A review by katereads2much
Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Comic Book by Leighton Gray, Vernon Shaw
3.0
I picked this up because the title made me giggle, and the cover was fun. I didn't, and honestly still don't, know anything about the game it's based on, so my review is based completely on reading this as a book standing on its own. Further complicating this review is the fact that this book is a collection of comics, not one unified story (even if they are interconnected stories). Collections are often hard to review because each story is different, and they have different creators making it difficult to give a blanket review, and this compilation is no exception.
Another caveat I need to give is that I thought this would be more romantic than it is. Most of these stories are far more "slice of life" with exaggerated silliness to make them fun, larger than life stories than they are tales of romantic love. Those types of stories are not without merit, and if the goal of the stories was to give the reader a sense of these characters being a community of family--blood relations and found family alike--then in that, it succeeds.
The first story, "Much Abird about Nothing," is softly romantic and very sweet. It is comfortable, warm, and gentle. It is my favorite of the collection but probably in part because it lived up to what I was expecting and what I wanted from the collection. Unfortunately, that set me up for expectations the other stories did not follow through on, which left me feeling disappointed in most of them. I adored this one. It is the most intimate of the collection, too, the story which most centers around a potential couple and that least brings the reader into the dynamic. Those who play the game may be the least satisfying, I suppose, but again, I was reading it because I thought it would be a collection of romantic stories, which gave me what I wanted and lived up to my expectations. 4 Stars
"Let the Right Dad In" might be the funniest of the bunch, but perhaps it confused me the most when I was first reading because I had expectations. Still, take a look at the picture from the "title" page and tell me that you wouldn't have had some expectations.
Regardless, "Let the Right Dad In" is a cute, funny story with romantic possibility. 3 Stars.
The third story, "Dream Ad-y," is the one where community and found family vibes really drive the story. There's a lot of funny, bumbling amongst the "town folks," and the end will definitely make you say "aw." I didn't see a romantic subplot, but, again, that didn't seem to be the point of the story. 3 Stars
Next is "Fair Deal," and I'll be honest that this was my least favorite story. I think it's supposed to be funny. Two dads get worked up about their child/children winning the science fair when none of the kids are interested in winning. One child begs her dad to stop pressuring her and making such a huge deal out of it. Not because she doesn't want to do well, it's obvious that she wants a good grade, but going overboard is stressing her out--which stressed me out. So yeah, this... was not the story for me. 1 Star.
The final story, "Dungeons & Daddies," is probably my second favorite of the batch and was definitely the perfect story to end on. We get the sense of community, and the found family feels again, which is definitely what this comic collection gets the most right. There's a nice blend here of fun and cuteness. I'm a sucker for almost anything Dungeons and Dragons inspired, so maybe I'm biased. Still, the concept that they're trying to play an adventure game worked highlighted each character's personality and let the writers show off the group dynamics. There's an undertone of romantic possibility in this story too, which I, of course, loved. 4 Stars.
The compilation--as a whole--mostly felt like a true collection, except for maybe the first story. The first story was my favorite and was the closest to what I was expecting, but it didn't fit as well and seemed the least intertwined with the other stories. The other four felt the most cohesive.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Another caveat I need to give is that I thought this would be more romantic than it is. Most of these stories are far more "slice of life" with exaggerated silliness to make them fun, larger than life stories than they are tales of romantic love. Those types of stories are not without merit, and if the goal of the stories was to give the reader a sense of these characters being a community of family--blood relations and found family alike--then in that, it succeeds.
The first story, "Much Abird about Nothing," is softly romantic and very sweet. It is comfortable, warm, and gentle. It is my favorite of the collection but probably in part because it lived up to what I was expecting and what I wanted from the collection. Unfortunately, that set me up for expectations the other stories did not follow through on, which left me feeling disappointed in most of them. I adored this one. It is the most intimate of the collection, too, the story which most centers around a potential couple and that least brings the reader into the dynamic. Those who play the game may be the least satisfying, I suppose, but again, I was reading it because I thought it would be a collection of romantic stories, which gave me what I wanted and lived up to my expectations. 4 Stars
"Let the Right Dad In" might be the funniest of the bunch, but perhaps it confused me the most when I was first reading because I had expectations. Still, take a look at the picture from the "title" page and tell me that you wouldn't have had some expectations.
Regardless, "Let the Right Dad In" is a cute, funny story with romantic possibility. 3 Stars.
The third story, "Dream Ad-y," is the one where community and found family vibes really drive the story. There's a lot of funny, bumbling amongst the "town folks," and the end will definitely make you say "aw." I didn't see a romantic subplot, but, again, that didn't seem to be the point of the story. 3 Stars
Next is "Fair Deal," and I'll be honest that this was my least favorite story. I think it's supposed to be funny. Two dads get worked up about their child/children winning the science fair when none of the kids are interested in winning. One child begs her dad to stop pressuring her and making such a huge deal out of it. Not because she doesn't want to do well, it's obvious that she wants a good grade, but going overboard is stressing her out--which stressed me out.
Spoiler
Maybe it's because I had a lot of pressure on me as a kid, and I have zero interest in being a parent that this one really didn't sit well with me. An older teen comes in, and their solution to the escalating competition between the dads is for the kids to cause trouble in the library and get kicked out. I work in a public library and deal with kids and parents a lot, and I know what it takes to get kicked out of the library. It's a lot, and it's sure as hell not funny. We typically have to call the cops. The kid who was a wreck through the whole story does not want anything to do with the shenanigans and then gets kicked out for the day anyway and is miserable, at least until the next day when they have some fun (at the fathers' expense).The final story, "Dungeons & Daddies," is probably my second favorite of the batch and was definitely the perfect story to end on. We get the sense of community, and the found family feels again, which is definitely what this comic collection gets the most right. There's a nice blend here of fun and cuteness. I'm a sucker for almost anything Dungeons and Dragons inspired, so maybe I'm biased. Still, the concept that they're trying to play an adventure game worked highlighted each character's personality and let the writers show off the group dynamics. There's an undertone of romantic possibility in this story too, which I, of course, loved. 4 Stars.
The compilation--as a whole--mostly felt like a true collection, except for maybe the first story. The first story was my favorite and was the closest to what I was expecting, but it didn't fit as well and seemed the least intertwined with the other stories. The other four felt the most cohesive.
Thanks to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.