‘Power Up’ Comic Review

written by Kate Leth, illustrated by Matt Cummings, and lettered by Jim Campbell


Power Up is the super cute story about three Earth humans and a goldfish who are imbued with cosmic superpowers from an alien prophecy. Amie, Kevin, and Sandy were just ordinary people (and Silas was just a regular goldfish) before they were all struck by a mysterious light one day and found themselves in possession of various super-human abilities (or in Silas’ case, super-piscine).

The comic starts with Amie, an art school graduate working at The Rats’ Nest pet store, on a regular day where she takes the bus to work and arrives thirteen minutes late (again) due to construction. “Can you not take [the bus] that leaves earlier?” her boss asks. Well, the next earliest bus would bring Amie in to work forty-five minutes early, so no. She’s a woman after my own heart with that logic. On her way to work that day, Amie passes by Kevin, who works on road construction and silently compliments Amie’s hairstyle. She also meets Sandy, who has come in to The Rats Nest to buy some crickets, and feeds Silas, who lives at the store. Moments after Sandy leaves the store, all four are struck by a bizarre white light, and that’s when the alien attacks begin. The why and how of our heroes’ powers is (purposefully) unclear at first, but thanks to a TV news reporter with uncanny timing, the three humans are able to meet up and work their way through their confusing new powers and the exasperatingly frequent alien attacks that have followed in their wake.

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Without going into too many spoilers, some of my favorite parts of Power Up are how much it likes to play with defying expectation. The prophecy calls for three warriors, Sight, Strength, and Spirit and a “Heart,” none of which turn out to be who anyone was expecting (in more ways than one). I also especially love how big, buff, bearded construction worker and former jock Kevin is totally chill with (proud of, even) having pretty-pink magical girl “armor,” and no one gives him any crap or questions it. All around, the characters and events in Power Up are delightful and downright adorable, which just makes me want to read it on repeat.

The artwork is equally cute. It’s done in full color, and in a lot of ways reminds me of the Adventure Time’s style, with a dash of Steven Universe. The characters are all on the cartoon-y side, ranging in body style from Amie, built of all circles, to Kevin, drawn using soft rectangles, and everyone in between. The characters’ eyes are all drawn as thick, vertical lines (unless someone is freaking out or a little embarrassed), and character noses are drawn as either over- or under-exaggerated. As I mentioned, it’s a cute style for an adorable comic.

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Overall, Power Up is fantastic. It’s got action, humor, and can be enjoyed by audiences of all ages. As an extra-special bonus, the characters are a diverse bunch of people, from lovably-round, brown-skinned Amie and the gay couple who are her friends and neighbors, to tan, athletic bachelor Kevin (who seems pretty comfortable straying from strict gender norms), to white, middle-aged, mother-of-two Sandy. Seriously, if you haven’t already gone to get yourself a copy, what are you waiting for?!

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