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Bad Machinery #8
Bad Machinery Volume Eight: The Case of the Modern Men
"A delightfully quirky series whose eccentric charms haven't faltered." - KIRKUS
From the bestselling author of Giant Days comes the latest pocket-sized volume in his beloved Bad Machinery series!
It's that classic feud: mods versus rockers! As the boys get caught up in the allure of mod culture (the scooters! the hair! the fashion!), Shauna is testing her mettle as the queen of metal. But when the new King of the Mods is crowned, he sparks an all-out war between the musical factions, with the mystery team caught in the mix!
The Case of the Modern Men, the eighth book in John Allison's award-winning Bad Machinery series, finds our intrepid mystery-solvers at an age-old crossroads. How does a person become cool? Why can't we all just get along? And could that shiny new scooter be... cursed?
AWARDS & RECOGNITION FOR THE SERIES
Eisner Award nomination, Best Publication for Teens (2017) Dwayne McDuffie Kids’ Comics Award shortlist (2017) YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens (2017) Texas Library Association’s Maverick Graphic Novel list (2015) Cybils Awards finalist—Graphic Novels: Young Adult (2013) Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books of 2013 British Comic Award - Best Comic (2012) Parents' Choice Awards, Fiction, Recommended Seal (2016)
From the bestselling author of Giant Days comes the latest pocket-sized volume in his beloved Bad Machinery series!
It's that classic feud: mods versus rockers! As the boys get caught up in the allure of mod culture (the scooters! the hair! the fashion!), Shauna is testing her mettle as the queen of metal. But when the new King of the Mods is crowned, he sparks an all-out war between the musical factions, with the mystery team caught in the mix!
The Case of the Modern Men, the eighth book in John Allison's award-winning Bad Machinery series, finds our intrepid mystery-solvers at an age-old crossroads. How does a person become cool? Why can't we all just get along? And could that shiny new scooter be... cursed?
AWARDS & RECOGNITION FOR THE SERIES
Eisner Award nomination, Best Publication for Teens (2017) Dwayne McDuffie Kids’ Comics Award shortlist (2017) YALSA Great Graphic Novels for Teens (2017) Texas Library Association’s Maverick Graphic Novel list (2015) Cybils Awards finalist—Graphic Novels: Young Adult (2013) Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books of 2013 British Comic Award - Best Comic (2012) Parents' Choice Awards, Fiction, Recommended Seal (2016)
136 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2019
1 person is currently reading
65 people want to read
About the author
John Allison
320 books828 followersJohn Allison is the author and artist of the British webcomics Scary Go Round and Bad Machinery.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See other authors with similar names.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See other authors with similar names.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
January 8, 2020
This is probably my least favourite case but still kind of my favourite of all comics ever, so five stars it is.
Also I am having a sad about how this is the last published volume. brb burning my puffer jackets, wearing a cape around for a week, and then rebranding myself, probably stronger than ever <3
Also I am having a sad about how this is the last published volume. brb burning my puffer jackets, wearing a cape around for a week, and then rebranding myself, probably stronger than ever <3
September 9, 2021
Charlotte Grote tries her best, but I don't think anything could have really saved this muddled tribute to The Who's Quadrophenia with all its Mods and scooters and fine grooming. There is a French foreign exchange student storyline that has some interesting turns and sweet moments but it gets subsumed by the Mod men.
April 23, 2022
Actually 4.5 stars.
I really digged that there were almost no supernatural things in this volume :) I really liked this story.
I really digged that there were almost no supernatural things in this volume :) I really liked this story.
November 30, 2024
Retro mods vs. rockers vibe with a side of French New Wave. Cute.
October 20, 2022
So great to be back with these characters, though again, they are best when they are together. But it was a fun re-entry back into Allison's world, even if it wasn't my favorite story of the series. I'm looking forward to the next one.
March 4, 2019
While this is the last book that was published for the Bad Machinery series, there are thankfully several other 'books' available online.
A couple of the girls host sophisticated French foreign exchange students:
The Case of Modern Men
==============================================
Space Camp!
Space is the Place
==============================================
Being a teenager is hard. Have I mentioned how much I love the expressions on these kids?
The Case of the Missing Piece
==============================================
The kids are practically adults
The Big Haitus
==============================================
Sadly, this is the end of the kids' adventures
(It also explains the city's chronic sewer problems
The Case of the Severed Alliance
A couple of the girls host sophisticated French foreign exchange students:
The Case of Modern Men
==============================================
Space Camp!
Space is the Place
==============================================
Being a teenager is hard. Have I mentioned how much I love the expressions on these kids?
The Case of the Missing Piece
==============================================
The kids are practically adults
The Big Haitus
==============================================
Sadly, this is the end of the kids' adventures
(It also explains the city's chronic sewer problems
The Case of the Severed Alliance
October 24, 2020
Read this last year on the Scary Go Round website and never got around to marking it on Goodreads. I love anything by John Allison, and Bad Machinery is just so much fun. The mystery kids are just the beeeest!
November 21, 2021
I like mod fashion, was amused by the scooters and French visitors, and appreciated the mention of modern architecture. Also the rockers were well done.
May 22, 2022
Foreign exchange students, motor scooters, and hair cuts are the driving factor in this volume, which leans hard into the aging up of the characters, as the boys are dealing with girls in a different way now, and the girls are left to solve most of the mystery (although everyone gets a chance to shine here, including the French exchange students). Allison balances weirdness, relationships between friends and family, and day to day life in a way that few others can, and it results in another often funny coming of age tale that works for any audience.
Read
June 1, 2023Basically an homage to Quadrophenia, with mods and rockers battling each other in Tackleford. The gang is caught up in it all. French exchange students and scooters also play a role in the story. It's not as gut-busting as other books in the series, but I still had fun with it. Love The Who album cover spoofs (“Taking a Leak,” haha) and Shauna joining a band.
March 31, 2019
I am in shock
First of all, they've all done some growing up. Considering there are more than eight volumes I naturally assume there will be more growing up.
I thoroughly enjoyed the utter chaos which was expected because, of course, it's Bad Machinery. Yet this was different chaos.
All in all, Bad Machinery has wit, mystery, and now lots of scooters.
IF YOU LOOK UP BAD MACHINERY ONLINE COMICS YOU CAN READ THE NEXT ONES
First of all, they've all done some growing up. Considering there are more than eight volumes I naturally assume there will be more growing up.
I thoroughly enjoyed the utter chaos which was expected because, of course, it's Bad Machinery. Yet this was different chaos.
All in all, Bad Machinery has wit, mystery, and now lots of scooters.
IF YOU LOOK UP BAD MACHINERY ONLINE COMICS YOU CAN READ THE NEXT ONES
November 28, 2023
11/27/2023 Desperately needed a comfort read today and this fit the bill perfectly! Full review tk tomorrow at TheFrumiousConsortium.net.
11/28/2023 Having survived eight weeks of the worst emotional turmoil I've ever endured, what should I fall prey to next but whatever horrid ailment has seized all my children over these American holidays! After finishing my last book for work yesterday morning and staring down the barrel of many, many more books for work, I decided to rebel and read something for myself, taking an early gander at the last copy of the Bad Machinery series that I currently own, The Case Of The Modern Men.
Loyal readers will know that I usually save the Bad Machinery books for Christmas morning, when the rest of my family is all occupying themselves with presents and I get an uninterrupted hour or so of quiet reading surrounded by their burbling laughter (or the occasional squeal of frustration or rage that I'm well used to tuning out, at least on Christmas morning while their father tends to them.) But I really wanted a comfort read with pictures today, and I can't for the life of me find the copies of Steeple that my husband bought for me last year, so I decided I'd just go ahead and read this book then order the rest to read over Christmas as usual.
And it was absolutely worth it! I was so sick today, I couldn't even sit up for the Sennelier Monday Live sessions I usually do with my friends (tho in fairness, I was also a little intimidated that they were doing a portrait in watercolors this week: I just did my first portrait in oil pastels last week and that was a Big Deal for me. That said, I'm pretty sure my rendering of Eugene Delacroix was Not Great, so I'm hesitant to apply my shaky art theory across mediums to a non-dead person.) But reading this book was just about what I needed, even if my energy levels weren't quite up to downing the whole thing in one go, as I usually do. I actually had to take a break between reading Parts 2 and 3 of this book to take a restorative illness nap with my also-ill youngest!
But the story was charming and transporting as always, even if this installment was much lighter on the supernatural than usual (tho arguably the whole thing is very influenced by what happened at the end of The Case Of The Forked Road.) There is a supposedly haunted scooter involved, but really this is the story of a burgeoning gang war in the town of Tackleford between the mods and the rockers. Our intrepid sleuths are on the side of peace, even if Jack feels more of a kinship with the mods and Shauna, who has joined a band, is firmly pro-rocker. Add to this the hijinks of French exchange students upending our young investigators' lives, even as the hormones of adolescence start kicking in more firmly. In fairness, Jack's always been a bit moony over the opposite sex, tho seeing Sonny start to show interest in girls is like watching one of my own babies grow up. At least I still have sensible, football-mad Linton!
Ofc, this would not be a Doreen review of a Bad Machinery book if I didn't fawn over my girls, and especially the irrepressible Charlotte! Shauna is also a badass here, tho Mildred only makes brief cameos, as she's too busy terrorizing her father's co-workers to do much investigating. Weirdly, Little Claire has her lisp back! Honestly, I wouldn't even have noticed if I hadn't gone back to read my review TCotFR, where she no longer had it: I just so closely associate it with her that I forgot utterly that she'd lost it!
I'm a little sad that there are only 2 books left in this series, but that's impetus for me to get to reading the rest of John Allison's oeuvre. I own quite a number of those books but keep putting off reading them till I get through these, my absolute favorites. Hopefully, I'll be able to get through more than just the one this year!
The Case Of The Modern Men (Bad Machinery #9) by John Allison was published July 30 2019 by Oni Press and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
11/28/2023 Having survived eight weeks of the worst emotional turmoil I've ever endured, what should I fall prey to next but whatever horrid ailment has seized all my children over these American holidays! After finishing my last book for work yesterday morning and staring down the barrel of many, many more books for work, I decided to rebel and read something for myself, taking an early gander at the last copy of the Bad Machinery series that I currently own, The Case Of The Modern Men.
Loyal readers will know that I usually save the Bad Machinery books for Christmas morning, when the rest of my family is all occupying themselves with presents and I get an uninterrupted hour or so of quiet reading surrounded by their burbling laughter (or the occasional squeal of frustration or rage that I'm well used to tuning out, at least on Christmas morning while their father tends to them.) But I really wanted a comfort read with pictures today, and I can't for the life of me find the copies of Steeple that my husband bought for me last year, so I decided I'd just go ahead and read this book then order the rest to read over Christmas as usual.
And it was absolutely worth it! I was so sick today, I couldn't even sit up for the Sennelier Monday Live sessions I usually do with my friends (tho in fairness, I was also a little intimidated that they were doing a portrait in watercolors this week: I just did my first portrait in oil pastels last week and that was a Big Deal for me. That said, I'm pretty sure my rendering of Eugene Delacroix was Not Great, so I'm hesitant to apply my shaky art theory across mediums to a non-dead person.) But reading this book was just about what I needed, even if my energy levels weren't quite up to downing the whole thing in one go, as I usually do. I actually had to take a break between reading Parts 2 and 3 of this book to take a restorative illness nap with my also-ill youngest!
But the story was charming and transporting as always, even if this installment was much lighter on the supernatural than usual (tho arguably the whole thing is very influenced by what happened at the end of The Case Of The Forked Road.) There is a supposedly haunted scooter involved, but really this is the story of a burgeoning gang war in the town of Tackleford between the mods and the rockers. Our intrepid sleuths are on the side of peace, even if Jack feels more of a kinship with the mods and Shauna, who has joined a band, is firmly pro-rocker. Add to this the hijinks of French exchange students upending our young investigators' lives, even as the hormones of adolescence start kicking in more firmly. In fairness, Jack's always been a bit moony over the opposite sex, tho seeing Sonny start to show interest in girls is like watching one of my own babies grow up. At least I still have sensible, football-mad Linton!
Ofc, this would not be a Doreen review of a Bad Machinery book if I didn't fawn over my girls, and especially the irrepressible Charlotte! Shauna is also a badass here, tho Mildred only makes brief cameos, as she's too busy terrorizing her father's co-workers to do much investigating. Weirdly, Little Claire has her lisp back! Honestly, I wouldn't even have noticed if I hadn't gone back to read my review TCotFR, where she no longer had it: I just so closely associate it with her that I forgot utterly that she'd lost it!
I'm a little sad that there are only 2 books left in this series, but that's impetus for me to get to reading the rest of John Allison's oeuvre. I own quite a number of those books but keep putting off reading them till I get through these, my absolute favorites. Hopefully, I'll be able to get through more than just the one this year!
The Case Of The Modern Men (Bad Machinery #9) by John Allison was published July 30 2019 by Oni Press and is available from all good booksellers, including Bookshop!
September 6, 2021
This is a review for all 10 volumes of Bad Machinery, which I read consecutively. Each of the volumes warrants a top review, but it is the opinion of this reviewer that the series should be read all at once for maximum effect.
Welcome to Tackleford, England, a low-to-middling “town full of mysteries” typically solved by the Mystery Kids, a sextet of 11-year-old students at Griswalds Grammar School. The boys—Linton, Jack and Sonny often work in parallel to the girls—Lottie, Shauna and Mildred—but sometimes also as mild rivals, and often unwitting allies. Chockablock with witty dialogue, great laughs and characters who you will certainly grow to love. Bad Machinery begins as a kind of deeply English homage to both Harry Potter and Scooby-Doo, but evolves into a terrific character comedy and some coming-of-age drama along the way.
Written and illustrated by John Allison, Bad Machinery feels rather close to his other work, especially the fantastic Giant Days (which is essentially Bad Machinery set in college rather than high school), but that’s alright. Once this story really finds its footing in the second volume, it’s a consistently excellent ride to the finish, as we watch our heroes grow up, grow wiser, and in some cases, grow apart. It’s a story teased out in tiny increments, page by page, betraying its webcomic origins. But Bad Machinery very shows why it’s won the armloads of awards to its name, and for those willing to give it a little room to breathe and get on its wavelength, there is some immense fun and terrific storytelling in store. Teen-appropriate, but be warned, American readers, if you’re not up on your English slang, you’ll miss a few of the jokes.
Bottom line, if you love any of John Allison’s other work, you’ll love this.
Welcome to Tackleford, England, a low-to-middling “town full of mysteries” typically solved by the Mystery Kids, a sextet of 11-year-old students at Griswalds Grammar School. The boys—Linton, Jack and Sonny often work in parallel to the girls—Lottie, Shauna and Mildred—but sometimes also as mild rivals, and often unwitting allies. Chockablock with witty dialogue, great laughs and characters who you will certainly grow to love. Bad Machinery begins as a kind of deeply English homage to both Harry Potter and Scooby-Doo, but evolves into a terrific character comedy and some coming-of-age drama along the way.
Written and illustrated by John Allison, Bad Machinery feels rather close to his other work, especially the fantastic Giant Days (which is essentially Bad Machinery set in college rather than high school), but that’s alright. Once this story really finds its footing in the second volume, it’s a consistently excellent ride to the finish, as we watch our heroes grow up, grow wiser, and in some cases, grow apart. It’s a story teased out in tiny increments, page by page, betraying its webcomic origins. But Bad Machinery very shows why it’s won the armloads of awards to its name, and for those willing to give it a little room to breathe and get on its wavelength, there is some immense fun and terrific storytelling in store. Teen-appropriate, but be warned, American readers, if you’re not up on your English slang, you’ll miss a few of the jokes.
Bottom line, if you love any of John Allison’s other work, you’ll love this.
November 16, 2021
Got my grubby hands on the pocket edition recently. Cackled gleefully. Looked over at my four month old daughter and imagined her reading about Tackleford and the mystery kids in due course. I don't know why this thought gives me such joy, but it does.
Bad Machinery is tops and I've loved it for years. John Allison's art and humour within the Tackleford universe are just brilliant.
As another reviewer noted, The Case if the Modern Men is more rooted in reality and the kids growing up and is less about the kids fighting supernatural weirdness. The case itself is, perhaps, a bit random/not as strong as other cases but the character interplay, the background ridiculous gang violence, and the snarkiness more than makes up for it.
Bad Machinery is tops and I've loved it for years. John Allison's art and humour within the Tackleford universe are just brilliant.
As another reviewer noted, The Case if the Modern Men is more rooted in reality and the kids growing up and is less about the kids fighting supernatural weirdness. The case itself is, perhaps, a bit random/not as strong as other cases but the character interplay, the background ridiculous gang violence, and the snarkiness more than makes up for it.
August 13, 2019
Mods. Rockers. Mods versus rockers violence. Grandpa Joe. French exchange students. Capes. Kissing. Disguises. Discussion of important modernists. Historical decapitations. Good haircuts. Bad wigs. Motorcycle classes. Scooter repair. Extraneous body parts.
Lots of snark.
For whatever reason, this volume felt more diffuse than the previous ones. There's some nod to that in the story as Allison acknowledges that everyone is growing up and that detectiving for 14-year-olds isn't quite what it was for 12-year olds. But that (and the much less obvious supernatural bits) left me a little nostalgic. Still quite funny, though.
Lots of snark.
For whatever reason, this volume felt more diffuse than the previous ones. There's some nod to that in the story as Allison acknowledges that everyone is growing up and that detectiving for 14-year-olds isn't quite what it was for 12-year olds. But that (and the much less obvious supernatural bits) left me a little nostalgic. Still quite funny, though.
March 8, 2021
So delightful to be back in Tackleford with Lottie and the gang! I was laughing out loud from the first page.
Favorite lines:
Lottie’s first impression of the French exchange student staying at her house— “SUCH a stroppy madam.”
Mr. Knott, entering the teacher’s lounge—“Just had to upbraid another popinjay. What is going on?”
It was very silly—I had no better idea than Mr. Knott what was going on with the “mods”—but I adore this group of kids, and I’m glad I have one more to read before I’m caught up on the series.
Favorite lines:
Lottie’s first impression of the French exchange student staying at her house— “SUCH a stroppy madam.”
Mr. Knott, entering the teacher’s lounge—“Just had to upbraid another popinjay. What is going on?”
It was very silly—I had no better idea than Mr. Knott what was going on with the “mods”—but I adore this group of kids, and I’m glad I have one more to read before I’m caught up on the series.
August 13, 2019
I love this series so much, as it has that perfect blend of serious and silly, with characters that feel real (half of that comes from the excellent drawings). If you love fun comicbooks about mystery solving and growing up then you need some Bad Machinery! This one is mostly about the town Mods and also the French exchange students, which converege nicely into one big story.
May 23, 2021
Student exchange time in Tackleford, so French kids arrive just as Mod styles make a comeback and a war breaks out with the Rockers. What's behind it all, a malevolent femme fatale or a cursed scooter? The Mystery gang have a plan to save the day. Daft as a brush and twice as hilarious and ten times as charming.
July 18, 2021
The mystery boys bust out of puberty by becoming Mods while Shauna becomes a rocker. Toss in some French exchange students and a lot of scooters. The story is rooted in reality more than some of the others making it more crazy kids being kids than kids battling weirdness. This is probably my favorite of the series.
October 5, 2019
More antics and jokes than a real mystery, but Charlotte Grote forever, obvs.
January 1, 2020
John Allison + Mods and Rockers + French exchange students in Tackleford = the best.
January 29, 2020
I take it back, I remember this one being so good it deserves 5/5
July 17, 2020
Enjoying this series more and more as they all mature. Absolutely hilarious.
June 2, 2021
It was really fun to read about the mystery kids when they were just a little bit younger again! The French exchange students were great.
February 12, 2023
French exchange, mod-rocker wars, Lottie almost renounces mystery, Jack kisses a girl.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 29, 2023
Shauna IS tough!
Read
April 21, 2023This one made me miss bridge trolls and onion boys.
June 27, 2024
Grandpa Joe gets some good lines.
November 11, 2025
Less mystery in this one overall, but it’s kept fresh with some new exchange characters.
August 22, 2023
Interstate loan
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews