“The Magical Science of Graphic Novels”
Somewhere in the haze of the 1980s, two first grade boys carefully placed a plastic bowl in the neatly trimmed grass outside an old Ohio farmhouse. They filled that bowl with Rice Krispies, milk dangerously close to its expiration date, and dish soap. Then one poured in a half bottle of Windex before darting to a nearby bush for cover. The boys were convinced that their concoction would erupt in – if not a full-blown explosion – at the very least a deadly cloud of poison gas.
Instead, the bowl snapped, crackled, and popped, and not much else.
That was my first attempt at a “science” experiment, and aside from a small spot of brown grass in my parents’ lawn, there wasn’t much else to show for it. My short attention span soon drifted to the next big thing, and life as a scientist was put on an indefinite hold.
I should’ve known better. I was the creative type, not quite equipped with an analytical mind. As a kid, I was more concerned about which imaginary supervillain I was going to battle at recess than with any math test that crossed my desk. Although I wasn’t exactly against learning, I had quickly discovered how to stay on the honor roll by doing the bare minimum. When every rock on the playground could become a stepping stone bobbing in hot lava, when the margins of every notebook were a blank canvas for werewolves to dwell, how could the cold hard facts of a text books hope to compete?
All that said, I can still vividly remember the first time I fell in love with something science related. I had just sold a bunch of action figures at my grandmother’s garage sale, and had a handful of fresh bills burning a hole in my pocket. At the local comic shop, I decided to buy a few issues of a series well before my time: 1965’s Metamorpho: The Element Man. Thanks to exposure to a strange meteorite, adventurer Rex Mason was transformed into a living chemistry set, a being who could change into any element – or combination of elements – found in the human body. This “Fab Freak” was teaching me chemical formulas while battling diminutive aliens and ancient Egyptian queens. While flipping through the slightly browned comic pages, I had no time to daydream, I was too busy worrying over what chemical concoction Metamorpho would use to defeat a jealous reanimated caveman. As outlandish as those comics were, I devoured every single one I could find, learning far more than what was presented to me in the form of monotone classroom lectures. I still have those same issues today, filed meticulously in one of way too many comic book boxes.
Those boxes now sit in my home in Asheville, North Carolina, which is also the home turf of High Touch High Tech, a company that delivers hands-on science experiments to kids in the classrooms of a variety of states, countries, and even on Royal Caribbean cruise lines. Not long ago, I met with the founder of HTHT, Daniel Shaw, and we began collaborating on a single comic book issue that would incorporate three of his company’s experiments into a fantasy adventure. That comic became the first of six chapters of our graphic novel, The Spark Experiment, a book lovingly drawn by cartoonist Matthew Loux.
When Dan had mentioned wanting to wade into the world of comics, waters I’ve been splashing in for the last twenty-five years, I immediately thought back to that Metamorpho-obsessed kid from Ohio. If I was going to write a science-based story, I was going to make it fun. If kids know they’re learning, half the magic has already spilled out of the cauldron, and the potion isn’t near as potent. The trick is maintaining the illusion, keeping the audience focused on the showmanship so they miss the sleight of hand. For me, that meant delivering an adventure that I myself would enjoy, and luckily, I had picked the perfect artist for the job. Matt Loux and I are old friends from our college days at the School of Visual Arts. We share the same sense of humor, and both focus on story over style. All I had to do was write a story that Matt would be excited to draw. That energy could then spill out onto the page, and abracadabra, the result would be magic.
Together, Matt and I invented David Patel, a 5th grader who loves science more than can possibly be good for him, and his sidekick 2nd grader Marta Martinez, who somehow loves science even more. These two little weirdos were the perfect protagonists to be accidentally teleported to a Micro Universe, a strange fantasy realm where only their natural knack for science experiments can get them safely back to our world. Well, science and a little creature with inspiration powers that goes by the name of Spark.
Each chapter of The Spark Experiment has three do-it-yourself experiments for kids that utilize common items found around the house (not much harder to find than a box of stale cereal or a bottle of Windex). There are eighteen experiments in all, each one serving the story by helping David and Marta not only navigate the Micro Universe, but also battle lethargic little Negatrons that follow them back home. It’s a story about the inspirational power of science, about how fun is contagious, and about how all of us – even the bored daydreamers – can embrace the sciences when their creativity is given just the slightest little Spark.
The Spark Experiment by Matthew K. Manning
Illustrated by Matthew Loux
Published April 28th, 2026 by Andrews McMeel Publishing
About the Book: When a science experiment goes wrong, kid neighbors David Patel and Marta Martinez find themselves in the Micro Universe—a whole new world where the laws of physics don’t apply! This full-color graphic novel is perfect for fans of science fiction and adventure.
When fifth grader David Patel and his second-grade sidekick Marta Martinez uncover a science experiment gone wrong, they find themselves transported to the Micro Universe, a weird world inside our own that doesn’t obey the laws of conventional physics. While they’re able to return home thanks to the help of a strange little creature named Spark, the pair doesn’t realize that they’ve led a group of nefarious beings called Negatrons back to our world in the process.
Using 18 real do-it-yourself science experiments that readers can try at home, David, Marta, and Spark must save their small town from an invasion of these energy-leeching Negatrons, all the while learning how to “spark” their own imaginations. This is a new graphic novel is perfect for kids interested in hands-on activities and science fiction adventures!
About the Author: Matthew K. Manning is a comic book writer, historian, and fan. Over the course of his career, he’s written comics or books starring Batman, Superman, the Justice League, and even Bugs Bunny. Some of his more recent works include AMP’s The Superman Files. He lives in Asheville, North Carolina, with his wife, Dorothy, and his daughters, Lillian and Gwendolyn.
About the Illustrator: Matthew Loux is the author and artist of the graphic novels Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring, The Time Museum Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 (published by First Second Books), Sidescrollers, and the five-volume series Salt Water Taffy (originally published by Oni Press). The Time Museum Vol. 1 received a starred Kirkus review, was listed on the 2018 Texas Library Association’s prestigious Maverick list, was a Panda Book Award winner of 2018, and was nominated for the RI Children’s Book Award. Sidescrollers was placed on the American Library Association’s YALSA, Great Graphic Novels for Teens, list of 2008, and in 2009, Salt Water Taffy was placed on the Texas Library Association’s Maverick list, as was Prunella and the Cursed Skull Ring in 2023. Matthew also illustrated the graphic novel F-Stop and the board comic Good Night Gabbaland, based on the Nick Jr. television show Yo Gabba Gabba, and has contributed comics and cover art for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund.
Thank you, Matthew, for this focus on the magic of graphic novels and highlight of The Spark Experiment, a science-infused graphic novel!
