With most comic book reviews, the proper form is to list the long resume of the writer, discuss how their work has furthered the state of the art, and then start bragging about how, as a sophisticated reader, naturally you appreciated this Magnum Opus.

Forget that. This comic book is great, and that's that! Sure, John Kovalic has done lots of other good stuff (Murphy's Rules, for one). But this is the world of Dorkdom, and it is wonderful.

This book is largely a reprint of all his earlier single Dork strips, published elsewhere, but all together in one volume. Since I haven't been to all the elsewheres where these elsed to, I was happy to have them in one book.

Describing comics (a visual medium) in words dilutes the punchline, so instead I'll try to describe the setting. The main characters are gamers, ranging from the geeky-but-realizes-there's-something-better Matt, through the moderate Ken, Igor (slightly more Hardcore) and Carson (the muskrat). And some others. The important point is the fun. The strips take a look at gaming from an outside point of view; the reader both mocks and emphasizes with the characters

Oh dear, I'm getting too analystic. Tell you what... visit the author's web site ( www.kovalic.com), and look at the sample strips. Yes, I mean right now, don't worry, I'll wait.

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Done yet? No? Okay, I'll wait some more...

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There, see what I mean? Isn't that great stuff? At $3, a steal.

Style: 5 (Excellent!)
Substance: 5 (Excellent!)