Wonder Twins: Activate!

Wonder Twins Vol. 1: Activate! by Mark Russell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Zan and Jayna, exiled from Exxor, come to Earth to fight crime as... The Wonder Twins!

Like a lot of people my age, I watched the Super Friends on Saturday mornings as a kid and the Wonder Twins were way better additions to the team than Marvin and Wendy. When I saw DC was finally launching a Wonder Twins series, I had to give it a read. It exceeded all expectations.

In these six issues, the Wonder Twins struggle to fit in at high school and work as interns at the Hall of Justice, battling the League of Annoyance and fighting the hardest battle of all: understanding Earth.

Stephen Byrne's art does a great job at evoking memories of the Wonder Twins on the Super Friends show while still seeming modern and fresh. The coloring is also very well done, not overdoing the computer effects and feeling cartoony without being overly garish. Mark Russell's writing is what sold the book for me, though. The irreverent, cynical tone made for some hilarious moments but also some powerful, almost sad ones. Russell satirizes today's media culture all too well. The Wonder Twins are greatly fleshed out in this volume, going from vaguely Asian aliens resembling Donnie and Marie Osmond to much deeper characters.

I don't really know what else to say without giving away too much. Wonder Twins: Activate is a smart, fun, cynical, bleak, hilarious book. Five out of five space monkeys.

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