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Misfit City #5-8
Misfit City Vol. 2
Wilder and her friends continue their adventures, exploring the secrets of their sleepy hometown.
Wilder, Macy, Dot, Karma and Ed continue their hunt for notorious pirate Black Mary’s secret treasure, and uncover their sleepy town’s hidden secrets. With tensions running high, and the smell of the sea (and unclaimed treasure) fresh on the breeze, the girls will have to work together to keep clear of the Denbys and Horace Shipp, not to mention Wilder’s increasingly suspicious sheriff mom, to get out of this without walking the plank!
Collects issues 5-8 of the acclaimed series written by Kirsten ‘Kiwi’ Smith (Legally Blonde) and Kurt Lustgarten, and illustrated by fan-favorite artist Naomi Franquiz. Expect more crackling banter and a hoard of pirate booty in this series’ exciting conclusion!
Wilder, Macy, Dot, Karma and Ed continue their hunt for notorious pirate Black Mary’s secret treasure, and uncover their sleepy town’s hidden secrets. With tensions running high, and the smell of the sea (and unclaimed treasure) fresh on the breeze, the girls will have to work together to keep clear of the Denbys and Horace Shipp, not to mention Wilder’s increasingly suspicious sheriff mom, to get out of this without walking the plank!
Collects issues 5-8 of the acclaimed series written by Kirsten ‘Kiwi’ Smith (Legally Blonde) and Kurt Lustgarten, and illustrated by fan-favorite artist Naomi Franquiz. Expect more crackling banter and a hoard of pirate booty in this series’ exciting conclusion!
112 pages, Paperback
First published May 29, 2018
14 people are currently reading
311 people want to read
About the author
Kirsten "Kiwi" Smith
28 books115 followersKirsten Smith is a screenwriter and authors. She co-wrote LEGALLY BLONDE, 10THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU, SHE'S THE MAN and ELLA ENCHANTED. She co-wrote and executive produced THE HOUSE BUNNY and THE UGLY TRUTH. She executive produced WHIP IT.
She has written two YA novels, THE GEOGRAPHY OF GIRLHOOD and TRINKETS, the latter of which is being made into a Netflix series, due out in 2019.
She has had over 40 poems published in literary magazines like The Gettysburg Review, Shenandoah and The Massachusetts Review.
She has also co-written two graphic novels, MISFIT CITY and SMOOTH CRIMINALS.
A native of the Pacific Northwest, she lives in Los Angeles with her MISFIT CITY & SMOOTH CRIMINALS co-author Kurt Lustgarten and their two dogs.
She has written two YA novels, THE GEOGRAPHY OF GIRLHOOD and TRINKETS, the latter of which is being made into a Netflix series, due out in 2019.
She has had over 40 poems published in literary magazines like The Gettysburg Review, Shenandoah and The Massachusetts Review.
She has also co-written two graphic novels, MISFIT CITY and SMOOTH CRIMINALS.
A native of the Pacific Northwest, she lives in Los Angeles with her MISFIT CITY & SMOOTH CRIMINALS co-author Kurt Lustgarten and their two dogs.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 105 reviews
October 13, 2019
I really liked how this second volume was heavily focused on the mystery and on the treasure the girls were looking for. It was definitely more fast-paced than the first one and I think I enjoyed it more because of this aspect. I would say that this duology is a nice spooky and mystery read, perfect for the month of October!
June 4, 2018
Another really fun volume for this series. I was a bit surprised as how quickly most of the story lines wrapped up, but based on the last few pages it looks like there's plenty more for them to do if they decide to do a third issue [and I definitely hope they do!]
September 9, 2018
If the first Misfit City focused on sideplots to the detriment of the main treasure hunt narrative, this second volume focuses on the treasure hunt to the detriment of character growth and, well, making much sense. I think that might be a product of how fast the story was wrapped up. Definitely some loose ends out there, even though it seemed like the authors thought the story was complete. The art continues to be the best part, although it's not world-shattering.
February 29, 2020
I liked this better than vol 1. The plot actually gets moved along. The pacing is off though. It feels like the series may have been canceled with issue 8 leaving the creative team one issue to wrap up the main story.
July 25, 2019
A really good ending but I have so many questions and there’s no additional material for those answers to happen! Curse the world!
Still, an exciting duology, definitely think there’s room for more novels and I’d be excited to buy them.
Still, an exciting duology, definitely think there’s room for more novels and I’d be excited to buy them.
tbr-gn
September 26, 2019Misfit City Series Ratings:
Misfit City Vol 1: ★★★★
Misfit City Vol 2: TBR
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Misfit City Vol 1: ★★★★
Misfit City Vol 2: TBR
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│Blog│Instagram│Twitter│Tumblr│
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October 6, 2018
A refreshingly brief series but the ending did feel rather rushed, especially with all the loose ends in their relationships. But overall a fun mystery that isn’t too self aware.
March 22, 2021
Unexpected supernatural elements
It was fun read
The ending makes you hoping for another volune but saddly there isn't one
It was fun read
The ending makes you hoping for another volune but saddly there isn't one
October 10, 2018
NO?! Is that it, will there be anymore?! What is going on?! I absolutely love the Goonie references throughout these ...
"Jerk alert! Jerk alert!"
.. but this volume was the conclusion to the story and there was no definite sign that any more would be coming. There better be though, there is so much more we need from these girls.
"Jerk alert! Jerk alert!"
.. but this volume was the conclusion to the story and there was no definite sign that any more would be coming. There better be though, there is so much more we need from these girls.
December 31, 2021
WHAT DO YOU MEAN THIS IS HOW IT ENDS?
October 27, 2018
1) Misift City Vol. 1 ★★½
content warnings: violence
representation: black main character, fat main character, sapphic main character, black side characters, native american sapphic side character, sikh minor character, f/f minor relationship
This series was a major miss for me :/ I don't know what it is, but I just don't get the hype.
Honestly, my feelings haven't really changed from volume 1: unoriginal and bland characters, an art style that doesn't gel with me, a fine storyline that has been done better in other places. The dialogue is perfectly average, but I feel like it was written to be really witty and make me laugh and I just think it's really uninspired.
Also, I'm fairly certain the the artists have never drawn a fat character before, because her size is so inconsistent it's infuriating. Sometimes she seems like she weighs the same as the other characters, sometimes she seems to be the weight of two other characters combined, sometimes she's somewhere in the middle. It really started to bug me in this volume.
This series was a massive disappointment for me. It's really sad that in a series with such a cool premise, the most interesting part for me was the Goldie Vance reference (is she a real detective who existed, or is she a fictional character?? It's never explained and I wanna know).
content warnings: violence
representation: black main character, fat main character, sapphic main character, black side characters, native american sapphic side character, sikh minor character, f/f minor relationship
This series was a major miss for me :/ I don't know what it is, but I just don't get the hype.
Honestly, my feelings haven't really changed from volume 1: unoriginal and bland characters, an art style that doesn't gel with me, a fine storyline that has been done better in other places. The dialogue is perfectly average, but I feel like it was written to be really witty and make me laugh and I just think it's really uninspired.
Also, I'm fairly certain the the artists have never drawn a fat character before, because her size is so inconsistent it's infuriating. Sometimes she seems like she weighs the same as the other characters, sometimes she seems to be the weight of two other characters combined, sometimes she's somewhere in the middle. It really started to bug me in this volume.
This series was a massive disappointment for me. It's really sad that in a series with such a cool premise, the most interesting part for me was the Goldie Vance reference (is she a real detective who existed, or is she a fictional character?? It's never explained and I wanna know).
August 28, 2018
This is a surprisingly good conclusion, and I’m sad that the series isn’t continuing.
August 30, 2019
I adored this and while they stuck the landing the pacing felt rushed, as if they anticipated 10 or 12 issues and we're told they only had 8. A few subplots were left dangling and it ended with a The End with a question mark and I would love a follow-up/sequel.
Gorgeous art and a fun story.
Gorgeous art and a fun story.
July 15, 2020
so this is over ? that's sad. i really really liked this series and would love to read more.
September 20, 2020
Une conclusions géniale à base de soirée d’Halloween, d’escapades en mer, de journal intime et de grottes secrètes ! J’ai adoré les thèmes de cette duologie : féminisme, amitié et aventures !
June 26, 2021
Graphiquement c'est super cool mais alors question narration j'ai eu le sentiment que dans ce tome ca partait dans tous les sens, que tout était précipité. Ca donne un tome un peu brouillon.
July 11, 2021
sad that this is over and left so many things unanswered im bummed!! would love more from this series. 3/5 stars
December 5, 2022
This was such a fun conclusion! It dragged a little in the middle, but I enjoyed it, and was honestly hoping there might be a third volume in the series.
May 23, 2023
This was really interesting. If there's another volume, I'd love to read it, since they left it open-ended but with a clear ending.
It was a good distraction.
It was a good distraction.
July 31, 2023
3.75 ⭐
Je trouve l'histoire un peu rushée mais j'aime beaucoup les personnages alors s'il y avait eu plus de tomes, j'aurais suivi.
Je trouve l'histoire un peu rushée mais j'aime beaucoup les personnages alors s'il y avait eu plus de tomes, j'aurais suivi.
December 21, 2024
3.5
Conclusion sympa mais un peu rapide.
Conclusion sympa mais un peu rapide.
June 15, 2019
Yeah, this one...didn't really work for me. I apparently said in my review for the first volume that I really liked the art, but this time? Not so much. And I feel like it's still way too Goonies for my liking. I kept hoping it would eventually veer farther away from that, but when it actually did, it went in a direction I...kind of think is dumb. I dunno. I guess it's fine? But I don't really feel like there's anything at all below the surface, you know?
January 16, 2019
I think the thing that annoyed me the most about the ending was that obviously they wanted to leave room for a continuation, but instead of doing an open ending, they left it off with a story hook. Which is going to forever bug the begeezers out of me if the story doesn't continue.
July 15, 2019
Series continues to be great. I like the way the story has a good sense of conclusion, and reopens with a new adventure. It's a great lead into the next issue, without being too much of a cliff hanger.
July 20, 2018
I LOVE DOT MY BOOKISH ACE BABY
August 11, 2023
After losing all my reviews after accidental deletion, I decided to mark it as Vol1 and Vol2 rather than going by book by book.
March 28, 2025
I read Misfit City Vols. 1 & 2 back to back so I'm going to review them both here!
The first thing that caught my eye here was the cover art (anyone else notice the Misfit City font is essentially the Gravity Falls font?). The character design is great too! I love the vol. 2 cover in particularly, with the lighting and clothing choices. It really set the tone with that mysterious, otherworldly pallet.
The books themselves follow 5 girl friends, and their dog Pip. They all live in the same coastal Oregon town where a famous kid's adventure movie was filmed The Gloomies (I'm sure you can guess the irl movie). They spend their time dealing with parents, part-time jobs, mean girls, and tourists. So many annoying tourists. Until one day things change when a local fisherman passes away and leaves a mysterious treasure map behind. Being that this is the first exciting thing to happen to them ever, the girls decide to try their hand at treasure hunting, with dangerous results.
Did I like Misfit City? Yes and no. Let's start with the visuals. Like I said about the cover I loved the style and color pallet. Every character feels like a real person, from their body fat to their varied clothing styles they felt very authentic. There were a few panels that gave off an uncanny valley vibe with poor perspective and flatness or strange hands and shadows (we can all agree, hands are hard to draw). This wasn't a huge issue but it was noticeable.
As for the story, it was self-contained from beginning to end, with enough surprises to keep the plot from being entirely predictable. This felt like an episode of Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, the Crystal Cove focused show with a larger ongoing mystery, and for that I love it; it was the perfect vibes for something like this. And of course Misfit City had all the booby traps and pirate treasure of The Goonies. If that's your vibe I think you'll have fun with this one.
But as I said, I liked it and I didn't. Some aspects of the story felt unnecessary, such as the mean kids. They really had no purpose other than to show up for a page to cyber-bully the girls or call them lame or reading and then walk off. If something can be cut from your story and the story remain entirely unchanged, it's worth cutting. The same goes for some of the drama between the girls. Why is it a big deal that your friends want to spend the afternoon at the fair instead of treasure hunting? There is no time limit so why are you in a rush? If you really don't want to be part of the hunt why are you coming along and ruining it for everyone who wants to be there? Just go home and take a nap girl.
I also found it weird that vol. 1 & 2 only show four of the girls on the cover when there are 5 main characters, and the only confirmed queer character is the one they left off the cover.
There were also some notable inconsistencies that made me laugh. If you've ever heard a British reader complain about how inaccurate some American authors are when writing historical fiction, this reminded me of that. This book takes place in Oregon, USA but someone working on this is English and it shows 😆 Throwing up the V instead of the middle finger and calling people "bruv" were the biggest indicators. There was also a scene with a "catamount skull" and I had to look up what that was. It's a mountain lion, but it's a name seemingly only used in parts of New England (approx.. 2,600 miles from Oregon). It's not the scientific name either, and I live in a mountain lion area on the west coast so I feel like I would have heard it.
Nothing bad, but definitely funny!
Overall it was a fun read full of adventure, mystery, and pirate ghosts. I like how the whole story was contained to these 2 volumes; it wrapped things up nicely while leaving the potential for a new mystery at the end. Definitely check it out if you're looking for some nostalgia and looking for a swashbuckling good time.
The first thing that caught my eye here was the cover art (anyone else notice the Misfit City font is essentially the Gravity Falls font?). The character design is great too! I love the vol. 2 cover in particularly, with the lighting and clothing choices. It really set the tone with that mysterious, otherworldly pallet.
The books themselves follow 5 girl friends, and their dog Pip. They all live in the same coastal Oregon town where a famous kid's adventure movie was filmed The Gloomies (I'm sure you can guess the irl movie). They spend their time dealing with parents, part-time jobs, mean girls, and tourists. So many annoying tourists. Until one day things change when a local fisherman passes away and leaves a mysterious treasure map behind. Being that this is the first exciting thing to happen to them ever, the girls decide to try their hand at treasure hunting, with dangerous results.
Did I like Misfit City? Yes and no. Let's start with the visuals. Like I said about the cover I loved the style and color pallet. Every character feels like a real person, from their body fat to their varied clothing styles they felt very authentic. There were a few panels that gave off an uncanny valley vibe with poor perspective and flatness or strange hands and shadows (we can all agree, hands are hard to draw). This wasn't a huge issue but it was noticeable.
As for the story, it was self-contained from beginning to end, with enough surprises to keep the plot from being entirely predictable. This felt like an episode of Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated, the Crystal Cove focused show with a larger ongoing mystery, and for that I love it; it was the perfect vibes for something like this. And of course Misfit City had all the booby traps and pirate treasure of The Goonies. If that's your vibe I think you'll have fun with this one.
But as I said, I liked it and I didn't. Some aspects of the story felt unnecessary, such as the mean kids. They really had no purpose other than to show up for a page to cyber-bully the girls or call them lame or reading and then walk off. If something can be cut from your story and the story remain entirely unchanged, it's worth cutting. The same goes for some of the drama between the girls. Why is it a big deal that your friends want to spend the afternoon at the fair instead of treasure hunting? There is no time limit so why are you in a rush? If you really don't want to be part of the hunt why are you coming along and ruining it for everyone who wants to be there? Just go home and take a nap girl.
I also found it weird that vol. 1 & 2 only show four of the girls on the cover when there are 5 main characters, and the only confirmed queer character is the one they left off the cover.
There were also some notable inconsistencies that made me laugh. If you've ever heard a British reader complain about how inaccurate some American authors are when writing historical fiction, this reminded me of that. This book takes place in Oregon, USA but someone working on this is English and it shows 😆 Throwing up the V instead of the middle finger and calling people "bruv" were the biggest indicators. There was also a scene with a "catamount skull" and I had to look up what that was. It's a mountain lion, but it's a name seemingly only used in parts of New England (approx.. 2,600 miles from Oregon). It's not the scientific name either, and I live in a mountain lion area on the west coast so I feel like I would have heard it.
Nothing bad, but definitely funny!
Overall it was a fun read full of adventure, mystery, and pirate ghosts. I like how the whole story was contained to these 2 volumes; it wrapped things up nicely while leaving the potential for a new mystery at the end. Definitely check it out if you're looking for some nostalgia and looking for a swashbuckling good time.
July 31, 2018
Man, I didn't realize there would only be two volumes in this series! I'm a tad sad it's over.
This volume has a little bit more supernatural stuff than the previous one did, which makes it even more fun.
I definitely feel the story could have been improved by lengthening it and not leaving as many loose ends. For example, the disappearance of a very important character kept being brought up and, it was unclear how they disappeared in the first place (in one chapter they were there, and in the next one they weren't), and I just didn't find it believable that nobody was more actively concerned about finding such an important person.
Also, again, the art could be improved by making the faces of a few characters more distinct.
The ending left me confused because there's a character we've never seen before (at first I thought I missed them somewhere but then I went back and double-checked through the first volume and couldn't find them anywhere). It seems that with the addition of this character, the story could continue in a future volume? We also don't know what happened to and it just seemed odd to pretend like they never existed.
Overall I would definitely recommend Misfit City, especially if you're itching to read something mysterious, supernatural, and Halloweeny, or are looking for stories with a team of female protagonists.
This volume has a little bit more supernatural stuff than the previous one did, which makes it even more fun.
I definitely feel the story could have been improved by lengthening it and not leaving as many loose ends. For example, the disappearance of a very important character kept being brought up and, it was unclear how they disappeared in the first place (in one chapter they were there, and in the next one they weren't), and I just didn't find it believable that nobody was more actively concerned about finding such an important person.
Also, again, the art could be improved by making the faces of a few characters more distinct.
The ending left me confused because there's a character we've never seen before (at first I thought I missed them somewhere but then I went back and double-checked through the first volume and couldn't find them anywhere). It seems that with the addition of this character, the story could continue in a future volume? We also don't know what happened to and it just seemed odd to pretend like they never existed.
Overall I would definitely recommend Misfit City, especially if you're itching to read something mysterious, supernatural, and Halloweeny, or are looking for stories with a team of female protagonists.
August 15, 2024
This was a nice follow up to the first volume, though it definitely isn't a satisfying conclusion. Especially at the end it felt like they knew there wasn't going to be a next issue/volume, and maybe they did. It just felt like the main story got nicely wrapped up but there were so many threads left loose and especially with the hinting of there being another volume/issue, it's just unfortunate that it didn't continue. I also felt like there wasn't enough about the actual characters in this one. There was so much action and trying to find the treasure and that kind of stuff that it didn't leave room for them to really shine or have many moments at all. They all felt pretty...one note the whole volume. Not a lot of growth.
But I'm glad we at least got this and didn't just end on the cliffhanger from volume 1.
But I'm glad we at least got this and didn't just end on the cliffhanger from volume 1.
March 28, 2019
A quick recap of the first volume of Misfit City: Best friends: Ed, Wilder, Macy, Dot, Karma, Macy’s step-brother Todd, and Pip (the dog) discover a treasure map found in the chest of a long thought dead sea captain. Running from the Captain’s alleged long lost relatives, Luther and Millie Denby, the gang go on an adventure of a lifetime to find the treasure while navigating through friendships, love, trust, and growing pains. Volume 1 ends when Luther and Millie nearly kill Macy, and the gang finds Captain Denby himself by the entrance to a secret cave. What will happen next?
See the rest at: http://www.noflyingnotights.com/blog/2019/03/05/misfit-city-vol-2/
See the rest at: http://www.noflyingnotights.com/blog/2019/03/05/misfit-city-vol-2/
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