There are more than a few loose threads left a-dangle, but this lightweight adventure packs a decent quantity of historical...
Four young visitors to the National Air and Space Museum scotch an attempt to rewrite the entire history of aeronautics in this Smithsonian-centric series opener.
Stunned to find all the powered aircraft in the museum suddenly switched out for balloons, science-fair winners Eric, Josephine, Dominique, and Ajay are recruited by a mysterious gent (“I AM the Smithsonian”) to travel—holographically clad in period costume—back to 1909’s Hudson-Fulton Celebration in New York. It seems that time-traveling meddlers with holographic disguises of their own are fixing to turn public opinion against heavier-than-air flight by deliberately crashing the craft belonging to Glenn Curtiss and the Wright brothers. Brisk rounds of snooping and pursuit lead to the baddies being unmasked if never identified (maybe in a future episode). The children go on to save the day with help, plus infodumps, from their interactive wristband computers and some intrepid piloting by the Wrights’ undeservedly lesser-known sister, Katharine. Though dialogue balloons sometimes get tangled, the figures in Nielsen’s neatly squared-off panels dash vigorously through their paces, and the artist renders both historical figures and background settings in accurate detail. Eric and Josephine are white, Dominique is African-American, and Ajay is probably South Asian.
There are more than a few loose threads left a-dangle, but this lightweight adventure packs a decent quantity of historical fill. (Graphic fantasy. 8-11)Pub Date: Feb. 23, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-58834-541-7
Page Count: 64
Publisher: Smithsonian Books
Review Posted Online: Jan. 8, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2016
BOOK REVIEW
File under “laugh riot.”
A rogue spell-check program’s bid to transform all life-forms into that eminently useful office item, the paper clip, touches off a fresh round of lunar lunacy.
Predicated on the entirely reasonable premise that eliminating all spelling and grammar errors everywhere would logically lead to the necessity of exterminating carbon-based life in the universe, this third series entry combines high stakes with daffy banter and daring exploits. CheckMate—a chipper, jumped-up editing program—has invented the Transmogratron, a giant laser that will fulfill its ultimate goals in both the cyber world and “meatspace.” Facing challenges as random as prankster lunar unicorns and a disarmingly motherly Motherboard, scowling First Cat joins a motley crew of diversely carbon- and silicon-based allies, led by the pearlescent Queen of the Moon. They’re in a race to the finish—diverted occasionally by, for instance, a relentlessly punny comic-book interlude featuring a pair of literal and figurative Pool Sharks. They ultimately triumph thanks to teamwork and moxie. Following a celebratory party and toasts to “new friends…and steadfast comrades” (and, of course, “MEOW”), the story’s energetic, brightly colored panels close with a reveal of the next volume. (“I always hate it when comics end by announcing a sequel. SO CRINGE!” declares an authorial stand-in.) It can’t come too soon.
File under “laugh riot.” (Graphic science fiction. 8-11)Pub Date: Nov. 5, 2024
ISBN: 9780063315280
Page Count: 272
Publisher: HarperAlley
Review Posted Online: Sept. 14, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
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
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