Science Dog Volume 1 HC
Across disparate genres—from the teen superheroics of Invincible to the gruesome horror and human drama of The Walking Dead—Kirkman has shown an extraordinary penchant for consistently and compellingly pulling the emotional carpet out from under his readers. Science Dog appears at first to be a pulpy, all-ages Technicolor romp about a superevolved Scottish terrier who fights a mad scientist named Walter with jetpacks, exploding bullets, and charming confidence. But the story is slyly transformed into a disquieting examination of guilt, obsession, and isolation through the magic of Kirkman’s narrative sleight of hand. Walker, who contributes much of the zing to the team’s Invincible opus, helps enact the emotional turnaround with the standard exaggerated physical dynamism of action comics, sharply counterpointing the weight of the tale. It all adds up to a trick of derailing expectations that relies a great deal on sequential art’s unique intertwining of words and images, and shows how a clever craftsman can delve into a reader’s psyche with the most unexpected tools. Grades 9-12. --Jesse Karp