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Power Up (2009)

by Doug TenNapel(Favorite Author)

3.7 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

1607060930 (ISBN13: 9781607060932)

languge

English

genre

Fantasy

publisher

Image Comics

review 1: This is a pure fun story from TenNapel that I can't help wondering if it contains a bit of biographical detail on how he got started with his "Earthworm Jim" character. This stories features a game designer working on an "Earth Dog Jim" character. Power Up contains all the usual elements of TenNapel's work but on a much lighter note; the strained father/son relationship is here, there is a Christian theme present thought it is below the surface and not as upfront and powerful as in other books of his I've read so far and the theme though light-hearted has a dark side. Given the chance to use video game "power ups" in real life, this man becomes frivolous; he does make some good decisions but eventually more and more bad decisions lead to him facing the "boss" in real li... morefe and using the bomb power-up for real. Thank goodness for extra lives and the"save from here" flag saves the day. Doug's character mentions "Paradise" and "as close as we get to (it) on this side of death." Makes one realize the frailness of life and how lucky it would be to get a "do-over", but since we don't we need to take the moments that we are given as they come to us and not waste our lives waiting for the right time for everything. The story's video game angle will appeal to kids/teens but I think the story is better appreciated by adults as it is about a married man in a go-nowhere job and I don't think teens will relate to the adult characters and their adult worries. This is the first book of Doug's I've read in black & white and I was a bit worried as his colour art is so bold, but I was delighted with how much one pays attention to his character's facial expressions in this media. The faces stand out on every page. I love this man's art and his capacity for storytelling. This is not my favourite by the author but it's not my least either. Fun!
review 2: Another funny heartfelt graphic novel from TenNapel. The main character, Hugh, is married and the father of a son who looks to be in 5th or 6th grade. Hugh works in a boring job at a copy center but has a hobby of designing video games that he has never shared with anyone other than his coworker Doyle. When Hugh brings home an old console game from a garage sale--think Atari or SEGA, very low graphics--and starts playing it, he discovers that he can capture the "powerup" spheres from the game into real life! So when he smashes a sphere, he is shielded from harm, temporarily. Soon all sorts of funny and magical things happen to Hugh and his family, as he gets greedy and even more superpowered, and his life becomes a living video game. Will he come to his senses before it's too late and the game's supervillain is unleashed on the world? A great adventure and spoof/homage to videogames, plus fun father-son scenes and some humorous side characters at the copy center. less

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