Jump Start

by Robb Armstrong

""He does wonderful work. A strip needs good characters-and that's what Jump Start has.""-Charles Schulz, creator of Peanuts

Joe and Marcy Cobb are the quintessential young married couple complete with a baby, two busy careers, and eccentric parents. An eminently likable pair, Joe and Marcy juggle their relationship, their jobs-he's a police officer, she's a nurse-and raising their daughter, Sunny. Robb Armstrong's characters...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0836236610
• ISBN13: 9780836236613
• Release Date: September 1997
• Publisher: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 8.5" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

Excellent strip

Robb Armstrong manages the difficult feat of creating characters who are funny, real, and deep. And for what it's worth, I am a white male in my mid thirties. His characters speak to everybody, because of the deep truths they portray. In fact, I wish they were real, and lived next door to me. Failing that, I look forward to reading his strips for years to come. I'd put them up there with Doonesbury and a few others as classics of the genre.

Excellent Book

I have been a fan of Jump Start since it was introduced to my local newspaper. It is a breath of fresh air seeing African Americans depicted in such a positive and realistic light. I can't wait until Mr. Armstong compiles another book with the addition of Jojo Cobb! An excellent read. perfect for the Coffee Table.

THE WORK OF A GENIUS

Robb Armstrong is a genius. No two ways about it."Jump Start" is a delightful strip and I'm lucky my local paper carries it. Considering the paucity of good strips featuring black families, this one has set new standards in many ways.Joe and Marcy, the Jump Start couple are professionals. He is a police officer and she a nurse. They have intelligent conversations and are delightful and believable.I like the fact that race is simply a part of the story and not the focus of the story. One of my all time favorite strips in creation was a Jump Start strip. Joe and Marcy's friends, Clarence Sr. and his wife complain about how people "act stupid around them" because they are an interracial couple. Joe tells them, "friend, they aren't ACTING." Translation: If folks can't accept interracial families, then the stupidity is NOT an act. I LOVE THAT STRIP!The Jump Start kids, Sunny and baby Jojo are adorable. I love the way Sunny remains bilingual -- fluent in English and baby talk. Baby Jojo acts like a crib sized executive with his day care pal Benny his faithful partner/employee/man Friday. It is so hilarious to see the way the kids interact!I love all the strips when Sunny runs from the comb. One can almost feel her pain during these feared comb out sessions. Is there a child in the world who likes to have their hair done? I sometimes doubt that. I love the one where Sunny thinks dreadlocks will save her from the comb. I also like the fact that Sunny and Jojo have playmates of all races because that is how the world really is -- made up of all races.Robb Armstrong is a genius!

A very wonderful blend of fantasy and real life!

I say hats off to Robb Armstrong for creating and hitting it big with his very popular comic strip all about a whimsical African-American family! It all begun with the high-school courtship between Joe and Marcy. Then they got married, launched their very busy careers as a policeman and a nurse, and along came their two very precocious kids, Sunny and Jojo (what curious names!) Then the whole family goes tumbling into the wildest adventures with a bragging Pop and a doting Mom, household chores, police car chases, shootin' up with the bad guys, the hectic emergency room, the crazy day-care scene where small kids all act like grown-ups, and of course, Sunny's very bushy, untamed hair! And it's all told in a true-to-life vein shot through with intoxicating flights of fantasy and very saucy, well-crafted satire, especially where Joe turns into a very muscular superhero every time his ego gets stroked and the whole family being chased around the house by rabid IRS agents! Rather like "Rose Is Rose", only with a very endearing cast of black folks!

Wonderful Read!!!

I've had this book since it came out and can hardly wait for the next one! I've been a daily fan of this strip for years. Robb Armstrong has a genuine knack for showing the American family.... You'll laugh when you start reading the strip and start sayin " Oh Yea!" I've done that! or at the very least thought about it. So here is hoping Marcy, Joe, Sunny, and Jojo come to another book soon!! Thanks NT