Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare (Comic) Review

If you play Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare 2, you may have wondered how the war in Neighborville broke out in the first place. Well, it all has to do with a metallic butt from the future. To find out exactly how that butt set all of the events in motion, you're going to have to read Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare from Dark Horse Publishing.

Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare is a hardbound comic book that includes about 70 pages of comic panels that tell the story of how the garden warfare erupted in the first place. The story is goofy and silly, but that's appropriate for the Plants vs. Zombies universe and more importantly it manages to be entertaining. There are clear ties to the game, with events in the story punctuated with 'Map Update' panels showing the ebb and flow of battle as different sections move back and forth between zombie and plant control. If you've played the Plants vs. Zombies games you'll recognize some of the faces in the story including Crazy Dave and Dr. Zomboss, and if you've played Garden Warfare 2 in particular you'll find the origin stories of the new plants and zombies introduced in that game. Some of these origin stories are the weakest part of the story as they feel like they were shoehorned into the story in an attempt to include them for the sake of including them, a checklist of new heroes that had to be cleared in order for the comic to be published. Also, while the story does reach a conclusion it's left a little bit up in the air. I'm not sure if a series is planned or this is an intentional nod to the game and that it's where the story really continues.

The book itself is hardbound, and is on the smaller side, coming in at just over six by nine inches. The paper stock is heavyweight and glossy, so it feels more like a book than a comic, and the bright colors used in the panels really snap and jump out at you. The art style perfectly fits that of the games, making the comic feel like a natural extension of the Plants vs. Zombies universe.

If you enjoy playing Plants vs. Zombies Garden Warfare 2, then you'll certainly get a kick out of this comic. In fact, you'll probably find yourself jumping into the game with a renewed appreciation for it immediately after you finish reading the final panel. If you haven't played the games, then your appreciation of the comic will be more muted. If you remove the context from the story, then it doesn't stand up quite as well on its own. This is not necessarily a knock against the story itself, but if you're not in on the joke, well, you're going to miss a lot of the fun.

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