Invader Zim #1 (2015) Review

I Ate Baby There

Written by: Jhonen Vasquez
Art by: Aaron Alexovich, Megan Lawton, Simon Troussellier and Warren Wucinich
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: July 8, 2015
Publisher: Oni Press

It's Saturday and that means...cartoons!  Well, I guess that's not really the case anymore since today's kids are spoiled rotten with their 24/7 cartoon shows and networks that are always on so that Dad can't watch the Walking Dead because it's not appropriate and nobody has a bedtime anymore and with Dad's crappy job, we only have one television set.  At least I work, dammit!  Come home to dirty dishes and...Oh boy, I don't know what happened there.  I should probably delete that, but I'm too lazy...You hear that I admit it, I'm lazy!  You happy now?!?!...I really have to work on a few things, but today I'm going to review a comic that I'm sure will put me in a better place.  I haven't watched the Invader Zim cartoon in quite some time, but when I was looking for something to review for our Saturday Morning Weirdness, I saw it and decided to do it.  Yea, there isn't really a great story behind it, but I have to fill that word count minimum we have for our introductions.  Almost there...Almost there...and Bam! On to the review...




I usually don't begin my reviews by talking about the credits page, but I will this time because I thought it was a pretty cool thing to list the voice actors from the show.  It gets you in the mood to hear their voices in your head while reading and to me, just set this up as a comic by a creative team that loves Invader Zim and will respect it in the morning.

Then we get to the issue itself and right off the bat, Jhonen Vasquez and Aaron Alexovich had me smiling at the great new character, "Recap Kid".  He's there to let you know everything about the "puppet show" that is Invader Zim before jumping into the story.  It's fun, cute and get's everyone up to speed in no time. Which is good, because it's off to the Membrane residence to get this party started.

The Professor has made dinner for Dib and Gaz...well, actually, the Foodie 3000 made the dinner and Dib is in his room, sooooo, Gaz is told to go get her brother and that's when we find out that a bit of time has passed since we left our cartoon friends.  Through some spot-on dialogue and visuals, we're told that Zim hasn't been seen in quite some time and that during that time, Dib has not bathed.  Yuk!  Of course, as the scene goes on, the alarm sounds...Zim is back and limbering up.  Now, it's up to Dib to once again save the human race!

I'll tell you, after Recap Kid and then actually seeing Dib and Gaz again, I may have to pause this review and break out my old disks and watch a few episodes.  I will wait to watch it after wards, but I really can't give a bigger compliment to Vasquez and Alexovich...and we are only a couple pages in!

The story continues as a disheveled Dib heads over to Zim's house and after some reintroductions (Zim didn't recognize Dib because he's so hilariously dingy), we get some information.  Yes, we find out what Zim has been doing all this time...has he been plotting?  Has he been hiding?  Has he been stuck in something so unfortunate that it makes every other answer sound silly because of how awesomely hilarious it is?  I'm not going to tell you so you'll have to buy the comic to laugh out loud like I did!

We continue with Zim making grand statements and dramatic accusations that are one part character catch-up, two-parts hilarious (sorry if I keep using that word, but I have a very limited vocabulary) with a pinch of GIR which is great because of how funny he (always) is.  Then Zim makes his move to finally take over our Planet.  Did I mention how hilarious this book is?  Well, wait until you see what Zim considers "taking over the planet".  Vasquez certainly reminds everyone why he is sent her in the first place.  Unfortunately for Dib, all that time in front of the computer has left him powerless to stop his arch-enemy.

The issue then breaks into two parts...Zim actually trying to put together an actual devious plan and Dib rocking out a montage training sequence.  Zim's bit actually sets up the ongoing story while Dib's part was the best thing in the entire issue.  While I disagree with Gaz about singing your own montage music, it's a truly kickass montage and I'm a fan of Bloodsport so I know my montages. Montage!  The issue ends with Zim and GIR off on a galactic quest, Minimoose doing his job, and Dib ready to go all Rocket Man.

Boy, I don't know if I can make it any more clear that if you are a fan of Invader Zim, you should be reading this comic.  If like me, you haven't watched in some time, I guarantee it will send you back to watching (I cheated and have it playing in the background right now).  I liked how it addressed that time has passed, but then got us right back to where we want to be.  The only thing I can see as a potential downer to anyone is that it is so true to the cartoon that it may seem a bit "been there done that", but if you like your stories in cannon, that's actually a plus, now isn't it?

Aaron Alexovich's art is the belle of the ball here and it is obvious from the first panel that this guy loves his Invader Zim and is going to make sure that he takes good care of it and make you love it as much as he does which is probably impossible because he loves it so much.  In other words, his art is great, and seeing fused chair Dib really made my day.

Bits and Pieces:

If you are an Invader Zim fan, you should be reading this comic.  The gangs all here and Vasquez and Alexovich make sure they are just like you remember.  If you never watched the cartoon and always wanted to see what the buzz was about, this issue is a great jumping-on point and should make you into an instant fan.  It's a great, all-ages comic that is fun. looks great and had me laughing the whole way through.  That doesn't happen often.

9.8/10