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Plants Vs. Zombies: Lawnmageddon
Publisher: Dark Horse
Writer: Paul Tobin
Artist: Ron Chan
Colors: Matthew J. Rainwater
Letters: Steve Dutro

Zombies are pretty popular right now, and they have been for a while. I’ve been experiencing a bit of fatigue towards them with how saturated they are in all kinds of media. I need something besides just zombies to get me interested, maybe wizards, robots, plants, or something. What’s that? Plants? Oh yeah, that made one of the most fun games around. Plants Vs. Zombies has gone from the video game world and entered the comics world. How does it hold up as a comic based on a tower defense game? Let’s find out!

Since Plants Vs. Zombies the video game has a simple premise – use weaponized plants to defend your home from zombies that want your brains – the comic has a bit more it needs to establish. I felt like I was reading what could have been a pitch for a Saturday morning cartoon of Plants Vs. Zombies. The story provides two kids, Nate and Patrice, who are our heroes in this growing threat of zombies. They are aided by Patrice’s uncle, Crazy Dave, who is the shop keeper in the video game. Together they use the plants that Dave cultivates for just such a problem. Dave is rather prepared and lives up to his moniker. Instead of the game’s mechanic of needing sunlight to plant things, all the plants exist already, and the sunlight is what fuels them to keep going.

I won’t give anything away for the story, but it’s a good mini-series that wraps up and leaves itself open enough for more if wanted, and well enough to keep it where it is. The art is top notch in that you can pretty much tell the story without the words, but with them things fall into place far more quickly, and you can keep up with it far easier. The art and writing compliment one another well. You’ll see plenty of the plants and zombies from the first game, even some of the more rare undead.

If you are a fan of plants, zombies, Plants Vs. Zombies, or all-age adventure comics, take a look at Plants Vs. Zombies. It’s a quick read and good fun, and if you’re still in the Halloween mood in November, it fits that zombie itch you may still have. Speaking as someone who is a bit tired of zombies, this is a series I still find to be a fresh enough take to want to keep reading.

Dr. Alexander Bustos

drbustos@comicattack.net