I first mentioned Kindergoth in my Nov/Jan Flipping Through Previews. I then mentioned when the second issue was solicited in my Jan/Mar Flipping Through Previews, even though I didn't buy the first issue. I was scared off by the "Mature Readers" label, mostly. I also wasn't convinced that goth humor would work for me, but it was mostly that label.
After finding my comments, the publisher of the book, Dennis Greenhill, wrote to me and explained that Diamond had put the Mature Readers label on the books, and offered to send me the first issue to give it a try. Hey, free stuff! I agreed, and after a slight delay he sent me the first two issues to read. Now that I've read them both a couple of times, and tried to sort out how I feel about them, I'm ready to give them a review in their very own blog entry.
Quick review: Funny and intriguing, but the characters often act jarringly out of their age level. The first issue didn't hold together well, and didn't have enough of a hook. The second issue had the hook, and gave a better presentation of the characters. I'll be ordering issue three.
Longer review: The language and social skills don't fit with the kids' ignorance of crosswalks and warning signs. It was a bit jarring to go from their casual discussion of Mrs Tiedeman's therapy to the "magic paint". The first half of the first issue was hard to get through, in part because of the size of the eventual cast and also because there was no plot. The goal seems to be introducing the characters, but you don't learn about them all, and what is there is scattered and confused. As soon as they leave the school and gather to go look at crop circles the story improves dramatically. Mainly because they have a goal, but also because they begin to act like children ought. Um, within the parameters of the book, at least.
The second issue is a vast improvement over the first, with a strong plot and more on-target humor. The plot moves along nicely, despite the kids going to school again, and the cast begins to shape up much more nicely. A very strong point about both issues is the artwork. It's distinctive and clean. You can tell the characters apart very easily, despite the large number of them. Ok, the aliens are a bit harder to tell apart, but at least one of them always has a rubik's cube on him.
While the first issue got off to a false start, the second issue made up for it. I do plan on ordering the third issue, which will be in the Previews out this week. If you have any goth in you at all, this is worth a peek at the website, which includes pages from the issues so you can check out both the art and the writing. As for a rating, I'll give both issues a collective 3 1/2 starfish. A bit above average. 
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