1st the art style is absolutely stunning! I loved the color pallet that was chosen. Sophie was a really fun main character to follow. Sophie's little brother was hands down my favorite. Its a really fun and short graphic novel. it's really weird at times but I loved that about it. excited to see what else the other volumes have in store!

thank you Netgalley for a copy in exchange for an honest review!

I like the art. I like the idea of this comic/graphic novel. I think a lot of subplots are grouped into volume one that perhaps should have been drawn out over a greater number of parts/issues/chapters. The pacing is on the uneven side. The characterization feels thin across the board. Again, I think there just isn't enough story here for me. There also could be more women for my taste, but that's a wholly subjective preference.

Three stars. It's not really my thing, sadly.

I really wanted to like this Graphic Novel. I Loved the Art. The story was a big miss. It felt like the author threw everything at the board and never bothered to edit it. He just included everything as he thought of it. Plus the ages in a possible relationship were a BIg No!

Sophie's dad is under house arrest for allegedly embezzling money from the bank he worked at. Due to the hype around her father's case, Sophie is bullied at school and ends up breaking the nose of a fellow student, which forces her to take an internship through the school or get suspended. Sophie joins WMIA 7, a run-down nearly out-of-business news station, and realizes that she has found a connection between this new murder and her father's case. A lot of strange science timey-wimey stuff occurs, and in the end, Sophie gets to become WMIA 7's new social media liaison, only to discover her father's case isn't over yet. This is a reprint of the original story from 2021, and while it's promoted as paranormal and horror, it's very much more science-fiction crime than paranormal/horror. Still, a fun and quick read, and great for teens who want to check something out that's not DC or Marvel.

I enjoy young adult graphic novels as both a reader and educator — I would gladly share Scoop with the high school students in my life, as well as fellow comics-loving adults. Well drawn and thoughtful storytelling.

This was a 10/10 for me, it was fun, enjoyable, and I loved all the characters, including Ritz who I thought was going to be a jerk but was actually really cool and badass. Also the gaterman, he was the best part. I would absolutely read again!

Hi Again!

I am still on my quest for organized bookcases and in that quest, I have been reading a lot! This time I gave audiobooks a rest and decided that I would read a graphic novel in between cleaning and at night. So I went to my Netgalley app to see if anything caught my eye and I saw I was approved for this E-ARC of Scoop (thank you so much to the publisher for the E-ARC in exchange for my honest opinions). I decided I would give it a try and I was able to read this entire first volume in one evening!

SPOILERS AHEAD

Sophie is a high schooler but she is anything but normal. Recently her father got into a lot of legal trouble and it has attracted a ton of media attention. Now she and her brother are getting tons of scrutiny literally anywhere they go. From school to the market, they are the target of bullying and harsh words from everyone. So lately Sophie and her little brother have been eating lunch outside in between their two schools with this one other kid who is kind of weird, but he’s alright and never mean to them. But Sophie has a plan to try to turn things around not just for herself but for her whole family. She is going to prove her father’s innocence by getting an internship at a news station. However, when Sophie starts her internship she quickly learns that this is not the premunmim news station that it once was. But she is still going to put her new resources to the best use that she can!

I really enjoyed this graphic novel and I am looking forward to the next volume. Sophie and her whole family were interesting characters and I enjoyed getting to know them. I thought the cast of people Sophie was interning with were also entertaining and had varied perspectives. I absolutely did not expect or even guess what Sophie was able to uncover. I can not wait to see how that develops and maybe is able to help her family. I definitely recommend giving this a try if you are into mystery graphic novels! It hits shelves on April 30th, 2024!

Goodreads Rating: 5 Stars

***Thank you so much to the publisher for the E-ARC in exchange for my honest opinions.

3.5ish stars - This is a fun mystery romp! It has a great sibling relationship and a sweet blossoming relationship, making it a perfect upper-middle grade or younger YA graphic novel. I loved the light conspiracy themes in this, but I appreciated it didn't fully jump too deep into conspiracies. I'd recommend this for school libraries or classrooms, though there is discussion of a murder (no graphic images or anything).

Thanks to the publisher for an arc!

"Scoop, vol. 1" is a captivating read that will appeal to fans of mystery, adventure, and the supernatural. With its engaging characters, thrilling plot twists, and stunning artwork, this graphic novel is sure to leave readers eagerly awaiting the next installment of Sophie Cooper's adventures.

A teenage girl gets an internship at the worst TV station in Miami. There she gets involved in a wacky case involving time travel after reporting on a murder for the station. It's not bad, even if there are way too many coincidences. There's also a subplot about her dad being under investigation from embezzling money from a bank.

DNF

A mess.
This is the perfect word to describe all this.
I just couldn't connect with anything, it started pretty cool but then I don't know what happened but the events didn't make any sense. Put one after the other, the story was all over the place and just couldn't follow where all this was going.

I dropped it almost half way through because I was just forcing myself to read something I just couldn't understand...

I liked the coloring tho...

Very fun! The artwork is stellar and the story is exciting. I didn't expect much going in, but this was a wild ride that I would recommend to graphic novel lovers everywhere.

⭐️⭐️ It was OK, I can see why some loved it

When the news breaks, someone needs to fix it. That’s where SOPHIE COOPER — redheaded Cuban-American, high school freshman, and intern at Miami’s worst TV news station — comes in.

After her father is wrongfully accused of a crime he didn't commit, fifteen-year-old Sophie Cooper volunteers for an internship at a Miami TV news station. Between logging tapes and fetching coffee, she secretly investigates South Florida’s rampant paranormal activity in order to clear her family’s name — and unwittingly stumbles upon a secret, supernatural conspiracy that threatens the entire world.

I really really wanted to like this one but there was just so many things going on, I had a hard time following along. Sophie is a great character and I did like her moxie, but this book should have been done in two volumes, instead of cramming everything into one. It jumps around so quickly, I sometimes had to flip back and forth between pages to get it and sometimes I just gave up. I did really like the art and the humor, that kept me going for the most part. 

Thank you to Mad Cave Studios, NetGalley, and author Richard Ashley Hamilton for providing me with a digital ARC copy of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review. Scoop Vol. 1 Breaking News is out April 30, 2024.

This story had way too many plot threads in way too small of a book. There's a LOT of story that tries to be crammed into only 96 pages, and boy it doesn't work. If this graphic novel had the standard amount of pages such as 158 or 186, I think the story would have had more time to breathe and really flesh itself out. This novel jumps from plot point to plot point at a breakneck speed, and many details are left behind in the process. It's a pity, there are multiple plot threads in the story that are actually interesting and I wish the story had delved into more. The ending the the story happens way too fast, and nothing is explained, so it feels extremely unsatisfying. The art was excellent, and I did enjoy the action scenes. Though some elements of them made little sense. My only gripe is that is a bit hard to tell they're Cuban. If anything, Sophie looks like she could be Irish. Her name doesn't really scream Cuban either. It's not really anything that matters, but is it something that threw me off.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced copy in exchange for my honest review!

First up a big thank you for allowing me to read this book! I was definitely looking forward to it, but sadly the story and the characters didn't click with me. It also didn't help that I just had no clue how old our MC was. 12? 14? At times acting more like 18? Plus, the supernatural element was just mentioned once or twice, and I had hoped more of that as that is what I came for. Plus, I just cannot see how that will click with the current plot if it does appear, because at the moment apparently our MC is interning at a tv station to clear her dad's name, or something? I would have liked to see that worked out a bit better.
But the art was cool.

Netgalley Review

Star Rating: ★★★☆☆

Well, that was a train wreck that I couldn't stop reading. Has a good framework, definitely liked the idea and I might possibly check out the next one to see what happens. Just a lot that happens in a small space. Especially considering that a lot of it is not explained.

Basically, girl wants to be reporter. Girls father is in trouble. Famous guy gets murdered. Girl stumbles onto bunker. Fishman. Evil doctor messing with radiation and time. Fishman. Everyone is cleared. Wait, who killed the dead guy?

"Scoop: Breaking News" is far less of a book than it should be. This book presents a strong Latinx/Cubana tween heroine who takes an internship in the world's most dysfunctional newsroom in order to shed light on mysterious events that threaten her family. With it's fast pace, witty dialogue and strong X-files vibes this book has a near instant appeal. The addition of some great supporting characters, including a mysterious Alligator-Man, a bratty little brother and lots of zany newsroom characters is also a strong draw. However, this book never entirely takes off, seems incomplete in many places and is often hard to follow.


Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher, Mad Cave Studios, for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Scoop, v.1
Okay, right off the bat, this comic gave me serious flashbacks. I was a broadcasting major in Orlando, Florida back in the day and had three (non-paid!) internships BEFORE I graduated. They never let ME ride in the traffic chopper! BUT I carried a lot of very heavy mid-80s equipment around Disney World in temperatures and humidity in the high 90s. But this review is not about me! Soooo, moving along.
Sophie Cooper is a brand new news intern at the lowest rated television station in Miami, WMIA Channel 7. The station is in the basement, marketwise, dealing with old technology, bad morale, low ratings, no fuel for the chopper and little respect. She proves her worth right away when she offers to get the news anchor a coffee while he’s on the scene of a murder and she finds out some information from the barista that the other stations missed. The news anchors, Station Manager, Traffic Helicopter Pilot and other journalists are convincingly portrayed as rather self-centered and superficial. (*I* was told as an intern to “not mix with the talent.”) But what is Sophie’s reason for wanting to work at WMIA? Her mom works in the mayor’s office and the school principal tells her she could’ve gotten any number of better placed positions. Does it have something to do with proving her dad’s innocence? He’s stuck at home with an ankle monitor and up on charges of bank fraud, and the media has been camped out at their house for months. Sophie is ready with her “why” speech, which her principal does not buy. (“Save that for your college application.” HA!) Good thing her brilliant 9-year-old brother Kit creates technology that helps her in her investigations! It makes up for the daily slog of bullying and the snide comments she must deal with from the other kids at school; except for Milo, who wants her to be in his film.
Other strange things are happening at the same time: a man disappears in the Everglades, leaving his shoes and his damaged truck behind and the sheriff can’t find any other evidence of his disappearance. Weird sounds and lights have been coming from the swamp, and Sophie’s investigations run her smack into a weird creepy guy with head trauma eyes, whiny station managers, a weird threatening man dressed like the Secret Service and more weirdness in the swamp! (I won’t say more – it'll ruin the surprise.)
Even though the adults in this book are somewhat clueless, news anchor “Ritz” (an incorrigible name dropper) teams up with Sophie to solve the mysteries of what is really going on in the Everglades – he’s sure the big “scoop” will save the station. Sophie learns some hard lessons about the news business too. In her naivete, she keeps hurting the people who help her, all because she will sacrifice anything to prove her dad innocent. But is he?
Author Richard Ashley Hamilton must have been an intern too, because his book is too funny for him not to have been. His writing also betrays his age - “My Datsun wouldn’t start!”; the sprinkling of Hall and Oates songs throughout; and the white patent leather loafers Sophie’s school principal wears. His Cuban American heritage shows too through the Spanish scattered throughout the comic and the beautifully depicted South Florida landscape – the Everglades, Miccosukee Village, Hard Rock Cafe Casino and South Beach are all depicted completely realistically. The depicted characters are multicultural. The only annoying thing about the comic is the numerous loose plot threads that are not resolved. The wrap up of the story seems rushed and is not satisfying. I was left wondering about all the plot points that were not answered. The comic is marked as “V.1”, though, so maybe these will be wrapped up further on.
There are no adult situations in this comic, but the light violence, sharp talking and scary situations make it better for the 14 and older crowd. It looks like a middle reader, but I would put it in Young Adult.

I found this graphic novel to be quite entertaining, with a plot that was reasonably easy to follow and colourful, well drawn illustrations. I'm not sure that the supernatural aspect really fitted with the whole vibe of the story though. The inclusion of the main character's younger brother felt natural and added warmth. There was an occasional use of humour and the introduction of a possible love interest. I can see a lot of scope for future issues if this is to become a series.

I received this arc from netgalley in exchange for my honest review.

If I were to rate <i>Scoop Vol 1: Breaking News</i> on the characters alone, this might’ve been a four or five star graphic novel. Unfortunately, there were some hiccups with the story overall.

We follow a young girl, Sophie, whose family is dealing with a lot of hardship all stemming from her father’s alledged crime with his job at the bank. After a fight at school results in Sophie needing to volunteer at a dying new station, circumstances lead her on a journey to clear her father’s name.

I think, at its core, there’s a lot of great stuff going on here. I loved the characters, Sophie’s younger brother, Kit, and her mentor, Hal, in particular. The journey was an interesting one and I was certainly invested through the majority of it.

The problem really comes in that the story is very clunky. At times, not enough is really set up or explained. We, as the readers, kind of just have to go with it. The science fiction aspects of it feel like they come out of nowhere, which would be fine if there were more of an explanation in the end. But even that falls a little short—I have zero explanation for the thing in the lake.

Even so, I would definitely return to this world and these characters. Not only am I quite fond of some of them, but I’m also eager to learn more about the others. I am also quite interested in learning more and developing an understanding of the science that builds up the oddness of this world.