In YUKI VS PANDA #3, available from Source Point Press on July 28th, 2021, Yuki learns everyone is excited about her participation in the School Olympics, but a new transfer student may become a distraction to her training.
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The Details
- Written By: Graham Misiurak
- Art By: A.L. Jones
- Colors By: A.L. Jones
- Letters By: A.L. Jones
- Cover Art By: A.L. Jones
- Cover Price: $3.99
- Release Date: July 28, 2021
Was It Good?
After three issues, it’s increasingly difficult to understand where this story is going. We know the goal will be an eventual showdown between Yuki and Panda, but this is the second issue in a row where things are happening that appear to have nothing to do with the promised conflict to come.
That’s not to say the issue isn’t well-written. It’s fine for what it is, but it’s presented almost like a slice-of-life dramedy with amusing character moments between Yuki and her friends, Yuki and the school administrators, and Yuki and a potential love interest.
The nagging question keeps coming back to “What does any of this have to do with Panda?” Right now, it doesn’t. If we don’t start seeing some relevance to the central plot, you run the risk of readers skipping issues to get to the “good stuff.”
Again, what we get is amusing, but it’s starting to feel like a lot of fluff and filler. That’s not a good place to be when a series is only on issue #3.
The art is, likewise, is cute and amusing. The cartoon-like execution is good, but it seems to be geared toward the younger end of the YA audience. However, the language definitely skews this issue toward older YA/adult, so it’s a little difficult to get who this title is aiming for in terms of reader intent. I like what I see, but the contrast between the art style and the content puts the book, as a whole, in an odd corner.
Well, that’s a lot of blah, blah, blah, so what does it mean? It means, I like the writing but am put off that this issue has nothing to do with the main story, and I like the kid-friendly art but it’s in a book with a story that’s not at all kid-friendly.
It’s a weird melding of contrasts that I’m not quite sure works. For right now, this is a wait-and-see recommendation.
What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]
We pick up from the end of the last issue (read our YUKI VS PANDA #2 review to get the down ‘n dirty details) with Yuki and her friends heading to school. Yuki’s impossibly big backpack, holding her drill-sergeant-strict grandfather, is a sight gag that shows off her strength to the Principal, friends, and a new transfer student arriving on the scene.
The Principal is nervous about hosting the School Olympics for the first time, and he’s anxious for Yuki to do well.
Yuki is unable to fit the backpack through the front door, so she leaves it (and her grandfather) outside while she attends classes. While Yuki sits through history class, taught by her near-blind, gangsta-rap-listening teacher, the new boy comes in as a transfer student. Yuki is immediately smitten, but another student, who has a set of Tarot cards and a potential connection to mysticism, sees the boy’s arrival as bad news.
Meanwhile, Panda metes out two-fisted justice to some toughs ransacking his camp under a park bridge.
Elsewhere, a deer-like figure in a hooded robe is interrupted during meditation.
If it seems like none of those events have anything to do with each other and it all seems confusing, you’d be right… for now.
Final Thoughts
YUKI VS PANDA #3 takes readers on an amusing ride of High School drama and romance, muggings in the park, and a little mysticism. Unfortunately, the parallel story threads are so far apart, they don’t feel like they belong in the same comic, making for a disjointed reading experience.
Score: 7/10
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