Graphic Novel Reviews

Our family has been reading a lot of graphic novels over the last year or two. They are mostly fun, some are absolutely brilliant, and some I don't care for that much. As we keep reading I'll add reviews to this page, from the adult point of view (my kids might absolutely love the ones I don't like that much). Watch out, there are lots of spoilers here.

The Bad Guys
This is a really fun and clever story of bad-guys-turned-good, fighting aliens. Can bad guys really become good? But really great silliness and good character development and a well-thought-out plot.

Captain Underpants
Silly, clever, inappropriate. A bad influence but good.

The Catstronauts
The Catstronauts are a cat space program that heroically accomplish important missions despite themselves. Aside from overly-simplistic plot devices (solar panels on the moon will save the Earth), and the risk that readers might actually believe the solutions are good policy ideas (they are very bad ideas), the stories and characters are well-developed and contain entertaining parallels to reality (such as a Cosmocats space program).

Catwad
Catwad and Blurmp are cats that have a crass and at times disgusting sibling rivalry. Blurmp is simple and gullible, while Catwad is manipulative and mean. You explore their toxic relationship through clever stories set in ordinary situations with hilarious outcomes. And Catwad might actually learn something once in a while from sweet Blurmp, who bumbles along cluelessly and never stoops to Catwad’s meanness.

Dog Man
The body of a cop and head of a dog are sewn together to create—Dog Man! Not my favorite, but endearing characters fighting bad guys with plenty of goofiness.

El Deafo
A deaf girl imagines herself as a superhero and discovers advantages she has that other kids don’t. Poignantly captures the feeling of being different, of worrying the other kids will judge you. A powerful story.

Glorkian Warrior
The Glorkian Warrior and his Super Backpack encounter silly alien creatures while on patrol. Lots of cleverness. I think the video game is better than the books.

Hilo
Hilo is a robot-boy who with other kids saves the world from giant robots sent to destroy it. A complex plot with twists and turns. I love the relationships between the characters. I love the real family interactions and the individual personalities of the kids’ family members. And clever laugh-out-loud silliness is on almost every page.

Johnny Boo
Johnny Boo is a ghost who hangs out with other ghosts and tangles with an ice cream monster. Not my favorite.

Princess in Black
Keeping monsters from eating goats and keeping their superhero identities secret occupy these princesses, goat herders, and others.

Totoro
This beautifully-illustrated magical fantasy is set in Japan. The movie is even more amazingly wonderful--the best animated/kids film I've ever seen.