Wait, what?
"Princess Ninjas" by Dave Franchini and Eduardo Garcia is the perfect antidote for kids who are completely over that whole "Disney Princess" phase, and now want their heroines to be a bit more kick-ass and adventuresome.
Meet Bridget, Megan and Elyce and their brave sidekick Turtle Bear - the only folk to turn to when their kingdom comes under attack from a nefarious enemy, the Shadow Wizard Bogymn.
As knights cower, and the king goes into panic mode, the Princess Ninjas swing into action!
Right from the cover, you know you're in for a real treat thanks to a plot that embraces more than just some chopsocky ninja skills, but delves into what it means to be a friend, and to put others above your own self and needs.
Dave's tight plotting cracks along at a blistering pace, and although we'd say this is suitable for a middle grade audience, it has a wider age appeal than that too - fused with a mix of shadowy and dark mystery underpinning the action.
Eduardo's artwork is also brilliant, and if you're a fan of stuff like She-Ra or comics like Marvel Rising etc, you're in for a huge treat. Let's take a look inside at a couple of spreads...
C immediately took to this, mostly because despite the fantasy setting, this is a comic written in the sort of language she instantly identifies with, with the three Ninja Princesses having quite the line in contemporary girl chat (and of course embracing all the stuff girls C's age identify with, like annoying dads! Owch!)
Zenescope's new kid imprint Silver Dragon has made an impressive start right out of the gate. Once again we're thoroughly impressed that kids comics just seem to be getting better and better, and here's the perfect title showing how the balance in readerships for comics is changing, with a brilliant Ninja-powered adventure good for both girls and boys.
Awesome! We can't wait for more from Silver Dragon.
"Princess Ninjas" by Dave Franchini and Eduardo Garcia is out on 6th June 2019, published by Zenescope / Silver Dragon Publishing (kindly supplied in digital format for review).