Laser Moose and Rabbit Boy: Time Trout, an excellent all age graphic novel

If you’ve listened to our podcast then you’ve probably heard us talk about all age graphic novels vs. kid’s graphic novels (or graphic novels for kids, if you prefer). Laser Moose is a series of original graphic novels from Doug Savage on Andrews McMeel Publishing that is as great as an all age graphic novel can get. If Marvel Action: Spider-Man from IDW Publishing is one of our go-to examples for a great all age comic book (and it is), then Laser Moose is its graphic novel equivalent. “Name a great all age graphic novel”, some yeehaw might ask me at a party. Without hesitation I’d say this series from Savage, especially this addition, it’s most time-travelled episode yet, Laser Moose and Rabbit Boy: Time Trout.

This is the third Laser Moose and Rabbit Boy graphic novel. You do not need to read the first two in order to understand what’s happening or who the characters are. The only outlier in the first 20 pages of the book is that we meet a trout. He’s happily swimming in the river until a time-traveler opens up a porthole beside him, where they promptly drop their time-travelling device, the trout gets excited and eats it and opens up a time tunnel to when he was this excited the last time. Unfortunately, that was when he was almost eaten by an eagle. Thankfully, the trout now has a time machine in his stomach and can bend the parameters of time-oh and he can also talk.

From here we catch up with our title characters as they take Frank the moose to the doctor, who is also a raccoon.  They’re making chit-chat with the doctor when they hear someone yelling for help. As they run down to assist they see the trout swimming away from Aquabear. Laser Moose starts to fight him, including using the superpower that is his namesake and Rabbit Boy (who is actually a rabbit) get the time traveling vortex skinny from Time Trout.

Laser Moose and Rabbit Boy: Time Trout grabs your attention from its bright colors, fast movement, action, creativity and story. This is a bonkers all age graphic novel that will entertain readers aged seven and up. In theory, any age can look at Time Trout and be ridiculously entertained. The book exudes happiness. I dare any person, even those who are cemented in the Graphic Novels Are Not Reading Camp (GNANRC for short) to look inside the pages of Time Trout and not be entertained. For some young readers (See: All), the entertainment of reading comes first.  After their initial enjoyment comes the part with they read the text. Adults aren’t around; it’s just them reading on their own without nagging or the threat of an electronic-free afternoon.

This book nails the funny in a way that keeps older readers (like me!) and earns the younger readers, like our 8 year old. Laser Moose and Rabbit Boy: Time Trout does all of this and it does so without any fart jokes or toilet humor. That should make members of GNANRC and Toilet Humor Exists Only to Annoy Parents (TheoTap for short) happy also.

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