GoComics A to Z, Vol. 25: WYATT by Eric Gapstur
by LucasA weekly feature spotlighting new & unusual features on the GoComics A-Z roster
Feature: WYATT
Creator: Eric Gapstur
Format: strip
Frequency: M/W/F, alternating Sundays
Recommended if you like: Superhero strips in a domestic setting, Calvin and Hobbes, Frazz, Ink Pen
When I see the modern American family depicted on sitcoms, it's usually so depressing I want to leave the country. The kids always seem so smug, dry and disaffected; hyperstylized puppets for the jaded TV writers scripting their lines. So it's super refreshing to see a comic like WYATT, whose titular character shows an energy and excitement for life, getting into mischief while remaining all the more adorable for it. The premise of the strip is that Wyatt has superpowers, but is too young to use them for anything but extraordinary household feats. Naturally, this leads to all kinds of laughter and chaos.
Wyatt would prefer to be fighting crime, like his police officer father, but his age forces him to be creative when it comes to using his superhuman abilities. It's a neat take on classic comic book tropes, and as an illustrator for DC, Dark Horse and other publishers, Gapstur is the right man for the job. There's even a little Calvin-like pizzazz to the colorful Sunday strips, and as Wyatt becomes more familiar to readers over time, I'm sure his own quirks and characteristics will begin to emerge even more. It also doesn't hurt that Wyatt has an intelligent, witty counterpart in his sister, Adeline.
You can read more WYATT comics several times a week right here on GoComics.