Prez, Vol. 1: Corndog-in-Chief

Five stars for Carl the end-of-life-bear ALONE.

oh my god, this is so funny and weird and sharp. I kept texting random panels to friends while I was reading because some of the jokes were so funny that I just had to share them even out of context. Ben Caldwell's art really sells it too–the newscaster's face when she announces 10 million dead in the Twitter Wars KILLED ME. (Ten million and ONE dead.)

I was sort of familiar with the original Prez series, mainly because it somehow had a crossover with Sandman at some point?! So I know there were a few callbacks to that in the new Prez, but I don't think it really matters if you're not at all familiar with it. I think that any kind of politically-minded teens will be primed to get the world of social-media obsessed corporate personhood that President Beth Ross is fighting against. There are some risque jokes that make it best recommended to teens but they might just go over the head of interested tweens, idk.

Bravo DC. Consider me a fan of Prez and all its charming political satire. With the current state of affairs in our nation, this comic rings even truer than it has before. Beth Ross isn't the president everyone was expecting. She's a teenager, first of all. She isn't taken in by consumerism, corporate greed, or popularity polls. What is hiding inside these pages is a giggle worthy romp through what happens when one person, a person with real power, finally starts trying to make things better. It's not always pretty, it's not always easy, but it's definitely always clever.

This volume flies by, pitting President Ross against all manner of deliciously evil politicians. I loved how Mark Russell and Ben Caldwell dealt with the faceless corporations that strive to have their hands in every pocket. It's giggle worthy, and yet brutally honest, to watch a group of the richest men in the world meet with emoticons for faces. What better way to further your agenda, then to never let your true self be known? Even the way that the news outlets are dealt with is spot on in this comic. Reporting what they're told to, and nothing else.

If you're looking for something hilarious and yet intelligent at the same time, I'd give Prez a shot! You'll likely fall as hard for Beth Ross as I did. I'd vote for her for president any day, but especially now.