IDW Publishing 2019
Written by Carlos Guzman-Verdugo & Alejandro Verdugo
Illustrated by Jorge Monlongo
Letters & Design by Christa Meisner
NAPOLEON DYNAMITE is back and senior year is gonna be flippin’ sweet! He’s dating Deb, training at a new dojo, and his best friend, Pedro, is student body president. But the good times might not last when a fellow student accuses Pedro of cheating in the election. Can Napoleon and Deb use their special skills to clear their friend before the principal can IMPEACH PEDRO? Maybe, gosh, get off his back!
I don't know whether to laugh or cry now. Full disclosure, I never watched the film so I have no idea about any of these characters except what I am seeing right here. I mean I can't quite place it but he feels like this combination of an upscale Beavis & Butthead. I mean just the fact that these two were able to actually a whole story that not only highlights this odd human being but makes it funny, in one of the best intelligent uses of humour might I add, interesting and kind of captivating. I mean I thought this was weird and stupid at first but I couldn't stop reading and that I couldn't says I a lot about how well this was done.
The way that the story & plot development alongside the character development that we see here really work so incredibly well with one another. They weave in, out and around each other and like a DNA strand are always connected. So the way that we learn information and how revelations and the twists and turns are brought to life get picked up by the pacing and it creates a great ebb & flow to the story. Napoleon is one hell of an idiotic teenager and if I wanted to place bets then I would say it's a reflection of inbreeding but then again I have no but if it's true mental illness or somewhere on the Autism spectrum then I cannot make fun of him, if he's not oh the library is open and I am ready to read! Don't doubt me on that because I will.
I still can't believe these folks were able to really get me involved and invested in this book. This isn't something I normally gravitate towards but this is what I love about being a Reviewer and working with companies like IDW. I experience books I would never normally read and find out that the creators can do wonderful things and introduce me to worlds I would never gone to. So kudos to the creative team here for that.
The interiors here are extremely interesting. The linework is absolutely amazing and how the varying weights are being utilised is sensational as it brings out this attention to detail. I am not sure I have seen this kind of work outside some old Nickelodeon cartoons. But for whatever reason just like the writing it not only suits the story perfectly but it does make the reader think, wonder, analyse and re-evaluate what is good, what works and most importantly what you like. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective show us a fantastic eye for storytelling. That we see backgrounds as much as we do to expand the moments and bring a size and scope to the story is incredibly well done. I like the colour work too and while I don't really see any colour blocking or gradation in the colour by using various hues and tones I still think it works extremely well. To me this defies logic and is spectacular p.s. I wanna know what's on the back tire of the bus!
There is something about this with the characterisation and the plot or premise here that clicks and it's easy for folks to sit back, relax and enjoy. Now I don't think I ever saw anyone in my High School that was like this but I am sure there are going to be plenty of folks who can find ways to relate to this through their own experiences growing up. Even if not, like me, there's plenty to enjoy, laugh about and be regaled with this intelligent humour.