New Crusaders - Ian Flynn
- Rise of the Heroes - In the peaceful town of Red Circle, the retired Crusaders gather to celebrate, when the Brian Emperor returns from the dead and kills them. Everyone except the Shield is gone; he leads the kids to safety and implements a long-planned procedure of giving them powers and training them as the New Crusaders. But the Brain Emperor is doing some recruiting of his own. Don't be fooled by the cartoony Archie-like art; this is cold-blooded and fairly realistic in the casual body count these powered beings would rack up. The kids are unready and their actions have consequences. I want volume two! [4]
New Crusaders Legacy - various writers
A mix of "classic" and new stories (the new material is by Ian Flynn). Set immediately after the first volume, the conceit of this book is that the Shield is showing the New Crusaders the darker side of their parents' legacies, as shown though the older stories. Kudos to the company for focusing on a wide range of topics such as excessive force, but they're handled in an extremely unsophisticated way (Shield is on trial for murder something like one day after he apparently kills a suspect; he's exonerated through some extremely questionable methods, including the most deus ex machina surprise witness I have ever seen). [3]
New Kid - Jerry Craft [HarperCollins]
Jordan Banks, a black seventh grader, starts seventh grade at a prestigious private school. With only a couple of other black kids in his grade, he doesn't feel like he fits in, especially when the teachers mix up their names and even well-meaning kids make stereotypical assumptions. When he returns to his old neighborhood, he questions how well he fits in there also. With new sports, weird girls, and jackass entitled kids to deal with, Jordan doesn't know if he'll ever make it. This graphic novel won the 2020 Newbery Award and the Coretta Scott King award. The characters are fleshed out, the issues it deals with are real, and there are several genuinely hilarious moments in the book. I was not a huge fan of the art style, which was a little too cartoony and whimsical, I thought. Actually I preferred the sketchbook art that Jordan does. [4.5]
Nextwave - Warren Ellis
Vol. 1-2 - This is what they want. Everything else is total ******. [5]
Nola's Worlds #1: Changing Moon - Mathieu Mariolle [Graphic Universe]
-
Translated
from the French. A girl with a distant mother befriends two strange
kids who are more than they seem, having strange powers and being hunted
by strange creatures. Bright, cheery, colorful illustrations with some
anime and American cartoon influences. The story is not presented
well, with the character's relationships and actions changing abruptly
and seemingly without reason. Has some charm in the art, but no wit or
suspense. Library. [2]
Northlanders - Brian Wood
- ?
- The Cross and the Hammer - In 11the century Ireland, one lone rebel goes on a killing spree against the invading Vikings, accompanied by his young daughter. Proto-detective Ragnar is sent by the king to flush him out. But not everything is as it appears to be. This is an interesting story with a bit of twists. Blood and gore aplenty, without any time for nuance of character. [3.5]
Nova - Duggan
Vols. 1-6.
Standard teen superhero action. Teen finds himself with powers, father
maybe a hero but missing, in over his head, etc. A lot of posturing and
punching, not as much thinking. Pretty standard stuff. [2.5]
Nova - Dan Abnett & Andy Lanning
