Divalicious! is a frothy, episodic ramble through the life of a self-obsessed teen pop star. Tina’s got it all — career, fans, a rival, and manager Shaquille. (Even a MySpace site!) Watching her overreact to all of it is hilarious.

Writer T Campbell (Penny and Aggie) covers the gamut of modern celebrity culture in content-packed chapters, while Amy Mebberson’s art (As If!) more than keeps up with how over-the-top everything is. Her characters are friendly, even when they’re self-absorbed or stupid.

Divalicious! Book 1
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Tina’s into every trend, whether re-teaming with her former bandmates for an Africa charity tour or dating a rapper. The chapters are short, suitable for the short-attention-spanned, but jam-packed. Those obsessed with pop and stardom will find a lot to enjoy here, as will those who only want to laugh at them.

I found the wannabe fangirl chapter particularly amusing. It’s All About Eve for the American Idol internet generation. Attempted murder can be a tough topic for humor, but Campbell keeps it lightly menacing while making points about the entertainment industry machine. Creepy manager dads, the marketing of sex, and the strangely symbiotic relationships between stars and managers also come in for barbs.

Campbell writes lyrics that support the storylines and evoke typical song formats. It’s hard to handle music in comics, since there’s no sound, but here it successfully contributes to the package. There’s even a Big Bad villain, after the first few chapters, who provide the motivation for the cliffhanger ending.

Find out more at the publisher’s website. Or read the original Rising Stars of Manga story.