Image Comics provided an early galley for review.

I was a middle-schooler in the late 70's and high-schooler in the early 80's, so this one hits squarely in my nostalgic core. Remender and Posehn, in basing the story on their own youth, capture the attitude and tones of the time very well. Anyone who is part of Gen-X will find aspects of their lives in this work. Parson's artwork is absolutely perfect, adding lots of details (like wall posters, t-shirts, iconic businesses and logos, etc.) that pull the reader right into the specific moments of this period. Dinisio's colors further excentuate the moods, day or night. I could easily see this as an animated show.

I appreciated the inclusion of the letter columns and text pieces from the individual issues as well as the alternate covers. Most collected additions should strive for the level of completeness that this one provides.

Wasn't sure what to expect, but it was enjoyable.
Nice color overall.
Decent story.
Like dit a lot better than I thought I would.

Grommets by Rick Remender is a coming-of-age story about a new kid in town trying to fit in. If I liked skating more, this would have been a home run. But even as someone who was never really into the skating or punk scene, I truly appreciated the overall feel of this series, and there are some genuinely tender and sweet moments.

As a coming-of-age narrative, you see growth through frequent moves, meeting a best friend and a hot girl, and generally trying to figure life out. That aspect of the story works exceptionally well, expertly mixed with the awesome, insane, and often over-the-top art.

The skating parts aren't as intriguing, and the hyper-violence is sometimes so brutal it's hard to take seriously. The tone also shifts to a very dark place at points in the later half.

Despite these caveats, I had a good time overall. 3.5 out of 5.

I really wanted to like this book and thought it would be good for older male readers. In the first few pages I could tell that I would never be able to buy it for my school library. Coarse language and sexual innuendo abound.

This book encapsulates nostalgia for the 80s skate scene perfectly. Written more for adults who grew up during that era, than for kids to read. It is a fun look back at teenage angst, finding friendship, and the thrill of the last second before free fall from the top of the half pipe. All told via wonderful art that not only tells the story, but also fits the gnarly vibe!

Turns out there are plenty of crossovers between '90s skater culture in the UK and '80s skater culture in the US - I got several nostalgic feels from this beautifully crafted graphic novel.

It helps that it feels like an animated version of a Richard Linklater movie, sliding by on hang out vibes, before building to the best cut to black I've seen out of The Wrestler (which I know is Darren Aronofsky, but humor me). Highly recommended!

*Thank you to NetGalley and Image Comics for the ARC*
Grommets is a coming-of-age comic set in the 80s following some teen boys, their friends, and their misadventures.

I’d say the strongest point of the comic collection is the art, as it’s downright gorgeous. Theres a serious attention to detail in the settings, the props, the character designs, and its overall style is really lovely.
Art aside though, the story is a bit lackluster. It mostly follows our two teen boy protagonists as they goof around and get in trouble. None of the characters are fleshed out, and some character elements aren’t explored as much as I thought they would. The girl characters and antagonists are especially lacking.

Maybe if I grew up in a skater culture I would appreciate the volume more, but even so the contents felt reminiscent of many 80s teen flicks, for better or for worse. If you like 80s nostalgic rides with low stakes, you might enjoy this series.

I had a total blast reading this, and crushed it in one sitting. I've already pre-ordered it and I can't wait to add a physical copy of it to my collection. The art is great, the characters are interesting, and I loved the coming of age tale about a couple of skate punks growing up. I highly recommend this!