SpacePop, Volume Two - Rocking the Resistance

Rhea, Luna, Athena, Hera, and Juno - the colorful all-girl YouTube sensations known as SpacePop, are back in the second volume of this book series written by Erin Downing.  I purchased both volumes of this series before I ever read the first one - otherwise, after reading the first one, I likely would have never picked up this book. However, since I did, I figured I might as well read it.

Sadly, this book was not any better than the first. Yes, I do realize that I am not the intended audience for this series, neither in age nor in gender. However, I'd like to think that I read enough books aimed at the pre-teen audience to be able to discern what is good and what is not. And as far as SpacePop goes, it's not the plot of the story itself that is so bad, but the actual writing and execution of the story that takes away from the enjoyment.

The story itself finds the five-girl space band on yet another adventure for "The Resistance" - this time, they are searching for the Empress's Dungeon of Dark Doom, which could be the place where the evil Empress is holding the girls' families. Thus, finding the dungeon would not only help the resistance, but also free the royal families, thus permitting them to overcome the Empress and win freedom back for their galaxy.  The resistance has narrowed down the location to five planets, so the girls use their band as a cover to get onto the planets and seek out the dungeon. Their ever-loyal butler, Chamberlin, is still acting as their manager, and the blogger/stalker Bradbury continues to follow the girls' exploits, unknowingly helping them fight for the resistance.  In each planet they visit, the girls get one step closer to finding their parents, and along the way, they manage to sabotage more and more of the Empress's plans.  The ending, though, is bittersweet, although it does leave a bit of a cliffhanger that may never be resolved...

And that brings us to the writing.  It is very stilted, very dry, and without any real emotion.  The characters come across very much as stereotypes, and perhaps that is just the author's way of making sure the reader is able to differentiate among the character (with five lead characters, they do have to all be different so as to make them recognizable).  However, there is no real emotion with any of them that comes across in the writing, and they all feel very cardboard.  The only character that actually feels "real" in any sense of the word when you are reading the story is Bradbury.  I've never watched the cartoon on YouTube, so I'm not sure if the writing there is any better, but it's a shame, really - this is a rather cool idea, so it would be interesting to see what another author could do with these characters.

At least there were two short sections of comic pages along the way, so it helped give the book some redeeming value (although some of the supporting characters are not drawn at all the way I imagined they would be).  No doubt, though, this will be the last SpacePop novel I read.

RATING:  2 android soldiers out of 10 for at least trying to provide a new take on the "Jem and the Holograms" idea.

SpacePop, Volume One - Not Your Average Princesses

The Dark Empress of Evil has taken over your galaxy.  She controls all modes of communication, regulates all modes of travel, and incites separation and fighting among the once united planets.  She has kidnapped the ruling leaders and destroyed their palaces.  Who are you going to call?

Ghostbusters?  No, this isn't supernatural in nature.
Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys?  No, there's no mystery here.

No, in this world, the citizens of the Pentangle galaxy must pin all their hopes on the five princesses who have gone into hiding ... who have decided they can't just sit back and what as Geela, the Dark Empress of Evil, destroys their home worlds.  Enter: Athena, Hera, Juno, Luna, and Rhea - the hottest new girl band in outer space - SPACEPOP!

Yes, folks, I couldn't make this up even if I tried...

While I've been raving recently on how fortunate I've been in picking up new series where the introductory book to the series has been absolutely astounding, garnering my interest in future books, once in a while I'm not quite so lucky.  This would be one of those cases.

Not Your Average Princesses is a Jem and the Holograms wannabe that doesn't quite cut it.  The five princesses turned rock-stars are too cliche - the stuck-on-herself diva, the earth-loving peace maker, the rambunctious tomboy, the determined genius, and the sly schemer and planner.  Their dialogue and actions continually thrive off of these characteristics, as if these are the only things that define the five girls.  And, yes, while I realize these books are written for a young audience, marketed pretty much solely for girls, I'd like to think that the young girls would want the characters in the books they read to be a bit more three-dimensional.  And we won't even begin to talk about the girls' pets that seem to go with them wherever they go...

The underlying plot to the story isn't truly bad.  An evil empress has taken over the galaxy, and the girls decide to do what they can to spread the word of rebellion.  When they are contacted by a member of an underground resistance, they decide to join, further proving their desire to free the Pentangle from the cruel and vicious rule of Geela.  The story moves fairly quickly (not only do the girls form a band, but they begin a tour and go on three ever-increasingly dangerous missions by the end of this first book), and it's pretty straightforward and simple in the storytelling.

The one saving grace for me in this book were the comic pages within the tale.  Chapters Six, Fifteen, and Sixteen are all told in comic format, with art by Jen Bartel (who, interestingly enough, is not given credit for the art on the cover or the title page).  She actually brings the characters to life on the page in full color, and while the comic chapters are pretty short, it gave me pause to think - this would have probably been much better told as a full comic, rather than prose with only a few pages of comic.

Ah, well, I suppose you can't win them all when trying new series.  I have the second book in the series, and one day I'll get around to reading that - but I've got plenty of other books that I know will be good to read before it.

RATING:  3 lipstick and compact communicators out of 10 simply for the comic book pages within the story that kept the book from being a total fail.