1.5 stars - It wasn’t great

This was ok. This is a series of slice-of-life comics about Andy, a trans man, and Scout, thier butch lesbian roommate and best friend. I wanted to like these comics, but I just found Scout and Andy to not be great characters. Andy is self-destructive, annoying, and in constant need of validation. Scout is super introverted and doesn’t know how to handle her emotions. I didn’t mind Scout but I found the majority of Andy’s actions and responses annoying. They are obsessed with dating, constantly flirting with everyone, and at one point, they ask out Scout’s ex and invite her over to their house without letting Scout know first. Also, so much alcohol. These two are constantly drinking and relying on it during emotional situations instead of actually dealing with their emotions.

I ended up skipping quite a few of these comics because I just found myself getting annoyed by these two. My other complaint was the art style. It felt incomplete and messy. The dialogue was also hard to read at times because of the style of writing the author used. Overall, I wanted to like this story of two queer friends but I sadly didn’t.

Trigger Warnings: use of wrong pronouns; alcohol consumption; body dysphoria; harassment; homophobic family members; death of family members;

I didn't enjoy this graphic novel at all. I was super annoyed with how political it was and I don't agree with half of the stuff in this graphic novel. I was really hoping to enjoy it but sadly I did not. I honestly don't know what else to say besides I am so glad that I pushed to finish this graphic novel.

I got an arc via Netgalley for Grease Bats so thank you to the publisher but I am such a disaster I didn’t get to read it in time before it got archived so I went out and bought it.

I told myself I would love everything queer and it’s taken me so long to review this book because ~I HATE IT~ and I don’t want to hate it but the characters give me such a “bro” vibe and it causes me to get all anxious and nervous and I absolutely hate it. I really wanted to enjoy it and some strips were funny but overall I did not ~enjoy~ it as much as I wanted to.

This was okay for me. The art style wasn't my favorite, and I really, REALLY wish it was in full color or at least partial color instead of black and white. The story was alright, and the characters were queer af, which is great to see.

This was cute, ultimately from the description I was expecting something with more of a story, where this was more of a daily newspaper, collection of single strips kind of thing, and it didn't hold my interest or stick in my mind.

This was a lot of fun. I didn't have any prior knowledge of this comic, but I didn't have a hard time jumping in blind. I saw some reviews that people didn't like the art style or had trouble with the handwriting, but I didn't have issues with either. I really liked the style of both, and it felt more personal with the way it's stylized. We need more queer stories like this!

Yes to these queer characters and their adventures. I will admit to being hesitant at first, but I slowly fell in love with these pals. I want to see more of them.

Started reading and I just was not a fan. The story seemed very ridiculous and I can't even remeber much of what happened.

Unfortunately, I did not get the chance to read this ARC prior to the book's publication, and we did not end up buying it for our library collection.

Loved this - love comics, love LGBT comics even more. The art style is really special, and I liked the use of colours. The cast of characters, there's something for everyone to relate to. Definitely recommend!

I think this book will resonate with many people within the LGBTQIA+ community. Scout and Andy are funny and relatable characters with continuous misadventures. While I was not a huge fan of the artwork/style, I did enjoy many laughs. I found many of the strips/scenes to be hit or miss, some where comical while others fell flat or felt cliche.

I've been a fan of Archie Bongiovanni since I first read their Guide to They/ Them Pronouns comic book! As a gender queer person myself I loved reading a story which is very much for an LGBTQ+ audience rather than the usual 'let's explain the gays for your average cis straight reader,' kind of approach. I was left often helplessly laughing at the dialogue between this group of friends dealing with their own queerness, relationships and an ever encompassing, all crushing capitalist het/cis normative society.

I may also need to make myself every one of Andy's t shirts!

The art is loose and expressive, very much in the talking heads diary comic style, with little detail but a lot of emotion. They talk very openly about possibly triggering topics such as body dysphoria and anxiety, but it wasn't without hope and some genuinely good advice. I certainly felt less alone and very validated after reading it. It gives a nuanced look at what is can mean to be queer and steps away from some of the stereotypes you see all too often. I'll definitely be buying a physical copy once it's out!
Cheers.

Grease Bats is a collected comic about a small cast of characters, centered around roommates, Andy and Scout. It is hilarious and more than a little bit ridiculous, but also handles the serious and nerve-wracking reality of being visibly queer in post 2016 election America. There’s discussion about being misgendered, flirting when shy, nonmonogamy, coming out as an adult, and much more, but ultimately Grease Bats is a story about friendship, which I’m a sucker for.

[ Bonus for me was discovering that panels from Grease Bats are the only way I want to communicate from now on=) ]

The art style is rough and not cleaned up enough to follow in a book. I had to reread panels several times. The content was super relatable but as a book and not, say, a webcomic, this didn't work for me.

Where to start? Grease Bats was a joy to read, and I was genuinely sad when I flipped the last page only to realize I’d finished the book!

Grease Bat is a compilation of five years of Archie Bongiovanni’s web comic of the same name, originally posted on Autostraddle. The non-sequitur (for the most part) comics follow Andy, a trans genderqueer extrovert, and their best friend/roommate Scout, a queer butch introvert as they navigate life in their mid-20s.
Bongiovanni’s writing is honest, funny, and so true to life that I swear I’ve had the same conversations with my queer friends. I genuinely love all of Bongiovanni’s characters and want to spend more time with them so badly that I can only hope there will be a sequel to Grease Bats. These characters feel REAL.
It means a lot to have queer representation that feels diverse, relevant, funny, romantic, silly and honest. I don’t think I’ve ever read a queer character that feels as real as Scout, Andy, and their friends.

If you’re queer I’d recommend reading Grease Bats. For everyone else, this comic might not be for you, but don’t hesitate to jump in and read about Andy and Scout’s misadventures. You might learn something!

Aww man I LOVED this book! Its honestly a queer wet dream and I am here for it. The representation was so diverse and well done. My one critique was the art lacked a little and was kinda sketchy, but I don't even care. Andy's fashion, Ari's introvertednes, and Scouts awkwardness all made it an enjoyable and relatable read.

I've been reading for what feels like all the lifetimes of every 1D member combined. It's been so long and nothing had happened. I feels like a ton of tiny snippets of random scenes that are not connected by anything apart from the fact that it's the same two main characters, but that alone cannot save this book.

I don't read a ton of graphic novels, but this has turned me off of them completely. The illustrations are somewhat cute, but I found a lot of the queer jokes to be problematic. Specifically, one of the characters says it's easier to be a lesbian so you don't have to deal with men. I supposed it had comical intent, but I found it offensive.

Honestly, I wanted to DNF at page 12, but I managed to DNF at 117. I feel as though I gave it a fair shot. Maybe this book is for some people, but I am not one of them.

Grease bats is a fun little graphic novel, filled with short comic strips following Andy (a gender queer individual) and their best friend Scout. Together they traverse adulthood and the LGBT dating scene.
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I had a good time with this one, the comic strips do change in topic and seriousness as you go. Occasionally you'll get a more serious one, other times you get a very memey one, and sometimes you'll get one right in the middle. I do think it's relatively hit or miss, but if you are a fan of webcomics I think you might be a big fan and should check it out!
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⭐⭐⭐⭐
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Thank you to #boomstudios and #netgalley for providing me with a review copy of this graphic novel.

[ENG]
It's hard to review this one because I wasn't expecting it to be quite as good as it was. This graphic novel is fun and super inclusive with the LGBT+ community. I don't think I've read something like this in a while. It focuses on the life in the queer community with all the good and bad things.

Grease Bats is about Andy -a genderqueer non-binary person- and Scout, a lesbian who can't get over her ex(s).
I really enjoyed it, but if you're not familiar with queer jokes you will not find it as funny. This did not explain much about queer life.

In my opinion, Grease Bats is funny and has a lot of great characters who deserve the world. However, sometimes it felt like too much. In about 300 pages the characters start to lose their charm and become all the same again. It's funny but only if you didn't read at once.
I highly recommend Grease Bats to have a fun time, to learn about diversity, and only if you want to know a little more about empathy.

*Copy provided in exchange for an honest review*

[ESP]
Es difícil reseñar esto porque no estaba esperando que sea tan bueno como fue. Esta novela gráfica es divertida y super inclusiva con la comunidad LGBT+. No creo que haya leído algo como esto en un rato. Se enfoca muchísmo en la vida en la comunidad queer con todo lo bueno y lo malo.

Grease Bats es sobre Andy -une genderqueer no-binario persona- y Scout, una lesbiana que no puede superar a su ex(s).
Realmente lo disfruté, pero si no estás familiarizado con las bromas queer no lo vas a encontrar divertido. Grease Bats no explica mucho sobre la vida queer.

En mi opinión, Grease Bats es divertido y tiene un montón de personajes que merecen el mundo. Sin embargo, a veces se sentía como que era demasiado. En 300 páginas los personajes comienzan a perder su encanto y se tornan lo mismo una y otra vez. Es divertido únicamente si no lo lees de una sentada.

Lo recomuendo mucho para divertirse un rato, aprender sobre diversidad y únicamente si querés saber un poco más acerca de empatía.

*E-book otorgado a cambio de una reseña honesta*

Grease Bats was a letdown, sadly so. I thought I'd get warm and funny LGBTQ stuff, but I got cliches and the feeling that I've read this a thousand times before thus this offers nothing new. Grease Bats is a strip comic with Andy and Scout and their friends. Andy is a trans genderqueer person and Scout is gay and overly emotional up to being annoying. Andy has sex with basically anyone and Scout cannot cope with relationships. Basically just another comic that involves sex, dating, booze, parties and Halloween and that's it. Andy and Scout's lives don't include anything but the aforementioned and considering that the comic is long, it cannot offer enough content. Alison Bechdel does this way better. Our characters don't grow or evolve in any way, which makes this quite boring and repetitive. The comic isn't necessarily bad, but just bland.

The art looks hazy at best and quickly drawn, like a draft. Because of this the comic feels unfinished and this serves no purpose either. Somehow I have a feeling that this has been published first on some web page and it was never meant to more than short occurrences. Now that these occurrences are collected they show the flaws so well. Still, not the worst case out there.