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It Girl and The Atomics #1 Review
By Andy Frisk
August 10, 2012 - 23:50

Dark Horse Comics
Writer(s): Jamie S. Rich
Penciller(s): Mike Norton
Inker(s): Mike Norton
Colourist(s): Allen Passalaqua
Letterer(s): Crank!
Cover Artist(s): Michael and Laura Allred
$2.99 US



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For those of you that don't know, It Girl and The Atomics are superhero characters who exist the Mike Allred created Madman universe. Gifted with superpowers by an alien spore, they once battled Madman, but later became his allies. With several of The Atomics out touring the galaxy with Madman as his supporting rock band, It Girl and the remaining Atomics are left to defend Snap City from all kinds of evil doers. If It Girl herself (whose superpower is the ability to take on the physical characteristics of anything she touches) weren't so bored though, she might not get into the zany adventure that Dr. Gillespie Flem gets her into via one of his now legendary experiments...but luckily for us readers she is! Meanwhile, It Girl villain The Skunk is out of jail, but is he up to his old tricks or is he up to something else?

Created by Mike Allred as supporting characters for his ongoing Madman series of stories, The Atomics and their hipster/hottie super-girl, named It Girl, have graduated to their own ongoing series. When I heard about this new series, I really wondered if these characters would be worth following if Allred himself wasn't writing and drawing them. Enter Jamie S. Rich (Love the Way You Love, You Have Killed Me) and Mike Norton (X-Men Season One, Battlepug), and all of my fears were allayed. Rich stays true to the original spirit of the characters as well as that of the whole Madman universe, and Mike Norton's art captures Allred's pop-art sensibility with his version of these characters. The story itself starts off a little slow and doesn't display as much outright zaniness, at least until the end, that Madman is known for, but the exposition and set up effortlessly allows new readers to get up to speed on It Girl's origin and powers, as well as a recent important villain that has just popped back into her life. Someone who might prove to not be as much of a villain anymore, as she originally thinks. One doesn't have to have read a single Madman comic before to understand and get involved with these characters. Rich's story and Norton's art will inspire those who haven't read the full back story on It Girl and The Atomics to check out the original material though. 

Of to a great start, It Girl and The Atomics looks like another hit for Image Comics. Honestly, anything linked to or spun out of Mike Allred's Madman universe is sure to be worth checking out. Rich and Norton make it worth It Girl and The Atomics not just worth checking, they make it worth picking up again next month.

Rating: 8.5/10

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