Max feels lonely because his father neglects him. Never mind, just buy the Genius android. An easy solution but will this robot be man's best friend?
A future so near
If the pitch initially suggests a pure science fiction story, the rest is very different as the cartoonist proves. The reader understands that we are in the future by some details (cars, architecture) but Stéphane Hirlemann avoids very futuristic sets. He prefers to focus on the expressions of the characters making us enter through their emotions in this sensitive story. 
Genius does not seek to explore the universe but to enter into human feelings. Screenwriter Sergio Salma imagines a near future where robots are as commonplace as an oven. Everything starts from an advertisement by Personal Robotics. Max's father has to be away from home often, so it makes perfect sense for him to buy a robot to keep his son company. But it is also to reassure the father who must raise his son Max alone. he thinks he is doing well because the boy is passionate about these machines but his son would have preferred to see his father more often. The robot is nevertheless designed as the ideal friend: always available and never recalcitrant. Even better, he never sleeps.
An imperfect robot, an icy teenager
However, the rookie android is clumsy – making us smile at his mistakes. He wants to be loved but he does it wrong. He squeezes Max too tightly from their first meeting and wakes him up in the middle of the night to check that everything is okay. He even makes a declaration of love to her. The company's remote changes are no more developed because, depending on the settings, Genius becomes haughty or cries. It goes so badly that he risks returning to the factory. Genius does not support this idea and redoubles its efforts becoming ubiquitous. Going beyond his program, Genius becomes unique as shown by a whole episode seen through his eyes. He is far from the servile assistant. Paradoxically, all these very human flaws please the reader. We are conquered much faster than the teenager. Only the sweetness of Genius will change the teenager's mind. This atmosphere also comes from the colorist Albertine Ralenti who avoids flashy colors that have become a banality in youth comics to offer more matte tones. Max is as touching as the android. He lives in a huge luxurious house but feels left out. Gradually, the android becomes for him a reassuring presence and then a companion. So we see a friendship born because everyone takes a step towards the other. Max wants his father to take more care of him and Genius will intervene. The robot having been adopted, a family of three is formed. 
Times are changing
Genius raises the question of change, central to adolescence. Indeed, unlike most youth comics, the characters will age with each volume. Max is entering puberty, he will grow up but his robot was not designed that way. Yet, like a human, his body transforms and he even experiences feelings. Here we find codes of futuristic stories like those of Isaac Asimov or films such as A.I. of Spielberg whose poster we meet in a corner of the box… This story is therefore denser than it seems offering even a short illustrated lesson on the history of robotics. Published by Glénat in his collection Tchô!, this first volume includes short stories partly published in his youth magazine. However, each short story is a chapter of the album. We can read them separately, if we understand the evolution of the three main characters. With Genius, Glénat offers a very surprising story. Far from the cold futurism, the young reader or a little less is conquered by emotion. Like the meeting with a new friend, this series disturbs at first then we can not do without it and time seems too quickly once it is over. We are waiting to find her again next summer. If you are interested in young adult stories, you can check out our columns on Phobos and Strange Academy.
