Veronica Fish

What attracted me originally to this graphic novel was the beautiful cover. I was walking down the aisle at a book conference and the colors just grabbed me. Throughout the book Veronica Fish uses color--bright vivid color such as you see on the cover--sparingly to illustrate the "real world" (in monochromatic grays, blacks and white) versus the world that when Wendy needs to escape from her grief. Its telling that when the story shifts to Neverland (later on) its a complete explosion of show more colors and when we come back to the real world those colors slowly introduce themselves into the comic as Wendy learns to accept her choices.

I felt for Wendy and I wondered how much was truly happening and how much was her need for closure. Sometimes, especially when grief is strong and the world seems so...hostile, its easy to believe something so fantastical is preferable. And the guilt she carried...

I've never made secret my intense dislike of Peter Pan. Finding out Barrie meant him to be the actual villain of the book originally made my day because he's always, always, come off that way to me (in the actual book, many versions of him paint him less creepy/malevolent and more careless/oblivious/selfish). Here...he's not the problem. Not really. Oh he's not helpful, but he does make several good points to Wendy that she doesn't want to believe and he does help her in the end.

This story is very much a handbook of what happens when you become so wrapped up in something it isolates you. Several times throughout Wendy neglects to think of the consequences of her actions in an effort to prove her belief right. She pushes people away and behaves self destructively. When she does realize how her actions have maybe not been the best for her brother John, she attempts to pull away...only to give in and go deeper.

At times the book was confusing - it never really answers whether this is all a delusion to comfort herself or if it really happens. There's some high school drama that gets in the way a little and her parents come off not very sympathetic for most of the book. As we see things from Wendy's point of view, their actions come off cold and abrupt, with little nuance into their own feelings until nearer the end when Wendy starts to recognize how much she's ignored. show less

Things are heating up in Riverdale as two candidates run for mayor: Veronica's dad and Betty's uncle. As the two girls form bands to compete against one another in the upcoming talent show, Archie feels stuck in the middle of his current girlfriend and his ex, trying to make everyone happy.

As with the previous volume, this book takes a more modern spin on the Archie franchise while staying consistent with the characters and quaint Americana feel. I do like that the two girls aren't actually show more fighting over Archie in this version but that there are bigger stakes and more nuanced feelings involved. Some of the plot twists were actually unexpected, and I enjoyed being both surprised and invested in an Archie comic for a change of pace. I look forward to the third volume to see what happens next in the plot.

This bound trade ended with a sneak peak at the Betty & Veronica series, which seems fitting but I had already seen this issue elsewhere so I skipped it this time around. show less

Wow okay wait I enjoyed this so much! It’s a girl-powered slice of life roller derby story, and was super fun to read. I loved the characters, the energy of the sport, the celebration of the body, and the very real feeling look at how women balance their lives and friendships. I saw some other reviews saying the plot felt lacking, and I understand that argument, but for me personally it hit all the marks. SLAM is just really chill and realistic, and I want to be friends with the derby show more girls so bad now! show less

I wished that this book was about flat track instead of bank, and there were a few things normalized in here (ie, all derby parties are about drinking, skating without a helmet, glorifying injuries) that I didn't love. That said, I think this book really captures the roller derby feels and experience. I will definitely be on the lookout for volume 2.