Rating: 
Summary: Can't it just be funny???
Review: Ok, everyone needs to chill the hell out!!! I'm a devout conservative, a National Review subscriber and a reliable republican (the three are not identical) and I think this book, and McGruder's humor are both hilarious. Screw Michael Moore, he just wrote the forward...and completely missed the point IMHO. The humor lies in the ridiculousness of extremism, whether in the form of Riley's "ghetto-chic" or Huey's Socialist conspiracy theories. This is not the same hateful, banal (and chronically unfunny) stuff being spewed by the likes of Ted Rall.Out of the previous reviews, the angriest ones, both from the right and the left, have seemed to miss a key point: McGruder is making more fun of them than anybody. You will either agree with McGruder's politics, or not, but there is no denying that this is funny stuff.
Rating:
Summary: review
Review: I was really impressed with the consistancy of this collection and the intelligence and fervor, if not temperance, that McGruder's character's possess. Very clever and touching. The best comic strip since Watterson's "Calvin and Hobbes."
Rating: 
Summary: Comic book filled with confusion!
Review: Aaron McGruder is a typical out-dated black revolutionary. He¡¦s so out of touch of reality he couldn¡¦t touch base. The front cover totally offended me and I¡¦m thinking about sending McGruder a piece of my mind. I think we should boycott future copies unless McGruder wises up! ¡§coolguy ¡Kalong with the other hyper-right haters.¡¨ I don¡¦t see any hatred in coolguy¡¦s comments. I looked him up at amazon and he hasn¡¦t recommended a book by Coulter or Limbaugh. Redtwister is knocking down a strawman. ¡§¡K pass as intellectuals, rather than as crude, reactionary hucksters and liars.¡¨ Hmm, then why recommend Michael Moore, who¡¦s book is full of left-wing propaganda and lies! But, let¡¦s see how much of an intellectual you are. ¡§So what? Is it really that the Coulterkind want Huey to be a better Black revolutionary?¡¨ Yup, he should get his facts straight! ¡§They want Aaron to shut up.¡¨ No, we want him to be right! ¡§McGruder draws a kid who has a lot to say, but who is also a little too curmudgeonly for his own age, and who has real contradictions.¡¨ Thanks for admitting the contradictions. ¡§They don't give a damn about the influences in his art.¡¨ They don¡¦t? How would you know how I feel, Redtwister? I think it is hypocritical of McGruder to say it¡¦s wrong to appropriate black culture (i.e. the character Cindy) and then appropriate Asian culture. A culture I love and cherish. Aaron McGruder doesn¡¦t know how Asians think!!! ¡§I can't verify any of that¡K¡¨ Ha! You haven¡¦t read his comic book! ¡§McGruder has to make a living..¡¨ And, so do big corporations. ¡§My only complaint is that Moore and McGruder do not go far enough.¡¨ I don¡¦t think you¡¦ve read any of their stuff, nor did you read close enough on coolguy¡¦s comments.
Rating:
Summary: McGruder doing what he does so well
Review: Boondocks is a smart piece of satire and observation. In a country which is increasingly boorish, where Rush Limbaugh, Anne Coulter and coolguy (along with the other hyper-right haters reviewing this book) pass as intellectuals, rather than as crude, reactionary hucksters and liars, the few voices with integrity and intellect like McGruder are priceless. Alongside The Onion, Michael Moore and The Daily Show, he is one of the best public voices of dissent. And like all of them, he is very funny. Now, let's analyze the complaints: "Huey celebrates Kwanzaa, which was created by a former FBI snitch, Black Panther-hating dirtbag." So what? Is it really that the Coulterkind want Huey to be a better Black revolutionary? No, they want Huey 'dead'. They want Aaron to shut up. McGruder draws a kid who has a lot to say, but who is also a little too curmudgeonly for his own age, and who has real contradictions. "Aaron is a racist for using Asian-influenced techniques." From Coulterkind, this is the worst hypocrisy. They don't give a damn about the influences in his art. They would scream a blue streak if you pointed out how much of 20th century art stole stylings from Africa, thanks to colonialism, including cubism. Again, the goal is to shut up Aaron. "Aaron is a socialist, so don't read his stuff. He hates America." I can't verify any of that, but I admit I like his artistic voice. So he criticizes America, commodification, etc. Thank god someone in the media isn't a total slave for the corporations. But wait!! How dare he sell his books!?!?! McGruder has to make a living and so do millions of people who have gone on strike, fought against layoffs, opposed corporate and government racism, and so on. Basically, the message is, "Shut up or starve!" The meager privileges afforded to a McGruder or a Moore are nothing compared to those of the Coulters and Limbaughs, and more to the point, to the people who Moore and McGruder criticize. This is a charade similar to publishing stories about 'materialistic urban youth' killing over sneakers, while no one talks about the fact that Bush's family have been best buds with bin Laden's family for over 20 years, one baby Bush was part of the S&L scandal which cost hundreds of billions of dollars, and all these people get is a pat on the ass. My only complaint is that Moore and McGruder do not go far enough.
Rating:
Summary: psst! Check out coolguy's other reviews!
Review: None of us are professional reviewers, and the art of critique is especially subjective in our hands. The social/political commentary found in McGruder's comics aren't the sort that people can be lukewarm about; those who know me could have guessed that I'd like his work, and, with equal accuracy, predicted that some others would loathe it. I dig the book, but check it out for yourself. You can always glance at it at a bookstore before buying it here.
Rating: 
Summary: Shocking, then amusing, then tiresome
Review: When I first read Boondocks, I was given a shock by the sometimes bitter anger in it. I kept reading for a couple of years out of curiousity, and found it amusing at times, but it has grown tiresome. The two main characters are unrelentingly and obsessively angry. Occassionally, McGruder pokes fun at their anger, but mostly he affirms it. More interestly, the anger has turned the cartoonist inward. Originally, Huey hurled his anger at the other characters: an inoffensive girl his age, a black man in a mixed marriage with middle class values who wasn't angry enough to be really black, his teacher, etc. But none of these characters deserved it. So instead of having Huey learn and grow, McGruder turned Huey inward. Now, he sits at home or hangs with his only friend in the whole world, and spends his time ranting about all the things he hates. Frankly, Huey has nothing left but anger and hatred, and I suspect that McGruder is not much different.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant and edgy
Review: I won't waste my time heaping praise upon Huey and his crew, because as far as I'm concerned they ROCK. Edgy, funny, contemporary commentary of the day to day. If anyone says otherwise it' usually because hes struck a nerve. How do I know? Because the right always gets all freaked out when they check him out. Get a clue guys. #1 you're not the target audience #2 It's a comic strip for gods sake #3 At some point you'll have to stop attacking the source (and their hair) when you can't think of anything slightly intelligent to say. I thought maybe a few of these reviews would blame Clinton for the things coming out of Huey's mouth. #4 Study irony and sarcasm and maybe you might see some truth in the strips.
Rating:
Summary: ABSOLUTELY AWESOME
Review: My, my, my, so much hostility in some of these reviews. Hey, people, save some of your ranting for the books you're probably writing! Interested readers ignore the hate because this book is wonderful and hilarious satire from beginning to end!
Rating:
Summary: A Right to Be Stupid!
Review: How stupid! Reeeally stupid! It's stupid that McGruder is a commie and supports napster yet he SELLS his book. It's stupid that he thinks a "BLACK MAN'S GOTTA BE A SLAVE TO WIN AN ACADEMY AWARD..." Gee, how does that make white people like Michael Moore feel? It's stupid that he actually thinks he's authentically black. It's stupid to put a bunch of dudes in kung fu suits on the front cover... and I sure hope you don't put Hiro Otomo (a Japanese character) in your stupid comic books because you don't know how Asians think! You see, Aaron, all you are is a David Duke in black skin. And, will you do something with your hair, your hair is as nappy as Angela Davis'.
Rating:
Summary: Aaron McGruder is a loser!
Review: Seriously he is. Is it any wonder that he's not married? Personally, I don't think he looks like a leftist buckwheat, he looks like a leftist Jimmie Walker! Dynomite! He doesn't know what Kwanzaa is all about. And, if there "are many people in the black community who don't know the origins of the holiday but still celebrate" it... THAT'S A PROBLEM! The black community should strive to not be ignorant. They have to know their history. In other words, they shouldn't be like McGruder! And of course McGruder is one of the biggest hypocrites in the world bar none! "No one said anything when Quincy Jones produced The Last Dragon which was a cheap 80s knock off of a Bruce Lee film"? Yeah, they did. The Asian America community had some words about it... but nobody listened to them! Take it from me. I'm an Asian American! And, I would ask Aaron McGruder to take off that despicable front cover from his book for future publishing. Furthermore, McGruder approves of Napster (read page 109) yet he sells his book. Hey, Aaron, if you're reading this would you have any problem if I stole your book?
| 
