By Mark Crilley (Sirius)
ISBN 1-57989-009-1
This is a glorious story for children and the young-at-heart of all ages. Sweet little girl Akiko once again journeys to the fabulous planet Smoo, where she has all sorts of fantastic adventures with a cast of characters as captivating and memorable as any from Little Nemo or the tales of Oz. Smoo (both the planet and the books) abounds with cool robots, one-legged rogues, princes and professors, and some of the best drawn hideous monsters you could ever hope not to see.
Mark Crilley has crafted an epic romp with a genuine and literal ‘Sense of Wonder’ where the evil villains are not all that bad, and where the dauntless companions aren’t particularly competent, all the while stage-managing enough harmless, mildly gratuitous violence to keep even the most hardened toddler happy.
This earliest Volume 1 (there are a few different editions out there – everything from E-books to paperbacks) follows on from a comic miniseries. When Akiko returns to Smoo for a visit, she lands in a devastated city. An old enemy has attacked and she must now lead a rescue party to recover the kidnapped Prince Froptoppit from the insidious Alia Rellapor. This argosy takes her to many fantastic places where she relives experiences older heads might recognise as homages to favourite literary moments, including being swallowed by a tremendous sea monster, duelling flying pirates and being captured by tiny people on a lost island
Crilley’s loving blend of children’s fantasy icons is a savvy romp that uses thrilling chases and scary monsters to captivate and charm as “ordinary†Akiko proves over and again how special any Earth kid can be.
I’ve deliberately concentrated on this admittedly scarce edition because for some inexplicable reason this earliest collection – when the creation still had a few rough edges to it – just throbs with joy and promise. But even if you can’t find this version, the others are practically identical, just so long as you discover Smoo. Thoroughly enjoyable, this is the kind of strip that parents should read with their kids. Then they’ll be comic fans for life… as long as people of Crilley’s calibre keep coming up with the goods.
© 2007 Mark Crilley. All Rights Reserved.