School Library Journal Review
Gr 9 Up--Alex Nolan's hometown of Hollowstone, ravaged by chaos nine years earlier, has been transformed into a city of the future by a social media platform mogul. But when Kaiju (giant monsters) begin to appear in Hollowstone, Alex is forced to take on the new role of crimefighting ranger, lest his hometown suffer as it did the last time. While the book is advertised by its publisher as "manga-style webcomics," it is told in a left to right format. The story moves rapidly, a little too much at times, with Alex (who is a member of the LGBTQIA+ community) very quickly going from a garden-variety journalism student to Henshin the Hero with not many obstacles to overcome. Other characters are introduced but not fully fleshed out as of the first volume; Alex's classmate/love interest Jeon Jay-Hyun, and mysterious savior of Hollowstone Alton Grieves in particular are characters whose backstories aren't all there just yet. The artwork is satisfying, done in a style that doesn't scream "manga" outside of perhaps the lettering, which will appeal to those whose graphic novel selections aren't typically manga fare. Undeniably a shonen title with its ample action sequences and fights. VERDICT While it's far from being avant-garde, readers will enjoy the title for what it is: an LGBTQIA+-superhero story with a tinge of mystery woven throughout.--Joe Pascullo
Kirkus Review
After an explosion took out the electricity and caused panic in Hollowstone nine years ago, a tech billionaire stepped in to save the day. Alton Grieves provided massive infrastructure and investment, becoming a revered hero in the process. But journalism student Alex Nolan doesn't like how Grieves has his hand in everything people use, from social media and cars to medicine, and he plans to expose him for profiting from the city's suffering. Alex is on a train, musing about how to go about this, when a power cut causes an emergency stop. Alex struggles to help others--and a superhero comes out of nowhere to give him a hand. Suddenly a kaiju, or monster from another dimension, appears and badly injures the superhero, who passes his power to Alex. Alex in turn becomes a henshin, or hero, defeating the kaiju. But things are complicated. His friend and fellow student Rosalia Ortega points out a conspiracy to cover up news of the superhero's monster fighting. And Jeon Jae-hyun, a boy Alex briefly dated, is interning at the same newspaper as him. The characters in this thrilling, fast-paced, manga-style action narrative feel real, and the story and execution combine the pleasure of nostalgic tropes and evergreen themes with a contemporary freshness. Alex reads White; there is ethnic diversity and queer representation in the cast, and characters are introduced along with their pronouns. A riveting superhero story that feels familiar and original at the same time. (Graphic fantasy. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Alex is a student at the Hollowstone University about to receive his first internship assignment. One day, Alex is caught in the middle of a super-powered fight between a masked hero and an evil Kaiju, a monster from another world here to destroy Earth. In the fight, Alex is bestowed the powers to transform into his own superhero, Henshin. He is tasked with keeping people safe and fighting against evil, but he also just wants to graduate and perhaps find a boyfriend. This fast-paced action story takes inspiration from Japanese tokusatsu stories like Power Rangers, Ultraman, and Kamen Rider. Idle takes cues from Japanese illustration in his character design of Alex's transformed armor, the look of the kaiju, and the action and battle sequences, but his character design in human form is distinct and detailed. The story is also LGBTQ+ affirming--characters are introduced with pronouns, and some characters are gay, bisexual, or nonbinary. This would be a great purchase for library shelves serving teens where readers are fans of action stories and the tokusatsu genre.
![Cover image for Henshin! Volume 1 : Blazing phoenix / story, art, lettering and book design [by] Bon Idle (Mitch Proctor).](/client/assets/5.898/ctx//client/images/no_image.png "Cover image for Henshin! Volume 1 : Blazing phoenix / story, art, lettering and book design [by] Bon Idle (Mitch Proctor).")