Marvel Comics has slowly but surely been releasing every Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur in a slightly smaller-sized format, and the final trade paperback is out this week. Writer Brandon Montclare, artist Natasha Bustos, and many other creators get to show off how smart Lunella is and how she can face anyone and anything with a smile and a solution. In this collection, Lunella teams up with Doctor Strange, and Spider-Man, helps fight during the War of the Realms, and finally faces off against Reed Richards to see who is the smartest person in Marvel Comics. Otherwise, another normal day for Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur!
This trade paperback collects Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur #37-47, which makes it a touch longer than most trades to make it easier for smaller hands to read powerful and impactful stories. Moreover, if you’ve already picked up Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur Vol. 7 and Vol. 8, you already have all the issues collected here.
The opening issue is the Christmas special drawn by Gustavo Duarte and written by Brandon Montclare (who writes every issue contained here). It’s light, fluffy, and fun as heck. It opens with some fun rhyming via captions, which pop in and out to give you the warm and fuzzies — and those fuzzies don’t stop there as Santa is frozen in ice and someone needs to make his present rounds! It ends with a nice character moment for Moon Girl and a message for all kids that it’s sometimes better to give than receive.
The next four issues focus on a nightmare spell that’s affecting Yancy Street. Even Moon Girl can’t stop having nightmares and soon discovers a small human boy in her dreams called Bad Dream. It’s a classic example of Moon Girl attempting to use science and critical thinking to solve a magic problem which is why Doctor Strange gets involved. This leads to a team-up of sorts involving Sleepwalker and a resolution that’s satisfying and fun. Highlights include literal nightmare creatures entering the real world, Moon Girl waking up in just her underwear in class (what a nightmare), and a lesson about following your dreams.
The art by Natacha Bustos is incredible, and color artist Tamra Bonvillain backs her up with cartoon-fun visuals. The dream world Moon Girl enters is like a funhouse or Alice in Wonderland, which is never scary unless you think slightly unnerving weirdness is scary. As an all-ages book, Bustos does a phenomenal job creating a world of wonderment that conveys a bit of danger thanks to darkness and twisted images, but is still light and fun in its positivity. I also absolutely love how Bustos renders Nightmare, who is scaled back on the fear factor, but still a bit ragged around the edges.
Moon Girl is the best.
Credit: Marvel
Next up, Spider-Man fights Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, which is excellently drawn by Ray-Anthony Height. The story looks fabulous and it serves as another example of how light fight comics can work so well. Moon Girl essentially tells Spider-Man she knows his secret identity which spirals into a fight and eventually the two fighting Pink Goblin (don’t ask!). The art style is a bit more realistic than the usual work by Alitha E. Martinez and it gives the issue a more mainstream feel.
One highlight in this collection is a time travel story drawn by Alitha E. Martinez (she draws the final four issues) that makes a strong point to never make someone doubt themselves. Don’t tell someone they can’t do a thing, even if that means the future is destroyed! It’s also a nice story as it connects Moon Girl to her grandmother. Following this is a fun issue with a trip to the science museum. Devil Dinosaur is not pleased with seeing another T-Rex’s bones!
Wrapping up the collection is a two-part story with Mr. Fantastic’s ego and self-assurance getting in Moon Girl’s way. She’s miffed he thinks he’s the smartest there is, and she aims to prove him wrong. The story starts off on the wrong foot when Mr. Fantastic eavesdrops on Moon Girl, and she’s not pleased about it. This is a nice way to end the story since Moon Girl takes a lot of pride in being the smartest person on the planet while Reed Richards can’t seem to concede.
If you haven’t already picked up this series for yourself or a younger family member or friend, do so. This final reprint of the series is perfect for smaller hands and boosts confidence and exploration in younger readers. Don’t pass up on this, or any Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur stories, as they’re some of the most endearing and fun lighthearted tales in comics.
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