Mighty Zodiac Vol. 1

J. Torres is the award-winning comic book writer of Do-Gooders, Lola: A Ghost Story, Mighty Zodiac, Power Lunch, Rick and Morty Presents: The Vindicators, and Good Night, Gabbaland for Oni Press. He’s also written Archies, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Batman, Degrassi: Extra Credit, Simpsons, Teen Titans Go, and other comics. J. was born in Manila, grew up in Montreal, and currently lives in Toronto. His favorite robots include BB-8, Giant Robo, Iron Giant, Rosie, and WALL-E.

KIRKUS -- Animal warriors band together to fighta faction of evil moon bunnies.In Gaya, a world populated byanthropomorphic animals, dying dragon Master Long calls for his 11 warriors tojoin in a quest to bring him fallen stars that he hopes will cure him. The starsare the remains of a celestial blue dragon, whose place Master Long should havefilled, and without their light a legion of evil bunnies has emerged from themoon also seeking the powerful fallen luminaries. Will the warriors defeat theirleporine foes and save their ailing master? Vibrantly colored by Laiho andorganized into neat panels, Howell's art is expressive and kinetic. Torres, aquietly prolific writer with a sizable oeuvre of comic adaptations of animatedshows, truly demonstrates his strength for pacing and timing. Loosely basedaround the animals of the Chinese zodiac, Torres' tale is nonstop action thatpropels both a race against time and the struggle between light and dark: tropesthat should resonate with comics fans. Although the action rockets along, hisnarrative occasionally falters as it moves awkwardly between past (signaled by amuting of the palette) and present. Despite this, with its propulsive momentum,episodic feel, and high-octane battles, this reads like a Saturday-morningcartoon brought to life.A high-energy graphic offering. (Graphicfantasy. 7-12)PUBLISHERS WEEKLY --Torres (BroBots) introduces a complex mythology thatriffs on figures from the Chinese zodiac in this action-laden first book in theMighty Zodiac series, in which animal warriors attempt to defend the land ofGaya against rabbit-led forces of darkness. After the death of a celestial bluedragon, six stars fall from the sky, and the Moon Rabbit Army descends on Gaya.On the brink of death, the serpent Master Long calls upon the warriors he hastrained-the Mighty Zodiac-to capture the fallen stars and propel him to hisplace among the stars. Torres quickly introduces the Zodiac members-Buta, aflamboyant performing pig; Rang, a duplicitous rat; and the powerful Great TigerHo-but slowly unravels their backstories through flashbacks and dialogue sothat, by the final battle, readers care about who they are and why they fight.The action sequences are nearly nonstop, and Howell and Laiho make good use ofshifting perspectives and dynamic compositions to sustain a high-energyatmosphere that lays a strong foundation for future tales.