The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, Vol. 9: Squirrels Fall Like Dominoes

The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl (Collected Editions)

by Ryan North, Derek Charm (Artist)

Doreen Green and her friend Nancy Whitehead have had a great idea: get some friends together and play an escape room! That's one of those real-life games where you get locked in a room and have an hour to escape before you die! Except you don't really. I mean, it's not like if you die in the game you die in real life, ha ha.

But when Squirrel Girl and Nancy gather Koi Boi, Chipmunk Hunk, Brain Drain and Kraven the Hunter inside and lock the door, it turns out that this escape room is actually lethal after all! Can Doreen and company escape? Find out, why don't you?! It's everything you crave from a Squirrel Girl book: friendship, adventure and a room full of death traps!

Collects The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #32-36.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Marvel, Superheroes, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Young Adult

128 pages, Paperback

First published November 27, 2018

About the author

Hi, I'm Ryan! I was born in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada in 1980 and since then have written several books. You can read my Wikipedia page for more, or check out my author site at RyanNorth.ca!

I'm the author of the webcomic Dinosaur Comics (that's the comic where the pictures don't change but the words do, it's better than it sounds and I've also done crazy things like turn Shakespeare into a choose-your-own-path adventure, write a comic for Marvel about a girl with all the powers of a squirrel, or mess up walking my dog so badly it made the news.

I'm working on more stuff as we speak, hopefully it's good

Reviews

[Calista · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun times! I was happy to be back to the world of Squirrel-Girl. It's still one of my favorite Middle Grade Marvel Comics.

Kraven is back.
Doreen and friends go to a puzzle house to solve a fun escape puzzle and it turns into a life and death situation
Doren goes to Jail
Spider-man shows up
Tony Stark can't get Squirrel Girl out of court, but the Lawyer is She-Hulk; very fun.

This is pure fun and I love that problems are usually not fixed by violence and fighting, but well thought-out logic and reasoning. It's the best. I love Doreen for that. It's why I love this book series so much.

I'm gonna keep going.

[Xanthe · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's get this out of the way: Erica Henderson isn't drawing Squirrel Girl anymore and I'm not okay with it. It's not the new artist's fault that he's not her, but everything is different and I'm not getting over it anytime soon. The art is cute, but Doreen is a little more generic, not as much junk in her trunk and definitely drawn to be more conventionally cute. Sigh. The main storyline collected in this volume had mayyybe a little too much Kraven the Hunter for my taste, but there was plenty of the power of friendship with Nancy Whitehead, Chipmunk Hunk, Koi Boy, Mary (?), and Brain Drain. Plus Tippy-toe! The final stand-alone issue in the collection was pretty great as it was a basically wordless story about a librarian ghost. Awesome.

[Diz · Rating 5 out of 5]

To be honest, I was a bit worried about the change of artist for this series. In the first issue or two, the new artist is a bit stiff, but he quickly finds his comfort zone and the art loosens up a bit. The writing is as funny as ever. The highlight of this volume is a beautiful story about Squirrel Girl's friendship with Kraven the Hunter. It dives into the idea that people can be trapped by past bad decisions, but at the same time offers hope that people can change--particularly if they are supported by good friends.

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not loving that Doreen has gone on a diet and gotten her teeth fixed courtesy of the new artist, though the art isn't bad otherwise.

The stories are still good at least, though I'm not a fan of redeeming Kraven the Hunter. It's not peak Squirrel Girl, but the silent issue at the end comes close.

[Beck · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first 4 issues in this start off as Doreen and friends and Kraven hanging out in an escape room which turns deadly, and ends up in a discussion about the legal aspect of a villain who was changed and had a redemption. The whole thing was really well done and also as fun as usual. The only issue I had with it is that at one point Squirrel Girl kind of invites the audience to figure out how to get out of one of the rooms but I just don't think with the information given I would have ever been able to work it out so I think that part could have been done better. I like that an interactive element was added but I don't know how the hell anyone was supposed to actually work out how to get out of the room from the clues given.

The fifth issue is a "silent" issue so there's no dialogue and I was excited to see how it would work out but I ended up not really enjoying it. After reading The Arrival by Shaun Tan which is an EXCELLENT silent graphic novel, this just came up short and seemed like more of a gimmick and showcase of Derek Charm's art than a story that needed to be told this way, or even at all.

The art is really nice, it's definitely different from Erica's and I think so far I prefer her art for this series because it suits the series so well, and I like that Henderson's art makes people look like normal, average looking people whereas charm's definitely glams everyone up a little and that's not really necessary in my opinion. I like that Squirrel Girl is kinda chunky and has big teeth but there's less of that now.

Overall, a solid volume that unfortunately doesn't end brilliantly.

[Maddie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute!!! The change in art style is a little jarring, especially when I've been going back to back with these comics and the art in the last volume was phenomenal, but once I got used to it I really enjoyed this book! Kraven the Hunter is one of my fave Squirrel Girl reoccurring characters so it was awesome to see an arc focus on him for once. Also SPIDEY!!!! HE HERE!!! WELCOME SPIDEY!!!!!

Also the ghost librarian one-off?? A++++! Perfect one off.

[Chris Talbot-Heindl · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story was great! I loved it and we got to see more of Brain Drain and other friends in the story line. I'm sad by the lack of Tippy Toe.

I'm super not happy with Derek Charm's illustrations. They took away Doreen's muscles and large front teeth, leaving a generic, thinner, conventionally-attractive, comic-style woman with a tail.

Erica Henderson gave me a feminist icon and different body positivity that this lacks. I want my Squirrel Girl to be quirky, muscular, toothy, and with tons of sassy and diverse facial expressions. Half of the fun was Henderson's rending of the whole teams' facial reactions to stimuli.

Chris review of Erica Henderson's Squirrel Girl: This is going great! I have no complaints.
Chris review of Derek Charm's Squirrel Girl:

[Trulsa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Squirrel Girl kan verkligen göra alla karaktärer intressanta. Kraven the hunter liksom?

[Jena · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is our first volume with a new artist, and it's very bittersweet.

Erica Henderson's art was very cartoony to the point of being a touch off-putting and I saw mixed responses to it. For my tastes, I thought her style suited the tone of the book and her cartoony style allowed for some truly unique expressions. I also like how she emphasized some elements of SG's body that don't jive with the overwhelmingly sexy/cutesy look of most comic books - namely her large front teeth, big ol booty and general "stocky" shape.

With Derek Charm, all of those defining elements of SG are gone and she looks...cute. It does make me sad to see them go (we couldn't even keep the buck teeth?) but otherwise his style works just as well with the comic. It's not as overtly cartoony, but it has an undeniable Sunday newspaper comic book strip flavor that adds that cartoonish aftertaste. I really liked his work on Jughead and so far his art on SG is fantastic.

As far as the story goes, what's there to say, really? It was fun as always. Even though this title has been running for quite a while now and weathered a few Marvel-wide shakeups, it manages to stay consistently wholesome and funny. This volume sees SG deciding to further help her on-again-off-again ally Kraven become a better person by befriending him. Their first stop on their new friendship adventure is an escape room and as usual it doesn't go according to plan. This volume sees a lot of cameos from a seriously underground 90s D-list villain, to She-Hulk and Spider-Man.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 4 out of 5]

V9 pretty much continues on with the normal strengths of Ryan North's Squirrel Girl: it's very funny and it features terrific characterization. Here, that focuses on Kraven the Hunter. No, there's no way this is the same Kraven as found in Amazing Spider-Man Epic Collection Vol. 17: Kraven's Last Hunt, but at least North acknowledges the facts of that comic several times and suggests that Kraven is on a redemption arc, and looks at what that means in his silly version of the Marvel universe.

Beyond that, we get a fun plot about an escape room, and a fun trial. Oh, and there's a "'nuff said" issue. I've never loved the dialogue-less comics, but at least North uses it to tell an interesting story.

[Ant Tellez · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.1/5.0

Marvel has a real knack for writing it's historical villains in a way that helps them become more accessible in an empathetic frame. Turning Kraven the Hunter into one of Squirrel Girl's closest allies was something I wasn't sure I'd ever read, but I'm so glad that I have.

[Dubzor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Writing is still great, but I'm really not a fan of the new art direction. Where did Doreen's curves go? Why is Nancy suddenly ultra hip?

[Adan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl continues to be the best comic of all time, and I am running out of ways to say that every time I read a new trade. But this USG trade has something new to make me love it (and I don’t mean the new artist; Derek Charm is great and I love him, but I miss Erica Henderson something fierce).

Kraven the Hunter has been portrayed as a semi-good guy since Doreen talked him down way back when. In this collection, Doreen, Kraven, and all their friends go do an escape room that goes wrong because villainy. But afterwards, the NYPD goes after Kraven because he has like a jillion warrants out for his arrest. Doreen tried to defuse the situation, but the police peg her and all the others as Kraven’s accomplices. And everybody goes to jail. What follows is another Marvel story about how hard it is for a person who’s made some mistakes to change in our society. Admittedly, Kraven’s made some pretty terrible mistakes in his life, but he has consistently tried to put all that behind him since his first appearance in this series. He has tried to become a better person. Doreen believes in him, and so Kraven believes in himself. But it’s hard to shake society’s perception of you, and even when you have someone like Doreen, someone so relentlessly optimistic, in your corner, it can still be incredibly hard to break the cycle of recidivism. When very few people are willing to give you the chance to make up for your mistakes, to be better, then what’s the point? It’s easier to just be what most of society already thinks you are.

Marvel’s done this a few times recently, showing some of their villains as real people who have previously done bad things, but are trying to change that (Titania in Illuminati is an example, though that was quickly aborted due to the series’ cancellation), and I love it. Corporate superhero comics are one of the last few places with easily discernible good guys and bad guys, and while I don’t at all want to knock that because is a very nice escape from reality where almost nothing is that easy, it’s still very nice to see some well thought-out nuance from time to time.

[Chris Lemmerman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Squirrel Girl takes her friends (and Kraven the Hunter, who will be her friend, or else) to an escape room! But of course, nothing is as it seems, and soon Doreen is in prison, Kraven is fighting Spider-Man, and the whole world's gone mad! Plus, Doreen fights a librarian ghost in an entirely silent issue because of course she does.

I've mentioned that I love this book, right? I'm sure I have, but I'll reiterate. I love this book. Doreen's shenanigans are always hilarious and full of heart (usually at the same time) and her struggle in this one to reform Kraven is so well realised. It's easy to write off villains in comic books as irredeemable, especially those in shared universes like Marvel and DC, so to see him really attempting to be a good guy breaks my heart (mostly because I know he's the star of Nick Spencer's big Spider-Man arc next year so it clearly doesn't work).

There's some legal drama, some superhero action, some clever speeches (I see you Brain Drain) and a whole lot to love in the four issues that comprise the Kraven arc, while the Nuff Said silent issue is an exercise in trusting the artist that I don't think is ever more important than when said artist has only been on this series for four issues so far.

Derek Charm steps in to fill Erica Henderson's big shoes, and I think he does it excellently. He makes his characters look very human, which I feel like is something Henderson sometimes lacked, mostly because she was a lot more exaggerated with facial features whereas Charm's work is a lot more closer to reality. His figures are soft and his eye for fashion is great, and I can see him having a great run on this title.

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl remains, as always, a fun little book that makes me want to hug it. Like physically hug the book, right on the train while I'm reading it. It's that good.

[Shelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Squirrel Girl wants to make sure Kraven stays on the side of good, and invites him to an Escape Room with her and her friends--except it's run by a super villain! Dun dun dun.... I was sad to see Erica Henderson leave art on this, but Derek Charm is so great--he's kept the style of the series but softened the harsh lines a bit. It's honestly delightful and fits the book so well. The story is also just super awesome, as always--I love Kraven's casual wear so much, and the depth they gave him in his quest to be heroic and live up to his Belka's ideals was really lovely. You could really feel his pain as he wondered if his efforts would ever be good enough and regressed a little bit. Highly enjoyable and super fun.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story is fine, but the art is really disappointing. Squirrel Girl has had every physical attribute that sets her apart removed (aside from her tail). Her large front teeth — which go back to the original Ditko version — are replaced by a perfectly normal smile. Her large, muscular thighs that Erica Henderson used to show off so wonderfully have been reduced down to “normal” size. She kind of looks like any generic, non-overly-sexualized comic woman who just put on a Squirrel Girl costume. She doesn’t even have Tippy by her side. I’ve always loved Squirrel Girl because she was a celebration of a body size that isn’t often celebrated. Now, that’s gone. And it’s very disappointing.

[Nori · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely not my favorite installment. I'm not a big fan of the new artwork. Squirrel Girl looks more like a cartoon character from a new Saturday Morning show for little ones, than she does like the unique/super cool super hero I've come to love.

The humor is still there and fantastic. I love all the cameos and the premise of an evil Escape Room is fun. It just did not hold me captive like past installments have. The art just feels so much more generic and like everything else out there. I'm not sure if I will be continuing to read these books any more. Maybe I'll try one more after this.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Starting with a story about an escape room, this trade proceeds to a room from which a lawful hero cannot escape: jail. The complexities of Squirrel Girl's compassionate approach to reforming villains are explored here, with more nuance than one might expect from the lighthearted book. It's very well done.

The final story is exceptionally good, as well, and not only because it's a silent issue about a librarian ghost with jokes about the dewey decimal system.

I cannot recommend USG highly enough for readers of comics.

[Hugo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Still as well-written as ever - North is still educating and inclusive in his concerns, and the humour does not wear thin.

But... I really don't care for the art. Where Henderson had a quirky approach - a looseness in the line, an easy dynamism, bags of character - Charm has lifeless panels, ruled-line backgrounds, and an identikit drawing style. It lacks life and movement and - apologies - charm. It's really pulling the reading experience down for me.

(Read as single issues.)

[Melissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the library scene alone, this gets 6 stars out of 5:





But seriously, this also earned its 5 stars for the escape room plot...I loved every minute of it!

[Imogene · Rating 4 out of 5]

Squirrel girl! Savin’ Kraven?
I do enjoy the hope and optimism of SG.

[Dea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm starting to think I only read these comics anymore for Brain Drain.

[Ma'Belle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still great with the new artist! Yayyyy!

[Joshua Dancer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loses a lot of personality and humor without Erica Henderson's art.

[Ella · Rating 5 out of 5]

Still the best ongoing marvel comic. This time with even more Kraven.

[Adriana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good stories, Ryan North always killing it, but I don't like how Doreen looks, she's too thin, she looked awesome with a curvy sometimes muscular body, now she's meh, even her face, she's not as generic even in Marvel Rising comics or in the show. Also her clothes used to be more unique and the suit is wrong when she's not wearing the jacket.

All the other characters look good, particularly Chipmunk hunk, I just wish the main character did too! I've never given less than 4 stars to Unbeatable Squirrel girl. Man, I miss Erica Henderson, it's not the same :(

[Michael McCaughey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Oh wow. A Squirrel Girl team-up with Kraven, featuring cameos by She Hulk and Spider-Man? And my favorite character ever Brain Drain gets a boat load of screen time? Yeah, sign me up twice for that!

But this was such a weirdly disappointing volume. It just didn't hit well for me. The jokes weren't as sharp and the overarching moral of redemption was hammered home a bit too much. Plus the aforementioned She Hulk and Spider-Man cameos were, inexplicably, dull.

But Brain Drain continues to be horrifyingly amazing. And I trust this title enough to keep reading it.

[Literary Strawberry · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a super minor joke, but at one point they're in a library and walking by shelves with little descriptions about what's shelved in that section, and for .00 it said something like "UFOs and bigfoot and all of computer science for some reason," and as someone who works in a library I cracked up so bad because that's literally what's in the .00s for the Dewey Decimal system, cryptids and computer science

anyway

I appreciate this comic

[Kris Ritchie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Squirrel Girl, Kraven, and friends do a superhero escape room, and Kraven faces his past with some help from Doreen.

[Edward Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

The change in artist is a little distracting, but at least the writing is just as fun.