Juice Squeezers #2 Review

One of the most creative books I’ve had the chance to review since becoming a part of the team here was Juice Squeezers #1. A team of kids saving a town that doesn’t know it needs to be saved and doing so by killing gigantic bugs that live underground. It’s not standard stuff and I loved that about the first issue. Issue two gives us a chance to better get to know our newest hero: Billy.

Here’s the official description of the second issue from Dark Horse:

When inquisitive Billy Farnsburger stumbles upon a group of his classmates digging around a series of intricate tunnels, it threatens to expose the covert Juice Squeezers before their secret mission can be accomplished. Oh, and don’t forget the dog-sized bugs Billy keeps seeing! This new town is definitely weird!

David Lapham once again illustrates his own story here and it’s hard to find fault with either. Lapham does a wonderful job of further introducing Billy, our hero-to-be, and utilizing dramatic irony to make us really side with the kid. Billy is a genius and a sweet kid, but he has no clue what secrets the city has been hiding and what danger he and his father might be in on their new farm.

While the issue itself is well-crafted and the art is pretty great, what I really love about this issue is the continuation of the Juice Squeezers Command Files. Lapham has drawn up little background files on each of the characters. These are reminiscent of the cards you could cut out of the G.I. Joe action figure packages and collect back in the day. It’s a neat little touch and just adds to the authenticity and uniqueness of this book.

Juice Squeezers is a cute series and the highest compliment I can pay it at this point is that it is SO very different from the rest of what’s out there. Pick up a copy and read it; you’ll have some fun.

4/5