Advance Review: Zdarsky Breathes Life Into Automatons In ‘White House Robot Romance’ #1
by Tom Smithyman
Overview
Where can you go with a title like White House Robot Romance? Plenty of places, it turns out, in the hands of this creative team. The premise of a presidential chief and Secret Service robots falling in love is amusing enough, but the team moves the story in some intriguing and fun directions.
Overall
9/10Sometimes the name tells you all you need to know about a work of art.
In the case of White House Robot Romance, pretty much the entire plot can be summed up in the title. The same is largely true of its writer, Chip Zdarsky. His fans know to expect quirky when they see his name on a comic book cover – whether he’s writing or drawing the issues.
And Zdarsky doesn’t disappoint in this limited series. While the budding romance between a Secret Service robot and the White House’s chef (which also happens to be a robot) plays out largely as you might expect given the title (Snakes on a Plane much?), the writer still packs in plenty of twists and turns. For example, the president is building his case for an attack on Canada. (Apparently, the 51st state thing didn’t work out and the Canadian Zdarsky wants to have some fun with it.)
There’s also the robots’ creator, Danny, who seems to have mysterious motives and who is seeing a graphic designer who may be linked to – get this – a Canadian terror cell. And then there’s the artist, Sara, whose sculptures aren’t selling because she’s not working with robots. It’s an interesting mix of characters, whose seemingly unrelated stories end up tying together by the end of the oversized premiere issue.
Zdarsky’s message here seems pretty clear: love is love. In fact, the more non-traditional relationships, the two robots (which use they/them pronouns) and Danny’s gay romance, are stronger than the heterosexual ones in the story. Zdarsky’s touch is deft here; it never feels heavy handed or preachy. That takes talent.
Artist Rachel Stott does a fine job of creating distinct, recognizable characters. Readers will instantly wants to smack the president as soon as they seem him, just as they will have compassion for Danny. But the real stars of the book are the robots. And Stott gives them reasonable physical forms (hilariously dressed only to the torso a la Donald Duck). The Secret Service Robots are imposing while the chef displays its feelings through a feedback mechanism in place of a face.
Despite the self-explanatory nature of its title, there’s plenty in White House Robot Romance to surprise readers. With Zdarsky in charge of the scripting, count on even more zigs and zags in the future.
White House Robot Romance #1 will be available in comic book shops and digitally on September 3rd from DSTLRY.