Super cute comic that gives sort of a Pitch perfect vibe, with a female cast joining a university group. The treatment of friendships and romantic relationships is great, I had never seen topics like jealousy and getting over an ex treated so truthfully. And the fact that it portrays basketball games males it a lot of fun!

I had such a great time reading this! I love when a group with different personalities and genders come together. I also liked the communication between the love interest. It was very clear and the characters felt like genuine people. And of course the dogs for adoption was the icing in the cake. I will definitely be continuing on with the series

Great storyline, art, colors, and characters. Everyone and everything feels true to life which makes for an enjoyable read.

I loved this! It was a great introduction to the characters, it’s a sweet friendship and a fun setting. It was very short for a first volume and I wish more had happened but I will pick up future volumes!

I like the premise here. Too often fiction portrays the arts and sports as mutually exclusive, with only the occasional athlete who has a secret passion for music. We don't often get the other side, an artsy person who loves sports. And not a secret phenom. Just a genuine love for athletics. Usdin also gives us a mixed cast of characters with varied interests and motivations.

Honestly I adored this so much! It's as if Giant Days and Check Please had a baby. It's sweet and funny and I can't wait for the next volume!

What a lovely first bind up!

I've recently discovered I have a faible for sports story, told in comic or novel form, so I was very happy when I was approved for this arc. And it delivered!

The story flowed really well. The setup of the panels, the focus on our two main characters and the overarching plot are a great combination and balance each other out perfectly.
Especially Olivia is such a lively character with a strong personality that is quite uncommon. I love how we could immediately see her flaws as well as her strengths.

I love how colorful and fun and sweet these comics are, but it felt like not much happened in this volume. Like, the team was formed -- that took almost the entire time. They played one game and the relationship started. I just hope the pace picks up in the next volume, which I will definitely continue with! I love these characters, I love their friendships, I love how gay it is, and I love the duel perspective.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel. It's the first one I read that is about sports/college and it was really fun. The group of friends that is showcase here was a really cute and diverse one. The art style was totally up my alley and I will definitely continue on with this series.

✨ 4 / 5 ✨

GoodReads review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2923702549

“This was extremely gay, even for you.”

I absolutely adored this first bind-up volume, the story was so much fun!

First of all, I love the art style so much, captures the vibe of the story and the characters so well, and the colour scheme is perfection.

I really enjoyed the characters, I think they all have pretty distinctive looks and personalities to match. I liked the interactions they all had and the dynamic between Liv and Charlie. I think that my favourite character so far has to be Olivia because she is so determined to succeed and just tries so hard all the time.

I think that overall this was cute, fun and very heart-warming, I can’t wait to read more!

I really enjoyed this book's diverse cast of characters, fresh color scheme, and unique spin on the "sports novel" genre. I only wish that there was more! I was just getting to know each character and their backstories when it was over :( Luckily there are future volumes to look forward to!

A diverse, girl-inspiring, girl-loving comic? Sign me up!

I loved the art style and I can't wait to get to know the characters more. I love the underdog kind of route they've taken. I'm excited for the next volume.

‘The Avant-Guards, Vol. 1’ by Carly Usdin with art by Noah Hayes is a sports comic about a somewhat diverse group of people who get together to form a basketball team.

Charlie is new to the Georgia O’Keeffe College for the Arts and Subtle Dramatics. During a student fair, she meets force of nature, Olivia, who is trying to form the school’s first basketball team. Charlie is reluctant, and really doesn’t seem to fit in to this group of outgoing drama students. We learn she is there to study film, and that she is a bit shy. We also learn that she doesn’t like team sports for some reason. During the team’s first game, the Avant-Guards crush the competition.

After 100+ pages of a comic, I feel like I barely found out anything about these characters, except for the diversity notes. Perhaps that will play out as the story goes, but Charlie is kind of a boring character, especially compared to Olivia. I liked the art well enough. As far as sports comics go, it was really just kind of mediocre.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Boom! Studios and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

This was a cute little graphic novel. I liked the cast of characters as they were all very different to each other and they were well designed. There was not a lot that happened in this and there could have been a bit more plot but the cliffhanger ending was nice.

This was FANTASTIC. I had such a great time with this graphic novel. And can we just talk about how beautiful the artwork was? It was a great story with wonderful representation, the word building was awesome, and the basketball element was so fun! I don't even play sports but I was still very invested in this book! The characters were so likable, and the adorable relationship kept me invested as well! :)

I highly recommend this graphic novel! :)

Cute story that I wish had more complexity, especially with the side characters. Maybe in future volumes?

I loved this first volume for it’s illustration, humour and the warmth and likeable characters. I’m a sucker for a queer romance and this one is really cute so far! My only complaint is that the story took quite a while to get going and I don’t feel like much really happened, but I’m excited to see more. And I’d also love a Cuddly Retrievers mini comic!

This was so cute! The art style is really amazing and the characters were all pretty cool and distinct. Also, there is the start of a cute sapphic relationship and I am invested! Another added bonus is that I love basketball. I am definitely continuing with this graphic novel.

This was such a cute story! This first volume combines the first four issues of this college-set graphic novel series, and while it isn’t exactly the kind of book you would call suspenseful, it still managed to end on a cliffhanger that has me wishing I could read the second volume already!

This series reminded me a bit of Giant Days, mainly because it involves a group of friends coming together in a college setting. This series is a lot more diverse than Giant Days, though – plenty of queerness, plus a character who uses “they” pronouns and one or two characters who I thought might be trans women based on their body designs (but never confirmed, so I might be reading into that). It’s also cute, though – I was a little skeptical at first, but then it got to me and I wanted to join this basketball team full of witches, over-achievers, and snarky misanthropes.

Author Carly Usdin has some other graphic novels, so I definitely need to check out her other work while I wait for the next volume in this fun series.

This ARC was provided for review, but in no way affects the following impartial and unbiased review:
•
4*
Pros: Cutest art style and amazing colors. Super fun and great world-building. Incredibly diverse, regarding ethnicities, gender identity and sexual orientations. Features athletic girls of all shapes and sizes. Funny banter and wholesome friendships. Interesting introduction to the story. Loved the basketball focus.
.
Cons: For a sports graphic novel, the action scenes are too stilted.