THE NEW ADVENTURES OF TURNING RED VOL. 1

The first story follows Meilin Lee over the summer following the revelation that she comes from a long line of women who turn into giant pandas when they experience heightened emotions. Mei has somewhat settled into her powers, but her emotional regulation still isn’t the best, and when her mother tries to burn off Mei’s excess energy through chores, it doesn’t work. So the two of them visit family friend Mr. Gao to learn qigong (calming breathwork), which helps Mei to center herself and calm her inner panda. The next story is set before and during the movie’s events and showcases the cracks forming in boy band 4*Town’s esprit de corps. Will this be the end of the band, or will Mei’s panda form crashing the concert spur these four friends to reconcile? The third story takes place several weeks after the concert, when 4*Town’s newest album drops. When Mei and her friends ask what their classmate and fellow fan Tyler thinks of it, he responds that the group is old news—he listens to 5-Spice now instead. (“Yeah, I’m kind of over 4*town. they’re so...five minutes ago.”) This causes a rift that culminates in Mei and Tyler having a class debate over which group is better. The fourth installment features a story within a story as Abby, one of Mei’s friends, writes fanfiction about 4*Town. All of the girls contribute to the fanfiction in fun, genre-bending ways in what is the most lighthearted of the tales. Overall, this a sweet continuation of the movie. Each of the characters are rendered in a new yet recognizable style with cute, expressive artwork. The colorful illustrations pair well with the humorous dialogue and fun premises. There are plenty of heartwarming, teachable moments as the stories tackle friendship, self-expression, reigniting one’s passion, and regulating big emotions, all done in a kid-friendly manner.