects of this book had a little too much creative license, I did like how the solutions don't go in order. The solution for mystery #1 might be on page 95 and the solution for mystery #2 might be on page 88. This prevents over-eager sleuths from cheating. This was an innovation that I thought was greatly superior to those mysteries of Encyclopedia Brown. But that's about all that this book does better than the kid detective. 

Rating: 6 out of 10 stars.

Emily's Secret Book of Strange (Family Comic Friday)

  I've been holding on to this week's selection for just a time as this. It's the last Family Comic Friday before Halloween and I thought now would be the right time to read and review Emily's Secret Book of Strange.
    A little background about Emily. She's an advertising mascot designed in the early 90s. Since her inception, Emily and her kitties have graced skateboards, purses, guitars, stationary- you name it. There's even boutiques devoted to her in Taiwan, Japan, and in 2017, a store will open in her birthplace of San Francisco. In 2001, Emily even made the jump to comics and graphic novels.
    I had seen a couple of Emily the Strange books in the Young Adult section at my local library. But I just wouldn't make time to check it out. Then one day at a discount book sale, I found a copy of one of her books for literal pennies on the dollar. "Huh,' I thought, 'This would make a great Halloween read' and I snagged it up.
    So, was it a great read?
    The neat thing about about Emily's Secret Book of Strange is that some of it is printed in this kind of invisible ink. If you hold the book up to the light in a certain way, secret messages and other spooky images appear. That's actually pretty neat. There's even this secret decoder activity throughout the book that requires you to find a secret rune in order to find even more hidden messages from Emily.
    Stylistically, this book is beautiful. But the book itself borderlines on the disturbing. Emily hates people. Her only friends are her cats. In order to not feel so lonely she creates these hybrid creatures called Zonsters. So far, I'm on board with everything though I'm a bit spooked as well.
    Because of her creation of new beings, she also shes herself as God.
    Huh? say what? Yeah, I'm sure there's some Doctor Frankenstein mixed into this but if I am trying to be objective for parents, I have to point this personality trait out because some adults may find this objectionable for their kids. Going on the Emily the Strange website, it's pointed out that Emily isn't for kids. But this book is aimed at those 10 and up. Honestly, some of the images and cryptic messages might be too scary for youngsters. So, I would have to say that the suggested reading age actually be 12 and up.
    A very artistic book that is at times visually beautiful as it's advertising at it's very best. But it contains images and ideas that parents  and guardians may not feel are appropriate for their child. Personally, this won't be a permanent fixture of my collection but that's my opinion.

   Rating: 6 out of 10.
    

Star Wars: Moving Target, A Princess Leia Adventure

   Set just before the events of Return of the Jedi, the Rebel Alliance has learned that the Emperor is building another, more powerful Death Star. The fleet is in much disarray after the battle of Hoth and a diversion is needed in order to give the Rebels the time needed to mount an assault on Endor. While Luke is still trying to locate Han, Princess Leia volunteers to send the Empire on a wild goose chase setting up a number of homing beacons on various planets on the other side of the galaxy away from where the Alliance is really regrouping. 

   Along with the pilot Nein Nunb and a ragtag band of soldiers, Leia must mount a decoy fleet in hopes of attracting the Empire's attention. Using old codes, that the Empire can and will break, will cause countless Rebel sympathizers to put their lives on the line for the ploy. More importantly, has Leia signed ber own death warrant when an Imperial star destroyer shows up before she's even activated the first beacon?

    True, since Leia appears in Jedi, we know that she'll come out alright. But, this is still a thrilling adventure that sheds light on some key moments in Episode VI. However, I think that this book eradicates 'Shadows of the Empire,' the multimedia storyline that was to bridge together Episodes V and VI, from Star Wars canon. So, that possibility might infuriate some people.

   Moving Target is the next book in the Journey to the Force Awakens series of young adult novels. Though the book isn't numbered 'volume 2' or 'book 2,' the character of Ematt makes an several appearances and his rescue by Han Solo are mentioned in this book. So, if you are trying to figure out which book to read first the order (thus far) is 1. Smuggler's Run and 2. Moving Target. Not sure where the Luke Skywalker adventure finds in this 'trilogy', but I will very soon. 

   Another thing tying Smuggler's Run and Moving Target together is that the main story is sandwiched between an prologue and epilogue that occurs just prior to the Force Awakens. Here, Leia is now a General in the fight against good and evil, dictating her memoirs. The premise of these books is to offer clues to the forthcoming blockbuster directed by JJ Abrams. Whereas Smuggler's Run gave us little more than a glimpse at old Han, this book was brimming with clues.

     First of all, with the character of Ematt appearing in both the past and current Star Wars timelines, I'm now sure he's going to play a role in Episode VII. Also, Leia makes several remarks about another character that leads me to believe that he or she is one of Leia's kids but living under a different name to keep them safe from the dreaded First Order. Thirdly, well I can't really say much about the clues surrounding it because it will all but give away another possible spoiler. 

  All I can say is this- a lot about the speculations of Episode VII surrounding several mystery players is all but confirmed here. Authors Cecil Castellucci and Jason Fry craft a very good tale without giving away too much. If anything, this book has just gotten me even more pumped up for December 18th! 

   An exciting read that leave's Han and Chewie's tale lagging 12 parsecs behind.

   Worth Consuming

   Rating: 10 out of 10 stars.

Lois Lane: Fallout by Gwenda Bond

Marvel might get all the kudos for it's numerous titles starting female superheroes, but it is DC whose making strides in recruiting the next generation of new girl readers. Last month DC launched the DC Superhero Girls line on their website. With weekly minisodes, activities, and a toy and comic book series coming up next year, the message of DCSH Girls is clear- girls can save the day as well as any boy!

   But 'Girls' isn't what I am reviewing for this post. No, what I am reviewing today is another series geared towards young girls, though boys could enjoy it too! What I am talking about is the Lois Lane mystery series for young adult readers.

    This series is written by author Gwenda Bond and is a reimagining of Lois Lane's days in high school. Lois is an army brat whose been all around the world thanks to her dad's military career as a general. The Lanes have finally settled down in Metropolis, hopefully for good. Things at Lois' new school should go great for the 16-year old if she can follow her dad's advice to not rock the boat. But in typical Lois fashion, her pursuit for justice and truth will make her instant enemies with the Principal when on her first day the young lady sticks up for a fellow student whose being bullied.

    This spunk will put Ms. Lane on several other party's radar. Her anti-bullying cause will make Lois the target of the bullies collectively known as 'The Warheads' who spend all their time playing a virtual reality game and eerily act and talk as if they were of one mind. Lane's attitude also garners the attention of a certain editor of the Daily Planet as well. It will also land the young lady a new job!

   Now a cub reporter for an online reporter for The Scoop, online sister publication of the Planet aimed at teens, Lois will use her new clout to expose the wicked ways of the Warheads. When the attacks start getting personal, the young reporter will need the help of her new friends at the Daily Planet including cyber genius Devin and indy rock fashionista Maddy. But can she trust her new colleagues or is the only person she can truly rely on a budding reporter from the MidWest that she only knows from chatting with on the Internet with the screen name of SMALLVILLEGUY?

    Fallout was an interesting read. I really wanted to get to the bottom of the mystery and I really wanted the bad guys to get what was coming to them. For a young adult mystery novel, it was pretty fresh and new. There were a few cliches, like the ubiquitous evil principal and Lois' parents being the kind that just don't understand what it's like to be a kid anymore.  Overall, the book was quite good and I'm looking forward to the next book which drops early May 2016.

    Before I go, I want to talk to the established fans of DC for a minute. I know you will hate that in this book Lois is a young girl, that she got her start on a kid's feature at the Daily Planet, and that the book takes place now and not during the 90s or even the 80s. The book is geared toward young readers- readers who might one day want to pick up a comic book about Lois Lane and maybe start collecting them. These are the very same potential readers that could one day save the print industry because they got hooked on superheroes thanks to a novel such as this. 

    I was willing to overlook the modern twist. In fact, I like that Clark Kent is involved in the story without physically being a part of Lois' life. I am sure that his presence will send some purists into a fit of rage. But what won this book over for me was that Lois Lane, for how hip and modern she was presented, still was a curious sort who got herself into trouble and is a terrible speller. ('How many 'P's in Rapist?') Take away her iPhone, her plaid skirt, and love of video games, boiled down this is the same Lois that we (and Superman) fell in love with over the past 77 years and that makes this young adult book WORTH CONSUMING!

   Rating: 9 out of 10 stars