Doji Grovesai

Nuklear Age Review

I just now finished Nuklear Age by Brian Clevinger (8-Bit Theater). The soul-destruction of finals has heralded the end of a semester, and I took the chance to finally pick up Clevinger's first work for summer reading material (still have three other books to read by fall and family life doesn't always lend itself to the voracious devouring of literature). This review is not entirely spoiler-free.

In a way, the book reminds me of Arthur Miller's play "The Creation of the World and Other Business." It begins very funny, until after a certain point it turns very grave. Upon re-reading, there is still an undercurrent of humor, but it is darker and more subtle.

The jokes are mile-a-minute. Nuklear Man's power is only matched (and possibly exceeded) by his ego and his stupidity. But it becomes clear very shortly that this is Atomik Lad's story. Nuklear Man is the center of it, but only because most of Atomik Lad's life is influenced by Nuklear Man. Except Atomik Lad isn't as powerful...or as stupid.

Through every joke, though, the characters do not act as vehicles for humor alone. They develop and grow, to the extent that comic book characters do. I found that I was getting absorbed into the characters, to the point that when Atomik Lad got frustrated with his mentor, so did I. When Nuklear Man struggled, I worried. I said previously that it is Atomik Lad's story, because I started to become most attached to him.

As things become more serious, the jokes don't stop, but the timing is different. The little punchlines are the deep breaths you get before being plunged back under the waters of despair.

Rachel died, and I fought back tears. The only other time a work of fiction made me cry was in Children of Dune, when it came to the fact that Leto II realized there was no escape from his decision to become the embodiment of the Sandworm, and prayed for some way to reverse it even wishing for suicide. It was at that point that Frank Herbert had drawn me so far in, that I thought I could identify with Leto. That in a small way, I had made a similar sacrifice (on a much smaller scale, duh) and knew the hardship of it and its permanence.

Clevinger had me so absorbed in his characters, that I re-read that paragraph about 6 times. I was hoping for something to reverse it. I wanted somebody to pull a "Superman" and rewind the Earth so that this injustice could be corrected. Things had to work out. That comic book concept of Justice must be satisfied.

And then he tells me that this was the punchline to a 500+ page joke. I re-read that sentence at least 12 times. I flipped back. I re-read it. I thought about it. I ran the whole book through my head again, trying to find out what was so funny about that. I think I get it, but I'm not sure. I want to ask what the joke is, but I'm afraid to ask for being labeled "moron" by one of my internet-heroes.

Regardless, the book is a good read. Comic book satire, comic book emulation, fiction, comedy, whatever you think the book is, it's good. I enjoyed it. I will certainly read it again. Probably soon.