F2: Galaxy of Football: Attack of the Football Cyborgs (THE FOOTBALL BOOK OF THE YEAR!)
Written By: Dan Watters, Alex Paknadel and F2 Freestylers – Billy Wingrove and Jeremy Lynch
Illustrator: Amrit Birdi
Inking: Renzo Rodriguez
Format: Hardback
Publisher: Blink Publishing
Two of Youtube’s biggest football-mad supporters, the F2 Freestylers, set off in their time travelling vehicles into the distant future in order to see how the sport has changed over the decades. After arriving in the 31st century, they discover that not only has the landscape, cities and clothing changed, but so have the fans and the general excitement there used to be in the sport. Soon, everything is revealed when a metal-faced footballer approaches the duo, and announces himself as Galaxico. Not only is the entire game of football on the line, but so are the lives of everyone on Earth. The F2 and Galaxico go on the search for teammates to compete in the match of the millennia!
This is a graphic novel intended for all football supporters that have a love for comics. Just a mild warning, it also helps you if know exactly who F2 Freestylers are first, before you open the book. This story begins as though it is actually a second instalment into the series, as we have established characters, the F2, and the fact they somehow have the technology to travel across time. Clearly this duo has more knowledge in their heads than just football. They also show some impressive soccer skills throughout the book, which is brought together well by the art of Amrit Birdi. The alien race, Galaxico, sees the joy and skill involved in football whilst observing the Earth, and decides to conquer the planet just for that. A bit far-fetched, but anything goes in comics! Using their advanced technology, they take over the population of Earth, implementing a hive mind across the globe.
This is similar to a story from the anime Naruto, where the Akatsuki leader ‘Pain’ had six bodies that shared the same mind. This is not meant to be an alien race that will be easy to defeat, and things are made even worse when they steal some valuable fuel used to travel through time. So now both the past and the future are at stake! The F2 Freestylers have their work cut out for them, and they do all they can to form a team of the best players plucked from throughout time. So, watch out for cameos from famous players such as Pele, Steven Gerrard and Cristiano Ronaldo.
There is a good deal of action in this book; not only from numerous hops through time, but also the inevitable match against Galaxico. There are also some tender, bittersweet moments as well, most notably for a young boy that teams up with F2 (an adventure he will never forget!).
Now, to all of you who have seen my review of the Username graphic novel series by Joe Sugg and the Sugg Team, you will know that I have high praises for the artwork involved, all of which belongs to Amrit Birdi. With well-placed panels, full-coloured backdrops and characters that really do resemble real people, it is very impressive work. The artwork used on just the opening pages of outer space still remains my favourite even after finishing the book; the sheer design, beauty, depth and colour makes it all so mesmerizing.
The F2 duo are the world’s biggest football social media stars, who have a following of 6,000,000 subscribers on YouTube alone. They travel the world following the game of football, whilst interviewing and playing with all the top footballers of our time. For this book, they join up with Dan Watters and Alex Paknadel (Dr. Who, Limbo, Turncoat) with illustrations provided by Amrit Birdi, who worked on the Username graphic novel series with Joe ‘ThatcherJoe’ Sugg.
This story is the perfect gift for any young boy or girl who is a fan of both football and comics. It is definitely entertaining, and I would enjoy reading the next instalment if they decide to continue it.
Overall: 8/10