Mega Robo Bros

Mega Robo Bros #1

by Neill Cameron

London! The Future! Alex and Freddy are just like any other brothers. They squabble. They drive their parents crazy. There's only one difference...they're the most powerful robots on earth! But Alex and Freddy will soon discover that they're not the only super-powered robots around. An evil robotic mind is making sinister plans. And their lives won't stay peaceful for much longer...

Genres: Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Middle Grade, Comics, Childrens, Adventure, Fiction

96 pages, Paperback

Published June 2, 2016

Reviews

[Mathew · Rating 5 out of 5]

Why I haven't read Cameron's book before is beyond me. Having finally picked it up, I instantly found that I was completely absorbed in Cameron's futuristic London in which robots and A.I. both protect the people and cause havoc. Two robots, in particular, brothers, live with their human parents whose purpose is to protect them from a world fascinated by their powers. Not only did I find dad a great role-model but also the fact that the family is not white an absolutely refreshing change. Not only this but much of the cast itself is also non-white. On top of this, Alex, the elder of the two brothers is a sensitive and vulnerable being caught in that confusing time when being a teenager is incredibly complex and often quite lonely. For all its incredibly action and humour, Mega Robo Bros is far cleverer and intrinsic in its message - and I loved it for it.

[Alan Fricker · Rating 4 out of 5]

The stupid philosophy penguin is worth the price of admission alone

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kid: mom, what does ‘hell is other people’ mean
Me: what?
Kid: in this book, there’s this robot penguin, and he keeps saying stuff like that
Me: what?
Kid: he also says, “existence is an imperfection”
Me: he’s quoting Sartre!?!

Needless to say I had to read this. And it was such a pleasant surprise. Silly but with some really heady concepts snuck into an action packed story.

[Leslie Kitchin · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite character was the penguin robot with existential angst.

[Lizzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A futuristic world with futuristic threats. Only two young brothers can save the day...they just happen to be robots! This amazingly powerful read captures a snapshot of family life and submerges it in Sci Fi gold for all ages! Mega Robo Bros celebrates diversity. It portrays beautifully the familiarity of the every day, the mindsets of young children and their parents, the dream of being a super hero in contrast with self discovery amongst the daily pressure put on our younger generation. Couple this with the excitement of a technologically advanced world and the humour of a depressive philosophical penguin and you have Neill Cameron's masterpiece! Both tender and hilarious in equal measure, this is a definite winner for all ages (categorised as 8 - 12).

Graphic novels are incredibly powerful tools in a classroom setting. Visually rich and approachable, they offer a different genre to the obvious finds on a classroom shelf, and for many children and adults become the gateway to reading for pleasure. Please take a look!

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

So fun! So much adventure! Robots fighting bad guys and even dinosaurs (sort of)! (

Parental Heads-up though: there is one swear word used a bit; some cartoon-style violence; and some gross-out humour "butt," "poop" "fart," and things of that nature... If you can handle robot nudity, sibling rivalry, the royal family being in danger, secret underground tunnels, and cartoon fighting then this book might be for you!

[Kimberly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh my goodness, SO cute! This book is absolutely perfect to hand to any kid who loves graphic novels, poop jokes, and explosions. I hope there are more!

[Becky B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alex and Freddy are two robot boys. They live with human parents, attend school, and do normal boy things. But when the exhibits at the Natural History Museum start to go haywire during their field trip or when the royal family is targeted in an attack, they come to the rescue. For some reason the adults are wary of putting them in the spotlight. Why? Where did they come from? And who is responsible for these attacks?

This is set in a future London and those looking for more multicultural representation in their reading will love how future London is populated by so many people of color in this book. Cameron has created two robots brothers with very different personalities. The younger one is goofy and loves immature humor. The older one is more serious and is wrestling with mysterious shadows of their past that give him nightmares. Both display very impressive superhero abilities when they are needed to save the day. Their dad appears to be a normal human guy, their mom is an inventor with the government. Middle graders who love superhero graphic novels, robots, or futuristic scifi should enjoy this one.

Notes on Content: 2 minor swear words (spelled slightly different). No sexual content. (The younger robot dances on camera when he realizes his "butt" is showing, but he's not a very anatomically correct robot so it is not provocative.) A few robot on robot battles that results in some property destruction. At one point a train accident puts humans in peril, but no one is hurt.

[Yiwoon Neoh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great start to a great series, what with the great characters, family drama, emotional moments, whimsical comedy stuff, and a pair of loveable, cute and precious robot brothers who work together in fighting off bad guys in spite of their differences.
And yes I am an Alex kind of girl, but Freddy's pretty funny and great too.
Also Stupid Philosophy Penguin is the best existential Sartre quoting deadpan comic relief that made for a great comic relief without being too preachy about its comic relief status.
Also the later parts is where stuff gets exciting what with the foreshadowing from 'Mega Robo Routine' of Stupid Philosophy Penguin's "Hell is other people" and Alex's nightmare being the moments where it indicates that the future London that seems idyllic has some skeletons in the cupboard, what with the main antagonist of this book actually subtly hinted to have a connection with Alex.
And yes go read this book, or even buy the remake of the first three books. It's very cool, has well executed mature themes, and what makes it better is the Manga/Tintin-esque art style drawn by Neill Cameron and how he makes the story that can be eligible for all ages that balances action, mundanity, and suspense.

[Muslim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finished the whole book 94/94 pages. In the Alex and Freddy are just like any other brothers. They squabble and drive their parents crazy. There is one difference, They're the most powerful robots on Earth! they soon discover that they are not the only super powered robots around. An evil robotic mind is making sinister plans, and their lives won't stay peaceful for much longer. When Alex finds the evil robots location, he rushed to destroy him but the evil robot put some kind of device on him which he can't move and behind him is big EXPLOSIVE! Then Freddy shows up, he removed the device and put it on the evil robot. There was only 10 seconds left until the explosives blew up. They rushed out and the brothers destroyed the evil robot. I didn't like this book because it is kinda for kids. Plus it did not make any sense to me. It is like just jumping to conclusions and doesn't give reasons why they were made.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Mega Robo Bros are your average kids from futuristic London, average, but also advanced technology robots. While they are growing, learning, and saving the day, they become known in the public eye, which brings up dangers and more questions from their past.

Not sure who to age range this for? Has more than a few minor swears, and lots of toilet talk but also some really good jokes too, pretty normal amount of violence for a sci-fi book though. The characters are charming, even if they argue a lot, and they have big hearts.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Graphic novel set in futuristic era London. Characters are culturally diverse. The plot line is entertaining but it feels like a canned plot line and therefore rather predictable. The only thing that bothered me is that if the robot brothers are that advanced and capable of human feelings, I might have expected them to be more humanoid. (I guess I was thinking more of Data from Star Trek - guilty of preconceptions of my own.)
I think students will like this graphic novel.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Silly humor (the "poopy butt" song sung by younger brother to annoy older brother), lots of big fights and explosions, and cool inventions. It even squeezes in emotional complexity, as despite the constant brotherly squabbling, the 2 robot brothers actually worry about each other and work together to take down the evil robot. Another book where I am not the intended audience, but I recognize that boys will *love* this book.

[Navya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mega Robo Bros is a really good Graphic Novel. This book is really making me read it all over again. In most graphic novels, The main family is white mostly. I really liked the story and the point of this book. My favorite character is Freddy, he is like me but gender completely switched. Anyway, I recommend this book to kids who are in the age limit of 8-12. It’s a really great book. The author did a really great job on this book.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Graphic novels are not my favorite reads and this one was really hard for me to get through. The type in the speech bubbles is really tiny and may take some getting used to for students who are used to much bigger type. The story is typical - two robot brothers fighting with each other when they are not saving the world.
Add if you need more graphics. There are a few bleeped out words in the father's speech bubbles.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

The pacing feels a bit weird and the climactic ending seemed oddly rushed, but this is still a lot of fun overall and certainly has potential going forward. Very solid art, great writing on the brother/family dynamic, and plenty of silly fun as well (the trio of pet robots being the highlight. I'm a fan of random French exclamation monkey myself).

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny and adventurous story about robot brothers set in a futuristic London. There's humor, mystery and intrigue, and some spectacular robot fighting. But what I loved the most was the very human sibling relationship between the robot brothers; the family is relatable and makes you care about them.

[Andrea Lorenz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very little can stop these two mega robot brothers (except for maybe bickering and free ice cream). Very interesting middle grade graphic novel - love the world building and the boys' mysterious background. It's funny and clever and cute. Good pick for graphic novel readers (little intense for reluctant readers)

[Karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I LOVED this hilarious new graphic novel featuring a pair of robot brothers in future London. It hits just the right sweet spot for me - sci fi + humor + diverse = awesome.
I'm going to try and talk lots of people into reading this one. (Prob best for 3rd-5th grade, but why stop there?)

[Steph · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not really a sci-fi gal, and the layout/graphics weren't the kind that are easy to read for me. (I prefer the style of Smile/Sisters/Babymouse/Squish/etc.)

Still, I know some kids who will enjoy this graphic novel quite a bit.

[Kristian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fun story about how brothers get (or don't get) along. I renamed the lead characters after my sons, because I could. Both of them have looked it over, the older (10 yr,)actually read it, the younger (6 yr.) loves the pictures and action. I enjoyed it a lot

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked this book way more than I thought I would. There is action, adventure, and two robot brothers who sometimes argue with each other. It made me laugh a lot. Please note that there is potty humor and the word "dammit" is used a few times.

[Marcie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sorry, but I just couldn't get through it. I'm sure there are kids who will love the series, but I won't be pushing it.

I wanted to like it because of Betsy's 5 star and so many others. Maybe in a few years I'll be talking about this as I did Captain Underpants in 1996.

[Michael Perez · Rating 1 out of 5]

Going against the grain here, but I really don't see anything worth recommending here. Too manic, too crazy, the plot not really interesting. Maybe MAYBE I can convince some school-age children to give it a shot, but me personally I won't give this another shot.

[Jailen Robinson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute book with an overarching plot about the brothers and how they came to be. There were a lot of potty jokes, which I am not a personal fan of but younger students would love. It was a very diverse cast of characters with different races and gender roles.

[kylie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a silly and cute graphic novel about two robo bros. A student left this at my desk to read, so we can talk about it. He was very interested in telling me about the Philosophy Penguin. And I understand the interest.

[Brenda Kahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once I got used to the teeny-tiny font in the speech bubbles, I enjoyed the ride. Squabbling robot brothers in a futuristic London? Who can resist? Really fun!

[Aud · Rating 4 out of 5]

More like 4.5. Really fun art, and the plot was original. I loved the diversity of the cast, and the characters were completely believable (especially the robo bros). I think the kids will love it!

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Superheroes, A.I., Action packed, full color, teen/tween robot "humans", diverse characters, science, London, brother relationships

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started out irritating but ended up cute-- good for kids who love butt jokes and fart humor, ages 7-9. I love Monseiur Gorilla and the Stupid Philosophy Penguin.