Kids' Corner: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl

Squirrel Girl. Who doesn't love her? With her powerful tail, 'can-do' spirit and overcaffeinated Steve Ditko eyes, she was a breath of fresh air when she first showed up in an Iron Man story. My kids both loved that book, especially the visual of Victor Von Doom being felled by an army of squirrels. Can a character with the potential to be a comical comic book footnote carry a series? Well, from the evidence that I have gathered from the first two issues, the answer is a resounding 'yes'. There is a lot of room in the field for a book that favours charm over grim and gritty, and this one got off to a solid start with some strong characterization, humour and some fun guest appearances (I'm looking at you Mr. The Hunter). The down side, however, is that the artwork is serviceable at best. The facial expresses are uniform throughout and the storytelling in the action sequences muddled (Exhibit A - the Iron Man armour bit). There's good potential here, though but I am not sure that my children are as keen on it as I am. The jokes seemed to be geared towards long-time funnybook fans and no young readers. A good comic can strike the right balance (see. Powerpuff Girls) and this one is not there (yet).

Kids' Corner: Sonic the Hedgehog Archives #0

Truth be told, the last video game I played with any regularity was Contra. I am by no means a gamer and tend to steer clear of any video game adaptations as they tend to be quite weak. I had heard, over the years, that the Sonic comic book was quite good and a 20+ year run for the ongoing series speaks to its popularity. My son is starting to become interested in video games and Sonic, so it seems like a good opportunity to take the comic book series out for a test drive. These early stories are written by Michael Gallagher and drawn by Scott Shaw! My son devoured this volume, and handed it over to me. What did I find? I found a main character who shared traits with Lee/Ditko's Spider-Man, adding clever quips throughout the action sequences. I found a well conceived universe, strong character designs and enough pop culture references to keep a parent happy. Sonic has a bit of attitude but it never gets rude or snarky. The package is great, as four issues are compiled at a decent price and its a good size for keeping on a bookshelf. All in all, it was a lot of fun and I look forward to reading future volumes with my kids.

Kids' Corner: Best of DC #4

I remembering reading an article about DC's Rudolph books a numbers of years go (perhaps it was in Comic Book Marketplace). This type of strip would not typically not appeal to me, but I am always intrigued by any book that has such a rabid following. It wasn't until I actually bought this digest recently that I realized that Sheldon Mayer was the brains behind these stories. They are fun and inventive with a good dose of humour. The artwork is attractive and clean and should appeal to children under 10. There is some silliness, but it never moves into 'stupid' territory and they general contain some subtle moral lessons for kids. The digest format is pretty great, but might not works so well for those planning on solving the puzzles. Some of the material here is reprinted, but a couple of stories are new and come from a planned, but never published tabloid edition. Good clean fun.

Kids' Corner: Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius - Not So Secret Invasion

Full disclosure, I am not a fan of Franklin Richards. When I say that, I am referencing the 'Connecticut Years' during John Byrne's run when Franklin was just an accessory and was always playing with Secret Wars toys wearing that annoying 4½ shirt. This Franklin Richards, however, is an entirely different story. In this series, Franklin is a mischievous little guy, getting into all sorts of trouble despite the best efforts of his robo-nanny, H.E.R.B.I.E. Yes, that H.E.R.B.I.E! I read somewhere that there's a real Calvin & Hobbes vibe here, and I certainly won't disagree. The adventures are fun, and the two leads have great chemistry. Kids will love the silliness, but their parents will be rewarded with references to the larger Marvel Universe. How could you possibly pass up the chance too see a mini-Doom or even a time displaced, 8-year old Reed Richards develop a crush on his eventual wife. Great stuff!

Kids' Corner: Bigfoot Boy - Into the Woods

Now that I'm a Dad of two young children (7 year old boy and 5 year old girl), I am constantly trying to find good quality comics for them. One thing I have learned is that not all comics aimed at young readers are made equal. I thought it would be fun to start a new series here discussing comics aimed at actual children. Let's start with a relatively recent graphic novel written by J. Torres with artwork by Faith Erin Hicks. This is the story of a city boy reluctantly staying at his grandmother's house on the edge of a spectacular forest. He befriends his adventurous neighbour and discovers an amulet that transforms him into a Sasquatch with the ability to communicate with wildlife. It's a pretty simple concept that appeals to boys and girls alike. The character designs are simple but stylish, our heroes are likeable and the dialogue is witty without being snarky. A personal pet peeve of mine is too much sarcasm in children's books. There are some menacing wolves that help add a bit of threat to the proceedings. The humour is pretty broad but even the potentially awkward stuff (Rufus is naked when he switches back to human form) are handled tastefully. Torres and Hicks make a very good team and I'll keep my eye out for future volumes. This is a good fit for kids in the 5 to 9 range and is a nice alternative to superhero books.