The premise was interesting but the execution felt a little dumb. Still fun to read tho. Kudos, that writers are no longer letting best friends be treated like dirt by the MC. ( )

Reminds me of the book Master Class. ( )

In the near future, Ranked is the #1 social media app and it's rating of your worth -- determined by unspecified means, like credit ratings today -- determines where you can work, park, eat and more. And of course, it also helps mean girls know who they can get away with bullying.

It's MeowMeowBeenz, without any of the darkness and humor of the Community episode, "App Development and Condiments." No, instead we get a stupid high school kids vs. giant corporation David-and-Goliath thing. Literally. 'Cuz, you know, the best technology in the world can't stand up against a rock. Really. A rock. I'm not kidding. A rock. A rrrrrrrroooooooooooocccccckkkkkkkk.

The rock is only one of several dumb plot developments and wholly unbelievable coincidences necessary to make this shoddy contraption work, but it's the worst. So I'm not going to let it go.

To paraphrase Ryan George:
"That sounds like it will be really hard for them to get out of."
"No. Super easy. Barely an inconvenience."
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah, they just hit it with a rock."
"A rock?"
"Yep, they just whack it real hard. With a rock."
"Well, okay then."

Movie adaptation tagline: "Watch out, Ranked! These kids are about to rock your world!" (Starring, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, natch.)

Hey, kid, is that a rock in your pocket, or are you just happy to see our high tech?

Got rock?

We built this city on rock and rocksssssssssssss!

CTL-ALT-ROCK ( )

The premise was interesting but the execution felt a little dumb. Still fun to read tho. Kudos, that writers are no longer letting best friends be treated like dirt by the MC. ( )

Pros: realistic setting and characters, pretty artwork

Cons: ending is simplistic

In a future where your Ranked app scores decide where you can live, what restaurants you can enter, and how ‘cool’ you are at school, being at the bottom sucks. When the app is hacked and the scores of Averee and her mom drop suddenly, Averee faces prejudice at school while her mom’s job is in jeopardy. A friend’s idea to find the app’s founder sounds impossible, but just might be Averee’s only hope.

Averee is a 5 issue, self-contained graphic novel. The artwork is full of colourful pastels and simplistic backgrounds, letting the characters and plot be the focus. It’s easy to grasp the kind of world an app like Ranked would create, so little world-building was required. Having said that, the cattiness of some schoolgirls is very realistic and sells the setting.

I liked the friendship between Averee and Zoe, whose rank has always been low. Their arguments and resolution feel natural for their age. I also liked the budding relationship between Averee and Luke, the awkwardness of trying too hard while hoping it’s not obvious you’re trying too hard.

The plot is well paced across the 5 issues, and while the ending seemed a little simplistic (I feel like the trio would face more consequences for what they did), I did like the resolution. ( )