Young Shadow & The Watchdogs

It's been a minute since I've read a book set in the Double+ universe, and it was high time for me to remedy that. This is the second book to feature the hero Young Shadow, and it is a great one to read right about now, with springtime and baseball season upon us. Also, you do not necessarily have to read the first one to catch what is going on here. The premise here is that Young Shadow and the Watchdogs, a crew of young people, are cleaning up a chemical spill when one of the 'dogs, Elmore, happens upon a baseball glove.

Surprise! the glove is haunted, and soon the nine kids find themselves involved in an otherworldly baseball game. And the stakes are high - if they lose, they lose their eternal freedom(!).

There are many things to love about this book. The sports sequences are exciting and well paced, the overall artwork captures the spirit of a strange and wondrous place, and there is a good dose of humor and heart. I have loved all the books I've read set in Bolt City, and this one is no exception. It's recommended for anyone that like baseball, ghostly adventures, cool character designs, and/or fun.  

Ben Sears is the writer/artist/complete package responsible for this book and all the other Double+ adventures. He is a cartoonist, musician, and animator, and in my humble opinion he should be better known and his books more read. 

All of the reviews I have read of this book have been glowing. Colin Moon called it "a wholly unique, wholly singular book, ready to hook a reader and start a lifelong fandom." Zack Quaintance wrote that although it was not what he expected, he "found the book to be an utter delight." 

Young Shadow & The Watchdogs was published by Fantagraphics, and they offer more info about it here. 

House of the Black Spot

I try to read as many new graphic novels every year, but sometimes I just fall behind. House of the Black Spot was published in the summer, and it's the latest entry in Ben Sears's Double+ series. As with other books in the series, it follows the escapades of Plus Man and Hank. Plus Man is a young adventurer who works delivery jobs while frequently foiling criminals. Hank is his more sensible and mature robot friend.

Plus Man: Not necessarily the guy you want to deliver your groceries.

In this book, we travel to Gear Town, where Hank's uncle Bill lives. Or lived rather, because he was murdered. It turns out that there is a nefarious scheme to gentrify Gear Town, with real estate developers intimidating residents to sell their properties. They are seemingly aided by the town's founder, a ghostly figure who was long thought to be dead.

Our heroes happen upon this situation at the reading of Uncle Ben's will, where friends, family, and antagonists are all locked in the house until his murderer is revealed. This being a good mystery, of course there are many things that are not as they seem...

I very much enjoyed the murder/adventure plot of this book, but the best part of it was Sears's colorful artwork. He does superb work at world-building, and I spent much time looking over his deceptively simple-looking images. The buildings' architecture is inventive and fun, and I just loved looking at all the details, such as what people have on their kitchen counters in this world. Plus, there are lots of nods to classic murder story elements, like secret passages and paintings where the eyes follow people around. As with the other books in the series, this one is a true all ages book, with lots of features to please and amuse readers young and old.

All the reviews I have read about this book have been positive. Leonard Pierce wrote, "Sears’ strength is absolutely as a visual storyteller, but there’s enough happening in his engaging characters, involving storylines, and light-fingered explorations of contemporary issues that the books are always something to look forward to." James Ardis commented that "for a graphic novel accessible to both children and young adults to tackle gentrification in any capacity is quite ambitious." Tom Shapira opined that "charm is something Ben Sears has in spades. The art, the colors, even the lettering, everything in this story screams for unencumbered joy."

House of the Black Spot was published by Koyama Press, and they offer a preview and more here.

The Ideal Copy

The Ideal Copy is the third book in the Double+ universe I have read, and it is truly amazing to me how Ben Sears manages to create phenomenal all ages comics. In this book, our heroes Plus Man and his robot pal Hank lose their jobs as treasure hunters because they refuse to raid the house of a dead man. Left with little other prospects, the duo eventually take jobs as caterers. Because they are hardworking, they do well serving food and washing dishes. However, at a ritzy hotel gala for a fraternity of weird, obnoxious guys who all have the same haircut and wear the same clothes, they suspect some foul play.

After some snooping around, Plus Man uncovers a nefarious counterfeiting scheme that gets further complicated when a blizzard traps everyone at the hotel. There is a growing cast of characters who get embroiled in this situation, including a little child actor named Mickey who is surprisingly resourceful, and Gene, a grizzled, ex-treasure hunter who sports an eye-patch. Together, this motley bunch takes on the plot with surprising results. There are captures, thrills, and more than enough hi-jinx to keep them and the reader occupied.

As I hope you can see from this short excerpt, The Ideal Copy is a book of beautiful rhythms. The dialogue is snappy and clever. The artwork is gorgeously detailed and geometrical. The colors are vibrant and pop. The characters are complicated and wonderfully unpredictable. Ben Sears is a virtuoso who weaves all these elements together into a sumptuous visual symphony. I loved the derring-do, caper aspects of the plot, and I am very happy to read the note at the end that this duo's adventures will continue. This third book is the best of the bunch, in my opinion, and I am thrilled for more.

All of the reviews I have read about this book have been positive. Rob Clough had much praise for the book and declared it "the best of the three volumes." Tom Baker called it "rip-roaring rib-tickling romp." Ryan Carey opined, "Ben Sears is a cartoonist who intrinsically understands what younger readers want in a story, but the tent he’s hosting his party in a big one, and there’s plenty of room in it for us old-timers, too." Mel Schuit was more lukewarm and wrote, "All in all, fans looking for more of the trademarked Plus-Man-and-Hank antics we saw in the first two books in the series might find The Ideal Copy slightly lacking, but it’s a nice effort on Sears’ part to flesh out his human characters further and begin to hint at events further down the line in the series."

And in case you are interested, my reviews of the past Double+ books are here and here.

The Ideal Copy was published by Koyama Press, and they offer more information and a preview here.

I saw Sears this year at HeroesCon, where I bought this book from him, and he was nice enough to sign it and also draw a sketch. He's a great guy!

Volcano Trash

Night Air was one of my favorite books of 2016, and this book Volcano Trash is the follow-up volume from Ben Sears. In this book, we get more of the same: excellent all-ages adventure starring a couple of lovable rogues named Plus Man (a young goggle-wearing thief) and Hank (his robot companion). They are also joined by a getaway driver named Basil, who pitches in on various plots and schemes.

The characters have much to contend with in this book, including corrupt cops, a labyrinthine prison, lackeys, a henchman who can split into three, and hive-mind guards, when their past actions catch up to them and they end up in the hands of the law. There are lots of action, intrigue, and plot twists, too, as unlikely alliances happen and certain characters are not what they seem.

 

 

In addition to all of this great plotting, you can also see that the artwork is exceptionally attractive and inventive. The action sequences are rendered in excellent detail, combining elements of video games, European comics, and manga conventions. The technology and character designs are first-rate, and this book is a joy to read, behold, and revisit. It's just plain fun.

The reviews I have read about this book have been glowing. Dustin Cabeal simply stated. "I loved every corner and page of this comic." Oliver Sava wrote, "Sears’ work reads like a mashup of great all-ages entertainment like Tintin, Adventure Time, the Indiana Jones movies, and any number of action video games, and there’s a sense of joy and delight that makes his comics especially well-suited for kids." Paul and Gwen at the Comics Alternative praised the book for its broad appeal and unique art style.

Volcano Trash was published by Koyama Press, and they have a preview and more info about it here. If you are interested in learning more about Ben Sears, there is an extensive interview with him about comics and this book here.

Night Air

One of the most surprising things about Night Air is that it is an all ages book. It certainly did not feel like one to me as I read it, because it is fun, smart, and full of excellent things, and I wish more comics were like it. The plot revolves around a "boy and his robot." Its protagonist is Plus Man, a goggle-wearing guy who is pretty single-minded and borderline unlikable. He just wants to get rich and have fun and look cool in the process. He is accompanied by a robot with great capabilities who looks out for him and saves his hide on more than one occasion.

Plus Man starts the book by getting into some trouble cheating at the poker table and by the end he ends up searching for valuable minerals in a haunted house. In between are all kinds of chases, scrapes, and traps that he must avoid. Despite his actions, I found myself still rooting for Plus Man, because he is a scalawag. I  enjoyed his adventures, laughed more than once at the jokes, and marveled at the gorgeously rendered artwork in this book. It contains pretty much everything a great comic should have.

This book's creator Ben Sears has published various works in zines, mini-comics, a few anthologies, and the back-up of an issue of Adventure Time. The characters in this book originally appeared in a webcomic called Double +. He speaks about his work on Night Air in this interview.

All of the reviews I have read about this book have been full of praise. Oliver Sava remarked about how Sears' work is marked by "bold designs, immersive compositions, and atmospheric colors." John Seven called it "a good effort from Koyama for kid-oriented comics, providing thrills and laughs, but not at the expense of clever and intelligent work." RJ Casey concluded that these are some "fun comics with no icky strings attached."

Night Air was published by Koyama Press, and they have a preview and more available here.