All-Ages Reviews - G-Man
More reviews! This time we delve into the realm of superhero comics! Let's talk about G-Man!
You may have seen me talk in the past about a comic called Mini Marvels by artist Chris Giarrusso. It’s a hilarious comic in which the heroes of the Marvel Universe are set as kids in a Peanuts-like world. (Giarrusso makes it no mystery that he’s pulling from Peanuts, putting a very Charlie Brown-esque drawing of Thor right in the intro.) It’s a fun, funny take on the characters, affectionately parodying them, without having them break out of character entirely.
Accurate
Also, it featured a much better resolution to the whole “Spider-man unmasked in front of the entire world” thing than One More Day gave us…
Admit it, this is WAY better than the whole "deal with the Devil" thing.
The only downside to the Mini Marvels trade is that while I think anyone could pick it up and enjoy it, a lot of the jokes make a lot more sense if you have at least a passing familiarity with the Marvel Universe and the various storylines that they’re aping.
Mini Marvels Hawkeye is one of my favorite things ever.
But you’re in luck! Giarrusso has put out his own superhero book along the same vein as Mini Marvels for Image Comics that doesn’t bring any additional baggage along with it. It’s called G-Man!
G-Man is the story of a group of kid super heroes, with the main character being the titular G-Man, also known as Mikey G. No really, his last name is just the letter G, and that’s where his superhero name comes from.
Mikey wants to learn to fly, but it isn’t easy going for a human kid with no superpowers. After dealing with his distracted dad and obnoxious older brother, he reads a book which gives him pointers on flying.
At the end of the book is a small note, explaining that magic capes work best, so he goes and gets the family’s magic blanket (doesn’t every family have one?) And fashions a cape from it. And thus G-Man is born!
Such trials he must face...
There isn’t really much of an overall narrative to the first volume of G-Man. It’s mostly a series of short sketches highlighting various superhero tropes or absurd situations, such as the family Christmas tree gaining sentience and going on a rampage. Or dealing with another super-kid who’s on a bit of a power trip. The second volume does actually tell a continuous story, though each issue was different enough that it covered a wide range of stories while it did so. Much like Mini Marvels, this book parodies a lot of the absurd things that can be found in most superhero books, such as the massive, multi-book crossovers that the big two like to partake in.
Also amazingly accurate...
Art-wise, I think Giarrusso’s style highlights the fact that simplistic art can convey just as much as more complex art in other books. While this style is not one that’d normally catch my eye - I do like a bit more detail than that - it’s more about what’s done with it. Much like in Order of the Stick, I would consider this art better than a lot of other, more complex comic styles. Though simple, the characters are distinct and easy to identify quickly. The characters are all expressive and very animated, telling as much of the story through their faces and poses as they do through their words - as any good comic should.
G-Man always brings the deep life lessons.
The writing is a lot of fun. It’s a comedy, so it’s full of a lot of jokes, but it does also feature an entire cast of characters that display different attributes and have their own arcs and act consistently throughout. G-Man’s brother, Great Man, for example, spends much of the comic bullying his younger sibling, as older brothers do. I didn’t like him much as a person, but as a character? I thought he was great! Especially since the comic made sure to show us that he is a good guy, and he does care about his brother. We’re not beaten over the head with it, it’s just part of the character and comes out in the proper moments. Comedy or not, it does bring in drama when it’s necessary.
And also occaisional cameos by Savage Dragon.
G-Man’s friends are a lot of fun too. In particular are Tan Man, who’s superpower is to change the color of himself and things around him, which leaves him often having to find other ways around problems since he’s normal beyond that (no flight, no super strength) and yet he doesn’t often dwell on it. The other character I really like is Billy Demon, who seems to be one of the most sensible characters (in a book full of hilariously sensible characters). I want to read a comic about his adventures!
His dialogue makes this one of the best panels ever...of all time.
It’s difficult to say what it is that makes the humor in this book work so well. Humor itself is highly subjective so it’s hard to recommend anything to someone based on humor, but if I were ever to do so, this book would be at the top of my list. Many of the jokes in this probably shouldn’t be as funny as they come out, but it’s all about presentation and timing. Yes, timing. Timing is as important to humor in comics as it is anywhere else. A gifted creator knows how to space out panels properly - it’s what gives us the cliché of the silent third panel in gag comics. Sometimes jokes just work better if you let them sink in for a beat before moving on. I feel like Giarrusso is a master of this, but that’s not the only thing that makes his humor work. He also writes wonderfully, witty, deadpan lines, and gets a lot of laughs from having the characters say things that you just wouldn’t expect. Not as in LOLRANDOM humor, just things you wouldn’t normally expect to hear.
More selfish than the bank robbers!
If I had any problems with these comics at all, it would be the lack of lady heroes. Giarrusso doesn’t tend to write girls badly, they’re actually pretty good when they’re there, he just doesn’t seem to write them in too much. The only named lady heroes we get in G-Man are the Color Guardians, who largely hang out in the background and rarely get involved with the plot and the only real jokes they get are running gags, mostly revolving around the fact that no one ever calls them by their proper names (like referring to Princess Roja as Red Girl). Though I will say that Princess Roja did get a funny bit while overreacting to a supposed character death. While I’m sad that no ladies made it into G-Man’s circle of friends, I didn’t feel like the portrayal was insulting (I mean, Great Man was a jerk to them….but it’s Great Man) and because of that it’s a minor complaint. - I’d just like to see that fixed because then I’d have absolutely no complaints at all!
At the very least, a friend to tell him that was a bad idea might have helped.
Overall, G-Man is a great read. I would recommend this to anyone - absolutely anyone! It’s funny, it’s clever, and it’s fun to read. I’ve read these books cover to cover more times than I can count. Anytime I’m in a bad mood and need something to pick me up, I reach for these. They’re one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. A great, adventurous, superhero story, and completely safe for all ages. If you ever get the chance to pick this one up, I’d say you should do so!
Next up will be Super Dinosaur!
...yes, really.
You may have seen me talk in the past about a comic called Mini Marvels by artist Chris Giarrusso. It’s a hilarious comic in which the heroes of the Marvel Universe are set as kids in a Peanuts-like world. (Giarrusso makes it no mystery that he’s pulling from Peanuts, putting a very Charlie Brown-esque drawing of Thor right in the intro.) It’s a fun, funny take on the characters, affectionately parodying them, without having them break out of character entirely.
Accurate
Also, it featured a much better resolution to the whole “Spider-man unmasked in front of the entire world” thing than One More Day gave us…
Admit it, this is WAY better than the whole "deal with the Devil" thing.
The only downside to the Mini Marvels trade is that while I think anyone could pick it up and enjoy it, a lot of the jokes make a lot more sense if you have at least a passing familiarity with the Marvel Universe and the various storylines that they’re aping.
Mini Marvels Hawkeye is one of my favorite things ever.
But you’re in luck! Giarrusso has put out his own superhero book along the same vein as Mini Marvels for Image Comics that doesn’t bring any additional baggage along with it. It’s called G-Man!
G-Man is the story of a group of kid super heroes, with the main character being the titular G-Man, also known as Mikey G. No really, his last name is just the letter G, and that’s where his superhero name comes from.
Mikey wants to learn to fly, but it isn’t easy going for a human kid with no superpowers. After dealing with his distracted dad and obnoxious older brother, he reads a book which gives him pointers on flying.
At the end of the book is a small note, explaining that magic capes work best, so he goes and gets the family’s magic blanket (doesn’t every family have one?) And fashions a cape from it. And thus G-Man is born!
Such trials he must face...
There isn’t really much of an overall narrative to the first volume of G-Man. It’s mostly a series of short sketches highlighting various superhero tropes or absurd situations, such as the family Christmas tree gaining sentience and going on a rampage. Or dealing with another super-kid who’s on a bit of a power trip. The second volume does actually tell a continuous story, though each issue was different enough that it covered a wide range of stories while it did so. Much like Mini Marvels, this book parodies a lot of the absurd things that can be found in most superhero books, such as the massive, multi-book crossovers that the big two like to partake in.
Also amazingly accurate...
Art-wise, I think Giarrusso’s style highlights the fact that simplistic art can convey just as much as more complex art in other books. While this style is not one that’d normally catch my eye - I do like a bit more detail than that - it’s more about what’s done with it. Much like in Order of the Stick, I would consider this art better than a lot of other, more complex comic styles. Though simple, the characters are distinct and easy to identify quickly. The characters are all expressive and very animated, telling as much of the story through their faces and poses as they do through their words - as any good comic should.
G-Man always brings the deep life lessons.
The writing is a lot of fun. It’s a comedy, so it’s full of a lot of jokes, but it does also feature an entire cast of characters that display different attributes and have their own arcs and act consistently throughout. G-Man’s brother, Great Man, for example, spends much of the comic bullying his younger sibling, as older brothers do. I didn’t like him much as a person, but as a character? I thought he was great! Especially since the comic made sure to show us that he is a good guy, and he does care about his brother. We’re not beaten over the head with it, it’s just part of the character and comes out in the proper moments. Comedy or not, it does bring in drama when it’s necessary.
And also occaisional cameos by Savage Dragon.
G-Man’s friends are a lot of fun too. In particular are Tan Man, who’s superpower is to change the color of himself and things around him, which leaves him often having to find other ways around problems since he’s normal beyond that (no flight, no super strength) and yet he doesn’t often dwell on it. The other character I really like is Billy Demon, who seems to be one of the most sensible characters (in a book full of hilariously sensible characters). I want to read a comic about his adventures!
His dialogue makes this one of the best panels ever...of all time.
It’s difficult to say what it is that makes the humor in this book work so well. Humor itself is highly subjective so it’s hard to recommend anything to someone based on humor, but if I were ever to do so, this book would be at the top of my list. Many of the jokes in this probably shouldn’t be as funny as they come out, but it’s all about presentation and timing. Yes, timing. Timing is as important to humor in comics as it is anywhere else. A gifted creator knows how to space out panels properly - it’s what gives us the cliché of the silent third panel in gag comics. Sometimes jokes just work better if you let them sink in for a beat before moving on. I feel like Giarrusso is a master of this, but that’s not the only thing that makes his humor work. He also writes wonderfully, witty, deadpan lines, and gets a lot of laughs from having the characters say things that you just wouldn’t expect. Not as in LOLRANDOM humor, just things you wouldn’t normally expect to hear.
More selfish than the bank robbers!
If I had any problems with these comics at all, it would be the lack of lady heroes. Giarrusso doesn’t tend to write girls badly, they’re actually pretty good when they’re there, he just doesn’t seem to write them in too much. The only named lady heroes we get in G-Man are the Color Guardians, who largely hang out in the background and rarely get involved with the plot and the only real jokes they get are running gags, mostly revolving around the fact that no one ever calls them by their proper names (like referring to Princess Roja as Red Girl). Though I will say that Princess Roja did get a funny bit while overreacting to a supposed character death. While I’m sad that no ladies made it into G-Man’s circle of friends, I didn’t feel like the portrayal was insulting (I mean, Great Man was a jerk to them….but it’s Great Man) and because of that it’s a minor complaint. - I’d just like to see that fixed because then I’d have absolutely no complaints at all!
At the very least, a friend to tell him that was a bad idea might have helped.
Overall, G-Man is a great read. I would recommend this to anyone - absolutely anyone! It’s funny, it’s clever, and it’s fun to read. I’ve read these books cover to cover more times than I can count. Anytime I’m in a bad mood and need something to pick me up, I reach for these. They’re one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. A great, adventurous, superhero story, and completely safe for all ages. If you ever get the chance to pick this one up, I’d say you should do so!
Next up will be Super Dinosaur!
...yes, really.