The Creators – Joey Esposito – Writer, Austin Baechle – Artist, Alessandro Santoro – Colours, Shawn Lee – Letters

The Players – Grover, Big Bird, The Count, Elmo, Oscar the Grouch, Slimey, Sherlock Hemlock, Cookie Monster

The Story – It is another beautiful day on Sesame Street and it is made even better thanks to friendship and cooperation.

The Take – It is 2024 and Oni Press takes a chance on a new Sesame Street comic book just as the show celebrates fifty-five years on the air. Frankly, it is a wonderful palette cleanser. It is purely and totally for kids but that does not mean that kids of all ages would not enjoy it, that adults who grew up on Sesame Street or even those who did not would find something to latch onto positively. It is a simple story that features Grover in the lead and discovering that a lot of his friends are having a bit of a problem with this or that. After thinking about it for a minute and seeing the solution right in front of him, Grover knows exactly how to help each and every one of them. There is a lot to love about this book, from the artwork by Austin Baechle who perfectly captures what each Muppet not only looks like but the feel of them and the show as well. Writer Joey Esposito does the same and provides his readers with a very wholesome tale about teamwork and friendship, a simple, straightforward message that anyone can grasp. Almost everyone’s favourite Muppet from Sesame Street is featured, if not in the main story they are at least in cameo. The big surprise is the inclusion of Sherlock Hemlock, who has never been the biggest player on the show but has always made an impact whenever he appears. There are no villains in this story, no ongoing plot threads, and no big cliffhanger that will lead to any sort of revelation, mystery, or any of the tropes one usually finds in a modern-day comic book. Instead, it is a one-and-done story that is self-contained and has everything a new or young reader needs to begin their foray into the four-colour world. It is good to see Oni taking a chance on this book and hopefully, it sells a lot of copies, enough to warrant them publishing this title for a long time to come.

Worth It? – Yes.