Atomic Robo and the Fightin' Scientists of Tesladyne by Brian Clevinger

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book is about Atomic Robo, an Eighty-three year old self-aware wise-cracking robot originally created by Nicola Tesla.

The robot's adventures span decades and being a robot it makes more sense than it does with people who have this sort of lifespan. Most of the stories are set in the then-present day of 2007, but begins with how he first gained his citizenship and Independence by taking a down a 1930s Nazi operation. Issue 2 takes us to the Present Day where Robo is the head of TESLADYNE, a think tank with guns and handles weird scientific threats. He also reflects back on the past and the book has its one poignant moment.

Issues 3 and 4 has Atomic Robo and his team dealing with the Pyramids coming to life in Ancient Egypt. Issues 5 and 6 brings the book full circle as Robo fights his oldest enemy.

Overall, this is just a fun book. The plot's not brilliant, but it's a thrilling adventure story. It doesn't try to be profound or particularly edgy. It just tries to be fun and succeeds in spades. Robo makes a great hero with plenty of sarcasm, and there are some interesting scientific ideas. Except for one joke about robot porn, this would actually be a decent book for kids too. Overall, I found this a delightful book and will end up reading more.



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