MOON GIRL & DEVIL DINOSAUR #5
Written By: Brandon Montclare and Amy Reeder
Art By: Natacha Bustos
Colors By: Tamra Bonvilain
Letters By: VC’s Travis Lanham
Release Date: 03/30/16
Rating: Rated T+
Price: $3.99
Lunella Layfayette is a bright intelligent girl, whose intelligence is only limited by her imagination. Ever since the Terrigenesis bomb went off transforming anyone with the Inhuman Gene, which Luna has. She has feared being changed by the Terrigen Mists and has been working on a way to stop it. She has found a device that she believes can prevent it with the Kree, Omni-Wave Projector. Due to her love of science kids tease her by calling her Moon Girl. Luna never felt any need for a friend until a big red dinosaur dropped out of a time portal and wedged himself into her life.
Plot: Devil Dinosaur is locked up, the Killer Folk have the Omni-Wave Projector, and her parents have grounded Lunella. So what is a girl who is afraid of becoming a mutated monster to do? She gets creative and packs up her gadgets to bust her friend Devil Dinosaur out of Dino Jail so they can take on the Killer Folk and get back the Omni-Wave Projector and keep her Inhuman Gene in check.
Story: When I read Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #1 it made my Top 5 that week and I said Lunella was the new sweetheart of the Marvel Universe. That has not changed, there is something so extremely endearing about Lunella in this book. She reminds me of the fun and inventiveness I had as a kid. I would always build new forts with my friends try to create cosplay (WAY before that was a thing) costumes of our favorite characters and more. My brain never stopped and now with Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur I get to reflect on that through her eyes in a way.
Lunella is extremely intelligent and can easily outsmart any adult in her life, but I love that she sneaks out of the house the old fashion way, pretend to be asleep and when her parents are busy sneaks out the window. That is not to say that her brain and tech doesn’t come into play as she packs her backpack with a load of gadgets.
But the best part of this issue was when Lunella was breaking out Devil Dinosaur, it was like an ‘80’s cartoon flashback for me. Her gadgets reminded me of Inspector Gadget, but maybe if Penny had his stuff since Lunella is very capable with them including walking on spring loaded skate shoes. Then Devil Dinosaur channelled Scooby-Doo when he saw Lunella and said “RAH-RAH-ROO! ROO! ROOOO!” Then they hit us with the Flintstones vibe when he gave her a huge lick, and Lunella said ”EEWWW! Okay. I am going to forget that ever happened.” It wasn’t a blatant rip-off or reference, but the writing was so much fun that it invoked those wonderful happy memories of my childhood. This title is written to where you can be a boy or girl 9 or 39 and still connect to Lunella and this adventure.
Art: The art at times is a bit weak as it is more simplistic than the art that Amy Reeder provides on the cover. Now that does not mean it is bad, because it isn’t, it is very fitting with the energy of the book, I would just like a bit more details. What Natacha Bustos does though is something a lot of artists overlook, she actually remembers that Lunella is a young girl and anyone who knows a young girl knows they change their hair all the time and in here Lunella changes it up a few times. It is a small detail like that, that really enhances the overall enjoyment because it makes her feel that much real to the reader. That is not to take away from her very expressive face, I swear I have seen my little cousins make like every single one of those faces spot on!
