A not-so-secret secret about me: I’ve got a thing for robots. I find them endlessly cool and fascinating. If you put a robot on ‘Desperate Housewives’ I would hobble a grandmother just to make sure I was in front of the television to watch it… that’s how much I like ‘em. With that in mind, Boom! Studios’ SHMOBOTS seemed like an easy sell. It tells the tale of underperforming, slacker robots that were meant to help create a utopia but instead become a lazy drain on society. Turns out the book is a lazy drain on the reader. This one’s written by Adam Rifkin, better known as a Hollywood hotshot director (Underdog, Small Soldiers, Detroit Rock City). SHMOBOTS reads like another failed movie pitch that someone repackaged as a comic, just for the purpose of getting a hot comic-to-movie option. Sadly this seems the purpose for Boom! Studios’ existence, as most of their books cop the same feel.  Welcome to the double-edged sword of Hollywood attention on the comics industry.

For every DARK KNIGHT we will have to endure a thousand SHMOBOTS—run-of-the-mill genre material the powers-that-be assume comic fans will automatically salivate over because of the whiff of Hollywood on the property. No thanks, it wouldn’t even make a good movie. It commits the greatest genre crime of all—it’s boring and unfunny. It’s only polite to say something nice, now: the art is terrific. Les Toil (famous for BBW pin-ups) nails the retro sci-fi feel and evokes Steve Rude (that’s a good thing). I eagerly await more comic work from him, ideally from a comic company that wants to make great comics instead of movie pitches.