This is supposed to be a graphic novel for young-hearted people, of all ages. But I just saw it as far too wordy for a bulk of the young audience. It seems to be a reboot of something of old – or just a straight re-presentation of the first few issues, not letting on its actual age. Our hero is a bit miffed that he's inherited from his grandfather a house yes, and a stuffy butler yes, but also a teddy bear he's too old for and a broken pocket watch. But he soon finds the watch does something, and so does the bear – for it can come alive and become a protector, and robot duffer-upper, and so on. So what other secrets does the deceased grandpa have to spill from beyond the grave?

This certainly has some merits – the final chunk definitely took me to a place I wasn't expecting; I was glad not to have seen any spoilers. The narrative arc before then is fine, too – the humble kid, bullied by some boring stereotypes, very aware immediately of his new school's Little Miss Unobtainable, struggling to come to grips with the reality of his new polar bear guardian angel. I liked the way the whole thing was superhero-adjacent, to use modern parlance.

But I said it above and I'll keep on saying it, the pages are just too word-stuffed. Sometimes the reading order was hard to discern as there were just too many boxed-off thought bubbles from our narrating kid, alongside his spoken-out-loud yacking. I mean, a child could get through it – but eventually. And at least the piece has a purpose, a sentiment it demands is delivered, yet doesn't use that verbiage to thrust that too obviously down our throats. It's telling a story, rather than delivering the message – but it could so easily have told it with a smaller word count.

Ultimately it's a bit of a curate's egg – distinctive with its black and white and red only design, clever with its ultimate reveal, but fairly frustrating with it. I think three and a half stars is about right.