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maggie_sotos's review
4.0
There were so many parts of this book that rocked – the characters, the off-beat humor, the sheer scope of the fantasy. All of it made for a really exciting sci-fi feminist adventure that has held up pretty well for having been published in the late 90s! It’s also interesting that a straight while male is casting himself as the sidekick crusader for social justice alongside the real superhero (his bisexual girlfriend). Intriguing, alternative, and attention-getting.
As a narrator, you also want to like Ryan. He’s funny, he’s sweet, and his heart is always in the right place. But there is also an undeniable man-boy thing going on. When under pressure, he wills himself into different species of insects and hides from his troubles. It’s fitting with the subversive anti-hero theme of the story, but it’s also a little irritating. You knew dudes like Ryan in college, and as much as we wanted to root for them, you also felt frustrated at their inability to transition into adulthood.
One of the only things holding this story back, for me, was the narrator’s informality as a story-teller. In terms of his voice, he reads the way that people speak in informal conversation (ie he jumps in mid-anecdote and assumes you know all of the characters and offers you no introduction or back-story to anyone). At first I found this charming; it felt like he was chatting up old friends. Of course Ken and Phil and Jack are your besties…wait, Ken is one of your roommates, right? No? Wait, is Phil that guy who has that musician girlfriend? Crap, no, that’s Jack. No wait, that’s that OTHER dude, Mark. Ugh. By the end of the book I had completely mixed up major characters because they had been used so interchangeably in the text. There’s a difference between informal prose and “Dear Diary”; this often leaned towards the latter.
As a narrator, you also want to like Ryan. He’s funny, he’s sweet, and his heart is always in the right place. But there is also an undeniable man-boy thing going on. When under pressure, he wills himself into different species of insects and hides from his troubles. It’s fitting with the subversive anti-hero theme of the story, but it’s also a little irritating. You knew dudes like Ryan in college, and as much as we wanted to root for them, you also felt frustrated at their inability to transition into adulthood.
One of the only things holding this story back, for me, was the narrator’s informality as a story-teller. In terms of his voice, he reads the way that people speak in informal conversation (ie he jumps in mid-anecdote and assumes you know all of the characters and offers you no introduction or back-story to anyone). At first I found this charming; it felt like he was chatting up old friends. Of course Ken and Phil and Jack are your besties…wait, Ken is one of your roommates, right? No? Wait, is Phil that guy who has that musician girlfriend? Crap, no, that’s Jack. No wait, that’s that OTHER dude, Mark. Ugh. By the end of the book I had completely mixed up major characters because they had been used so interchangeably in the text. There’s a difference between informal prose and “Dear Diary”; this often leaned towards the latter.
psychobillygrrl's review
5.0
Couldn't put it down. I think this book bridges the genre gap from mainstream fiction to fantasy pretty well. The main character is totally believable, but he turns into a fly. Reading this, I learned something about the lives of flies and also about the Vancouver scene :)
organizeinternet's review against another edition
3.0
I read this years ago, but remember thinking much of the dialogue clever and snappy, with so much innuendo I was impressed. Deserves another look someday!
scheu's review
3.0
I felt conflicted and meh about this book. It's cute, and I feel both sympathy for the protagonist and a crush on his lady love ... but I felt my brain cells dying while I read.
letsreadmorebooks's review against another edition
4.0
not normally my type of thing. but i really, really liked this. so maybe it's sorta my type of thing and i just didn't know it. actually maybe it's exactly my type of thing because it's got a great title and story to match and it's clever and witty and strange and fun.
magnetgrrl's review
3.0
Flyboy Action Figure Comes with Gasmask is a slice of the lives of Flyboy, a shy college student, and his partner and romantic interest, Ms. Place, the waitress at the local diner. They bond over having bizarre superpowers and decide to use them to create a better world not by fighting crime, but by taking ethical stands on the issues they care about and creating publicity campaign to draw attention to that. I loved the idea of real life superheroes doing something that's not unrealistic and violent like beating up drug dealers and muggers every night, but rather something else that can change the world: political art and protest.
I enjoyed this book but liked it less than Angry Young Spaceman (the last book I read by Munroe) despite its superhero theme. I was more frustrated after finishing this book than I was after reading Angry Young Spaceman with Jim Munroe's tendency to just meander along in the lives of some people and then suddenly, something vaguely climactic but mostly out of nowhere happens about 20-30 pages from the end of the book, without any buildup, and without much explanation, and without any denouement afterward. It always feels really forced. In Angry Young Spaceman I didn't mind *too* much, and since I had otherwise enjoyed the book I didn't write the whole thing off for lacking any real conflict, but I guess I can't accept it with the same charity twice.
I can see how one could say, maybe, that Jim Munroe's books are designed to break the traditional cathartic plot structure of exposition, rising action, conflict, climax, denouement... and that this is done intentionally to more accurately simulate real life, where somethings things happen but they're usually unexpected, and nothing comes with a handy pyramid design to lead us through. I can see too how one may say that since through the entire book Munroe's characters are discussing and dealing with difficult social and ethical concepts, there is most definitely conflict. But still... something about seeing the *same* "alternate structure" twice feels less like deliberation and more like some kind of Rob Liefeld foot syndrome*. It also makes me feel like, I already know exactly what I'll be getting when/if I read the next book of his I was considering checking out.
This may not bother other readers - to be honest it only a *little* bothers me and I still think Jim Munroe's books are fantastically entertaining reads - but I thought it was worth a mention.
(For those not up w/ comic references: Rob Liefeld cannot draw feet, so he constantly hides the feet of his subjects in smoke, behind rocks, in standing water....)
I enjoyed this book but liked it less than Angry Young Spaceman (the last book I read by Munroe) despite its superhero theme. I was more frustrated after finishing this book than I was after reading Angry Young Spaceman with Jim Munroe's tendency to just meander along in the lives of some people and then suddenly, something vaguely climactic but mostly out of nowhere happens about 20-30 pages from the end of the book, without any buildup, and without much explanation, and without any denouement afterward. It always feels really forced. In Angry Young Spaceman I didn't mind *too* much, and since I had otherwise enjoyed the book I didn't write the whole thing off for lacking any real conflict, but I guess I can't accept it with the same charity twice.
I can see how one could say, maybe, that Jim Munroe's books are designed to break the traditional cathartic plot structure of exposition, rising action, conflict, climax, denouement... and that this is done intentionally to more accurately simulate real life, where somethings things happen but they're usually unexpected, and nothing comes with a handy pyramid design to lead us through. I can see too how one may say that since through the entire book Munroe's characters are discussing and dealing with difficult social and ethical concepts, there is most definitely conflict. But still... something about seeing the *same* "alternate structure" twice feels less like deliberation and more like some kind of Rob Liefeld foot syndrome*. It also makes me feel like, I already know exactly what I'll be getting when/if I read the next book of his I was considering checking out.
This may not bother other readers - to be honest it only a *little* bothers me and I still think Jim Munroe's books are fantastically entertaining reads - but I thought it was worth a mention.
(For those not up w/ comic references: Rob Liefeld cannot draw feet, so he constantly hides the feet of his subjects in smoke, behind rocks, in standing water....)
gregoryscottdilcox's review
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
limina's review against another edition
It's just not what I'm in the mood for. It does sound like a fun book though.
cindywho's review
3.0
I loaded this one onto my Palm and was reading it here and there on public transit. Easier to pull out than a book and lighter too. When real e-books happen, I will be on that bandwagon... Anyway, Flyboy was light and entertaining, with endearing characters, goofy and sweet. It was bizarre enough to keep me happy. Cute! (August 10, 2004)