Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing
Release Date: February 17, 2015
Price: $13.99
Creator: Chris Giarrusso
Format: 240 pgs., B&W/Full-Color, Hardcover
ISBN: 978-1-4494-5844-7
Age Ratings: 7-12 years
ICv2 Ratings: 4 Stars out of 5
Like a lot of kids his age, middle schooler Michael G is obsessed with superheroes and wants nothing more than to have superpowers of his own. Living in a world where superheroes are real this is actually possible and it seems like everyone in his school is getting super powers except him. As a school assignment Michael is required to keep a journal and The G-Man Super Journal: Awesome Origins is the record of his school year told in prose and cartoons. It chronicles his various schemes and struggles to make his dream true, all while dealing with an assortment of unreasonable parents, siblings and teachers.
Chris Giarrusso has written and drawn three graphic novels featuring Michael and his super powered classmates, but there the focus is more on their superheroic adventures. And as the subtitle suggests, here the emphasis is more on their origins and Giarrusso does an especially fine job of depicting ordinary school life and getting inside the head of his protagonist.
Even without the superhero stuff there’s still plenty of wish fulfillment. Naturally Michael sees himself as the much put upon hero of his story as he deals with an older brother who’s forever trying to get him in trouble as well as a teacher /tormentor constantly throwing cold water on his superhero dreams. His attempts to revenge himself against his oppressors are silly but entirely relatable, in short, The G-Man Super Journal: Awesome Origins is a whole lot of fun that any kid should enjoy.
--Steve Bennett: Writer and retail services consultant.