I didn't know there is a book. I enjoyed it. It is a good child suitable movie (after a certain age) which shows the dangers of Fascism. It was fun to watch, while of course one could critique a couple of things. It is one of the best animated series/movies of the decade.
spoiler and tropes
- 1000 year old child
- but! representation of different body forms, which is quite good
- Anarchist and spray painted aesthetic is co-opted but also shown as a good thing
- the 'we just have to tell everyone the truth' liberal trope gets fixed
- our evil genius was not that likeable a character, but that is fine, since from the perspective of children adults are often a bit off and take much more time to learn stuff. Also it is fine to become friends with and care for people that aren't that likeable.
- it is queer and trans friendly and centers one owns identity as ones own choice that is strongly linked with society and a support net, though.
- could it be better? Sure, could it be Marxist/Materialist? Sure. But dealing with resistance to fascism and the oppressor oppressed dynamic and the CW self hurt tendencies is good.