It's been said that a good pitch (movie, television, comic, what have you...) should able to be boiled down to a short sentence or phrase. If the premise is strong enough, it can even end up as a title. It should come then as no surprise that the title of Rashad Doucet's graphic novel is in fact as good a descriptor of the book's premise as any: My Dog is a Superhero.Young Ashleigh Bryce's world is spiraling out of control. Strange alien creatures have appeared, disguising themselves as common (and not so common) animals. Some try to be peaceful, while others have nothing but evil on their minds (go figure). Despite all of this, Ashleigh still makes an effort to live a normal, everyday life. And if things get rough, she can always count on her faithful dog Wolfie to have her back. And of course, it doesn't hurt that her dog just happens to be an alien, too, and a hero at that.
Such is the premise of My Dog is a Superhero. Through four chapters, we get to see Ashleigh try to get through "The Longest Day Ever!" while dealing with all manner of alien beasties. But it's Wolfboy (affectionately call "Wolfie") who does the heavy lifting, springing to action (and a pseudo-humanoid form) in an attempt to catch the alien invaders.
When I initially went through the book way back when, I thought that it was a little light on story. To a certain degree, this is true. But while Doucet's style focuses heavily on action, it isn't there simply for the sake of splash panels. His action tells the story that it's meant to tell. There are a few places (especially when the story skips forward) that you may have to "fill in the blanks" but it's hardly a burden.
Along the same lines, dialogue can become sparse in places, but it effectively conveys the personality of the characters. If I were to have one complaint, it would be that the source of much of the meatier conversations and character moments tend to happen in the latter acts. But to be honest, that's better than just having the entire plot fall apart at the end like some books do.
The art in the book could best be described as dynamic. It's a bit "four-color world meets manga" and the panels and art are designed to accent Doucet's high-impact style. The character deform and aren't in perfect scale, but it's clearly a style choice as opposed to lazy artwork. I'll openly admit that it may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it works well with a story like this one. Honestly, I don't think the book would work as well with a more "conventional" style.
I've shown copies of this book to people here and there, and one thing that stands out to me is how much universal appeal it seems to have. People who haven't ever touched a comic or graphic novel find it interesting and entertaining. And while I haven't tossed it at any of the younger generation, I have no doubt that young people would be bound to enjoy it a great deal.
(Ed. Note: I chose to forgo a traditional review with scores and the like since Rashad is a good friend of mine. While most of the article is an honest review of the title in question, I just know I would have bumped his score a point subconsciously. Still, the fact that he's a cool guy, and he does good work. You should check it out.)
