[.ca] Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius Volume 2: 2.0 (ISBN 1929998058)

Not your everyday neighborhood kid.:
This volume collects the first three issues of The Adventures of Barry Ween: Boy Genius. Barry Ween is not the boy next door. At least, you'd better hope he's not. If he is, chances are you probably don't want to know, because you probably have radioactive waste stored under your house, have had your entire life history scoped out, have had your future pre-determined, and your cat is probably a clone. Barry is not your typical 10 year old. As he says, if his IQ could be measured, it'd loom somewhere around 350. He remembers his time in the womb. He has, however, hidden his staggering intelligence from his family and from most of his 'peers.' The only one who seems to know the truth about Barry is his best friend Jeremy. The attraction there is certainly not because Barry recognizes a kindred spirit. While not dumb, Jeremy would rather spend his energy thinking about \obreasts\c and food than world domination. If you're familiar with The Tick, you might remember Charles. Barry reminds me of Charles, except not as manic, more intelligent, and with a much more ... colorful ... vocabulary. But, despite the conniving, calculating, impatient, overbearing nature of our boy hero, he has a soft side (though he'd never admit it). Whether working to change Jeremy back into a human (long story), or saving his classmates from a group of Austrian art thieves, Barry generally finds a way to do 'the right thing' to get his friends and himself out of sticky situations, swearing up a blue streak all the while. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and am looking forward to reading more.

No rest for the genius.:
This volume collects issues 1-3 of the Oni Press comics series The Adventures of Barry Ween, Boy Genius 2.0, and continues with the themes set forth by the first volume in the series. These themes are, of course, "Barry Ween is a genius. Jeremy is a fool. The first is a secret. The second is not." Ok, ok. There's more to it than that. Barry Ween is not your average 10-year-old. He is, in fact, the smartest person on the planet. Understanding that, were the truth of his genius be revealed he would likely spend the rest of his life being researched and doing the bidding of the government, Barry has taken great pains to hide his true nature from his peers. In fact, the only person who knows about Barry's staggering intellect is Barry's best friend, Jeremy. Jeremy is... not a genius... and is responsible for complicating any number of the situations the boys find themselves in. But, you know, they do say that opposites attract. In this collection, Barry and Jeremy work on doing 10 impossible things before breakfast. First, they must help an alien who has crash- landed in Barry's back yard before the feds or the alien's employers find them. Then, as if saving all of humanity weren't enough, an unfortunate accident with a matter transporter sends Jeremy (and thus, Barry) back in time to the un-romantic days of the Old West. Finally, Barry has to subdue the government when they take undue interest in him. Really, all in a day's work when you're a boy genius. Barry Ween, Boy Genius is not for the faint of heart. There's a great deal of violence, and even more in the way of colorful language. But, underneath the foul-mouthed, light-saber-weilding, world-dominating exterior, Barry Ween is a 10 year old boy who loves his best friend and wants to be accepted by his 'peers.' A fun read, all around.

I'm a "Ween-ie" for Life....:
I decided to try this book out on the unqualified recommendation of Comic Buyer's Guide columnist Tony Isabella. Dee and I were at Mid-Ohio Con's pre-convention party at the Laughing Ogre, and so, on a lark and with some dough to blow, I picked it up and took it back to the hotel with me. Damn Tony and his calculating, seductive ways! He KNEW that I would become a "Weenie" and would immediately be scouring the convention for the next two volumes.... of which only "2.0" was available. But like a junkie in need of a fix, I scarped it up and, late that night, kept Dee awake with my incessant laughing and reading aloud nearly every passage. You can't help but read this stuff out loud, the book practically talks by itself. When I was finished, I got that terrific feeling again, the feeling I got when I first experienced Jeff Smith's BONE, or Brian Michael Bendis' first Ultimate Spider-Man, or when Frank Miller gave new meaning to both Daredevil and Batman, or when a young neophyte from Canada named John Byrne launched a career I officially mark with his first writing and drawing gig on the last issue of Charlton's SPACE:1999. This, this is why I love comics and the people who make them. This is indeed a boom year for great comics, and every now and again, you find something that seems to transcend the medium. I wish only great things for Judd Winick and I'm climbing the walls waiting to see where he's taking Barry, Jeremy, and Sara next.

Fun!:
One of the funniest comic books you'll ever read! Go Barry Go!

Extremely Funny:
Barry Ween is one of the funniest books I've read in the last few years. There were several points where I nearly stopped breathing from laughter. Barry Ween is a Boy Genius. His friend, Jeremy, has a knack for getting into trouble. Mostly Barry gets Jeremy out of trouble. This series has brilliantly funny humor. Barry's vocabulary is very R-rated though. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.