Luna’s 2019 Graphic Novel & Comic Recommendations and Reviews #Vol3

This year I’ve read many graphic novels, comics and also returned to my trusted favourites; manga. Below is batch #3 of the high and lows of what I’ve read of the last couple of months, with a few comments / mini-reviews.

If you have any recommendations for future reads, do list them in the comments.

For batch #1 click on this link here
For batch #2 click on this link here

 

My Little Pony Comics

Luna’s Review: This is my first venture into the My Little Pony comics, and I know I’ll be reading more because it’s so cute. The volumes are split into individual stories readers are bound to find their own favourites.

Because there are so many volumes to choose and the stories don’t “belong” together you can really pick up what you want. The ones above are how I started. If you haven’t seen any of the Friendship is Magic TV episodes I think they would be a better place to start, but if you’ve ventured into Ponyville before then these will definitely be something you’ll enjoy.

 

Bloom by Kevin Panetta and Savanna Ganucheau (Illustrator)

Now that high school is over, Ari is dying to move to the big city with his ultra-hip band—if he can just persuade his dad to let him quit his job at their struggling family bakery. Though he loved working there as a kid, Ari cannot fathom a life wasting away over rising dough and hot ovens. But while interviewing candidates for his replacement, Ari meets Hector, an easygoing guy who loves baking as much as Ari wants to escape it. As they become closer over batches of bread, love is ready to bloom . . . that is, if Ari doesn’t ruin everything.

Writer Kevin Panetta and artist Savanna Ganucheau concoct a delicious recipe of intricately illustrated baking scenes and blushing young love, in which the choices we make can have terrible consequences, but the people who love us can help us grow.

Luna’s Review: This is very much a fluffy blanket with hot chocolate story. The pacing is relaxed, and the story is about the characters, not the plot. You have panels on baking, with stolen glances between Ari and Hector and that just elevates the cuteness.

 

Conspiracy of Ravens by Leah Moore, John Reppion and Sally Jane Thompson (Illustrations)

Teen schoolgirl Anne unexpectedly inherits a mysterious locket and a crumbing English mansion estate from her long-lost aunt. She unearths the family secret that she’s part of a magical legacy that gives her fantastic abilities, and she isn’t the only girl whose family is involved.

But not all the girls are so willing to use their new powers for good…

Luna’s Review: I think the beginning is a little busy but after that the story settles and the reader gets to be enticed into an adventurous plot.

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The Backstagers, Vol. 1: Rebels Without Applause by James Tynion IV, Rian Sygh (Illustrator) and Walter Baiamonte (Illustrator)

All the world’s a stage . . . but what happens behind the curtain is pure magic literally!

When Jory transfers to an all-boys private high school, he’s taken in by the only ones who don’t treat him like a new kid, the lowly stage crew known as the Backstagers. Not only does he gain great, lifetime friends, Jory is also introduced to an entire magical world that lives beyond the curtain. With the unpredictable twists and turns of the underground world, the Backstagers venture into the unknown, determined to put together the best play their high school has ever seen.

Luna’s Review: A brief summary of The Backstagers would be, it’s sweet and fun. I’ve now read a bit further than the first volume and apart from the art style (which I like a lot because it’s so vibrant) my main selling point on this is how The Backstagers celebrates its own over the topness. The backstage world is imaginative, mysterious and full of rainbows and the story just owns this. Unlike some graphic novels that I just instantly love this seems to be more of a slow-burn but as I continue to read it and re-read it I appreciate it more.