Torres and Levins’ new graphic novel “Planet Hockey” provides unpretentious winter fun with sneaky substance

Planet Hockey, a new graphic novel from Scholastic by Toronto-based comic book veteran J. Torres and comic and children’s book illustrator Tim Levins, is a welcome arrival during this winter when pandemic realities have restricted the ability of most of us to play hockey or even watch it being played up-close and personal. This engaging read for 8-12-year-olds balances engaging character work, fast-paced world-building and sneaky-meaningful themes – and wraps it all up in a slick, colorful and unpretentious package. 

Torres is best known for writing the goofy and award-winning Teen Titans Go comic book series. Levins is best known for his illustrations on the award-winning Batman: Gotham Adventures comic book series.

Their story focuses on Isaac, a hockey player who experiences an “unfortunate accident” on the ice on page 2 of the story. This accident shakes his confidence in his physical hockey skills, and propels him instead into the lower-risk world of video game hockey, where he excels – and which leads directly to the “unlikely incident” that the book focuses on. 

The incident in question is the annual GHL (Galactic Hockey League) tournament for planetary hockey teams, The tournament is run by the Emperor of Galaxia, and the stakes are high. All teams must pay a  hockey tax, with the worst losing team paying the most and (here comes the gross-out) cleaning all the other teams’ “stinky hockey equipment.” 

The team of the Pods, an octopus-like species, are perennial last-place finishers who can no longer afford to pay the tax. Through their agency, Isaac, through a comical case of mistaken identity, is recruited (or rather, kidnapped) from his couch. At his inadvertent behest, his new neighbour Lily, a fearless goaltender, is also recruited. The story shows us how they join the sad-sack Pods for the tournament, and find creative and affirming ways to rebuild both the team’s and Isaac’s confidence.

Planet Hockey is a fun, light read that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The opposing teams run the gamut from flamingo-like birds with lightning powers to clouds of gas (from Flatuland no less), massive rocks, and tall plants on skinny legs. The team of this plant race is the Stalks, and their star’s name is Grootzky, in a punning nod to hockey’s Great One and Marvel Comics’ tall skinny plant-man Groot. Indeed, hockey fans will be consistently amused by players’ names like Stickenheiser, Sawchunk and LeGoo which punningly mash up famous names from throughout hockey history with the characteristics of the different teams.

I found the graphic novel had a delightfully retro feel. If L Frank Baum, writer of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz and some 13 other Oz books, had ever mounted a hockey tournament in Oz, it would have looked something like Planet Hockey with its two core human protagonists navigating a zany world populated through sporting wordplay. And Levins brings this world to brilliant life in a colorful and emphatically cartoony style that blends crazy creatures with the angles, equipment and experience of played hockey. The result is pleasing and fast-moving, like a brisk skate down the ice. 

Best of all, this fast-moving narrative, with its simple premise and punning worldview, slips in some weighty themes. Some are timeless – such as the importance of believing in yourself and seeing opportunity (like Lily does), rather than fearing failure (as Isaac does); or the value of teamwork and building one another up – as the Pods begin to demonstrate. Other themes seem especially timely in 2021: for instance, the value of creativity and the power of the mind (heck, there’s almost a plug in here for the cerebral benefits of video games). A second example is the value of mixing things up and adapting to change – something that happens as a chain reaction initiated by the Pods’ misguided recruitment of Isaac and Lily.

Planet Hockey is not going to change the world – but it certainly might change the afternoon for a thwarted hockey player, a fan of graphic novels, or anyone looking for a colorful, creative and surprisingly consequential intergalactic sports story. Enjoy.

© Scott Sneddon, SesayArts Magazine, 2021