It’s time to say goodbye to Scott Pilgrim, the bemused young fighter and band member we’ve watched grow up over the last six years. Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour is a satisfying conclusion to his journey from clueless boy coasting through life to young man making his own decisions and fighting for the woman he loves. The last of Ramona’s evil exes, Gideon, obviously plays a major role, but not as much of one as I expected. That’s a good thing, […]

What if teen witches acted like real teens, mean and bitchy and selfish? That’s the appeal of Spell Checkers, a black-and-white graphic novel out later this month from Oni Press. It’s written by Jamie S. Rich, illustrated by Nicolas Hitori de, and Joelle Jones contributes additional art. Three girls cast a spell to give them power, vowing to be best friends forever. Now they’re in high school, and the way they rule the school is being questioned. Normally, they send […]

It’s a crazy idea for a kids’ book, but it works surprisingly well. Possessions: Unclean Getaway by Ray Fawkes is the story of Gurgazon, a demon inhabiting a five-year-old girl, who is taken away to the Llewellyn-Vane House for Captured Spirits and Ghostly Curiosities. Once captured, it only wants to escape, resulting in weird comedy. It’s done in black, white, and a weird light green the publisher appropriately describes as “sickly”. It’s billed as suitable for “all audiences”, but I […]

Janet is a character type many readers can identify with: She’s only got a few close friends. She spends a lot of time by herself or with her best friend and roommate, a ghost named Paul. She’d like to have a relationship, but she’s unsure she’s ready to put in the work involved or whether she’s found the right guy to be worth the effort. When her friend Freya sets her up on a blind date with Derek, the two […]

In this penultimate volume of the indy favorite series, Scott Pilgrim continues the path he began in the previous book: becoming an adult and growing up. Along with that comes relationship struggles and the need to make decisions instead of coasting through life. As Scott Pilgrim vs. the Universe opens, Scott turns 24. He and his friends are getting bored with their perfect little lives — the parties are trying too hard, the band is “recording” instead of playing gigs, […]

Jamie S. Rich (Love the Way You Love) and Joelle Jones (Token) team up again for an old-fashioned private eye yarn in You Have Killed Me. It’s something of a change of pace, since their previous book together was the romance 12 Reasons Why I Love Her, one of my best books of 2006. A woman from Tony’s past has just come back into his life. Her sister, his ex-fiancee, is missing, and she needs the detective’s help, in spite […]

It’s been four years since the last Blue Monday story by Chynna Clugston, and I’ve missed these weird, wacky, wonderful teens. When the gang goes to the zoo, Bleu is distracted by all the animals having sex. It’s almost spring, you see, but she’s also got sex on the brain because of her crush on Mr. Bishop. She’s hatched a plan to lose her virginity so he’ll be more interested in the “experienced” her, although she’s still creeped out by […]

Matthew Loux has created a modern classic of children’s adventure with Salt Water Taffy, “The Seaside Adventures of Jack and Benny”. Jack and Benny are brothers, and their parents have taken them to a small town in Maine for the summer. The videogame batteries are dead, there’s no television, but Chowder Bay has other things to draw attention, like “The Legend of Old Salty”, a giant lobster. Loux draws with a thick line that gives everyone incredibly sharp chins and […]