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[5 Skull Review] “The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl” Gives Adorkable A Whole New Meaning!

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“The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl” has been a fan favorite for two decades, and she finally has her own title. Part Ms. Marvel, part Rocket Raccoon, this new series follows Doreen Green’s dorky and hilarious antics navigating her top secret identity as Squirrel Girl during her first semester at college.

STK660741

WRITTEN BY: Ryan North

ART BY: Erica Henderson, Rico Renzi

PUBLISHER: Marvel Comics

PRICE: $3.99

RELEASE: January 7. 2015

Reviewed By Katy Rex

Remember all the fun that Spider-Ham was? Completely absurd, heavily referencing the known Marvel universe, but separate? This is what it would look like if a Spider-Ham character entered the canon universe in a real and long term capacity. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl has even corrected the popular Spider-Man theme song to accurately reflect the most suitable subject for such a tune; namely, herself. Her best friend, a squirrel named Tippy Toes, accompanies her on superhero-ly duties like stopping muggers as well as normal-girl-y stuff like moving into her dorm.

Squirrel Girl’s character design is intriguing. On the one hand, she keeps her hair short (practical), and on the other, she wears a bodice with lace lined cups. She has a tail– and it’s real, but totally fits in her pants to make her look bootylicious instead of squirrelesque– but her squirrel ears are on a headband. Her front teeth are pointy and squirrellike, but she doesn’t have the black pointy squirrel handclaws the original design featured. And despite the contradictions, despite the illogical components, her design is just so gosh darn likable. Her design reflects the silly vagueness of her powers: “she’s got partially squirrel blood.” What does that mean, exactly? Well, exactly, who cares? It’s cute and fun and a laugh a minute.

The biggest thing about this character, from her character design to her dialogue, is the way it reflects how frickin’ rad she thinks it is that she gets to be a squirrel-powered superhero. She relishes her various powers and her army of squirrels even when she’s trying (super duper hard) to pretend to be Plain Ordinary Mild Mannered Doreen Green, no powers here, no sir. And the mild mannered alter ego thing is going to take some effort, clearly, since she wears acorn earrings and forgets that proportional squirrel speed & strength are not normal human powers sometimes.

The villain in this issue is a surprise, so I won’t say who it is, but rest assured, he matches Squirrel Girl in both epicness and camp. The resolution to the issue is a little bit 90’s After School Special, I almost expected (hoped for?) the cast addressing the audience at the end, in front of a grey photo background drop, about the Very Real Issues facing kids today and the ways to solve them. If you or someone you know is feeling this way, call the hotline. Instead, they have a letters column, which is pretty fantastic in its own right, featuring made up questions about who could beat up whom, from a range of probably fictional querents including some weirdo obsessed with ducks named Chip Z.

With the cliffhanger at the end of this issue, I’m only mad that I can’t get the next issue right now.

yoyos2Katy Rex writes comics analysis at endoftheuniversecomics.comcomicsbulletin.com, and bloody-disgusting.com. She also writes scholarly articles for various academic journals. She really likes butt jokes, dinosaurs, and killing psychos and midgets in Borderlands 2. She has a great sense of humor if you’re not an asshole.
Twitter: @eotucomics
Instagram: @katy_rex

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‘The Wicked Trinity’ – Preview New Archie Comics One-Shot Inspired by ‘The Craft’ [Exclusive]

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From Sabrina’s Magical World, Bloody Disgusting has learned this afternoon that Archie Comics will be releasing brand new one-shot comic The Wicked Trinity this coming June.

You’ll be able to meet The Wicked Trinity in the 32-page comic on June 12, 2024.

In The Wicked Trinity, “Sabrina’s magical nemesis Amber Nightstone and her sidekicks, Jade Kazane and Sapphire Gill, are intent on becoming the most powerful witches in the world. Isolated from so many around them, the three have formed a coven based on their individual needs for vengeance and true freedom.

“But when there is some dissent among the ranks, their small coven is threatened to be obliterated from within.”

The Wicked Trinity features a script by Sam Maggs, art by Lisa Sterle, colors by Ellie Wright, letters by Jack Morelli, main cover by Lisa Sterle, and variant cover by Soo Lee.

Archie Comics Senior Director of Editorial Jamie L. Rotante tells Bloody Disgusting, “When Editor-In-Chief Mike Pellerito came up with the idea of the Wicked Trinity—Amber Nightstone, Jade Kazane, and Sapphire Gill—I was immediately intrigued. I even had the good fortune to work on the script for Jade and Sapphire’s first appearance in last year’s SABRINA ANNUAL SPECTACULAR comic for younger readers. What I especially loved about these magical teens is that they could seamlessly transcend from classic-Archie stories into more mature, even horror stories. I was eager to start developing their world with a modern sensibility, taking cues from the great work of Kelly Thompson and Veronica Fish on our SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH series, and Sarah Kuhn and Carola Borelli on our recent DARKLING one-shot. Inspired by series like Charmed and films like The Craft, I knew there was so much potential to build up this coven in a story that beautifully blends magical fantasy with horror.”

Writer Sam Maggs previews, “Real witches writing real witches—that’s how we do things over at Archie Comics! I was named after a famous witch—Samantha from Bewitched—and so I grew up absolutely obsessed with everything witchcraft, devouring every book series I could about teen witches. That makes WICKED TRINITY a dream project for me. The power and energy of teen girls is absolutely unmatched (just look at the engine behind fandom culture) and being able to harness that metaphorically for a story like this is such a delight. Everything I write focuses on the power of female friendship, and this story is no exception. And what’s better than a morally grey female character? I struggle to think of anything. Cat familiars, maybe? Also, I’m totally a practicing witch now. So maybe if you read this, you’ll find yourself imbued with magical powers, too.*

Artist Lisa Sterle adds, “I can’t wait for people to be re-introduced to The Wicked Trinity! Witches, fashion, and Archie Comics; this is truly a magical trifecta and I’m so happy to have the opportunity to put my own personal stamp on this. I love to create stories in which girls find their own power, both from within themselves and through their friendships and coven. If you’re a fan of my Modern Witch tarot, you’ll find this comic just as magical.”

Exclusively check out the two covers for The Wicked Trinity one-shot comic below!

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