PvP, Volume 4: PvP Goes Bananas!

Jade's sister Miranda seduces Brent, the gang try out live action role-playing, start a fake rock band, try to quit caffeine cold turkey and are the victim of death threats. It's the latest collection of the world's second most popular online comic strip.

VOYA

This compilation of Kurtz's long-running Web comic follows the misadventures of the staff of Player vs. Player, a gaming magazine. It highlights Cole, the middle-aged editor and old-school gaming geek; Brent, cool creative director who does not actually game much and is regularly attacked by a panda; Jade, writer, online addict, and Brent's girlfriend; and Francis, teen gamer and tech-support whiz. Skull, a mythological construct not everyone can see; his talking, super-intelligent cat Scratch, along with a host of other geeks who regularly show up; and Max Powers, editor of a rival game review magazine and Cole's archenemy also contribute to the book's cast. For the most part, the strip follows the daily goings-on at the magazine as the characters discuss new games, movies, computers, their personal lives, and generally act like geeks. Although there is continuity and occasional character development, little ever really changes, but Kurtz's comedic timing, likeable characters, and good, sharp writing keep it consistently funny-even the oft-repeated random panda attack. It is just as funny as similarly themed Penny Arcade, but without as much swearing. This volume collects issues 19 through 24 of the comic book, where some, but not all, of the strips appear after they have appeared on the Web. Many online strips are in full color, but the print edition is sadly all black and white. Still it is a good way to catch up on a fine Web comic.