"LOOK!! Up in the sky!! It's a bird!!"

"Umm ... no, it's a plane!"

"Actually, it kinda looks like a happy face on a He-Man action figure's body arguing with a five-pointed talking star attached to its chest?!?"

"Oh great. I guess we're stuck with Captain Smiley"

Sure, that may not exactly be the hero's welcome the star of Twisted Pixel's latest Xbox LIVE Arcade release would like, but hey, if he was the fan favorite he thinks he is, then there wouldn't be any point to Comic Jumper: The Adventures of Captain Smiley now would there? After a quick introduction to the world of Captain Smiley's comic book (mis)adventures, we find out that sales on his book have been in the toilet lately. And yes, if the live action clips are any indication, we do mean that literally. As a result, Captain Smiley and Star witness as their comic series is unceremoniously cancelled. Don't worry, though, this isn't the end of the story ... in fact, it's only just begun.

With the dynamic duo tossed to the unemployment line, it's the fine folks at Twisted Pixel who come to the rescue, providing Captain Smiley and Star with a new base of operations, as well as experimental technology which allow the heroes to "jump" into the pages of other comic books. By hiring themselves out for guest appearances, the team plans to cash in enough on the freelance gigs to ultimately bankroll a return to their own solo series. But it's going to take more than a few quick paychecks to score a comeback. It's going to take some fast-paced action and a bunch of well-timed (and a whole lot of ill-timed) wisecracks to earn a Smiley and Star their classic comic book resurrection.

Right from the get go, it becomes obvious that "Action" is Captain Smiley's middle name. Okay, so maybe it's really something like "Herman", but if the game is any indication, he should get it legally changed to "Action". I mean, things never let up for this guy. He's constantly under attack by everything from tribal villagers in golf carts to robotic women to knife wielding ventriloquist dummies, and they come at him from every direction at once. Luckily, Smiley's ammo supply is as endless as the game's stream of one-liners. Plus, the controls are so simple and fluid that you'll never have to fight with them while you're fighting with the enemies. It's classic run-and-gun gameplay that used to eat all your quarters in the arcades when you were a kid. It can be brutally hard in parts, but since the checkpoints are spaced fairly close together, death has no real consequences and it's easy to fight on through the rough spots in the game.

If you're willing to put some time into Comic Jumper experience, the game won't leave you disappointed. The game is packed to the hilt with all sorts of extra goodies to unlock, from loads of comic art and character models to audio files and video interviews to gamer pictures and dashboard themes. In fact, if you've already picked up Twisted Pixel's previous hit, 'Splosion Man, you can even unlock a couple of brand new levels for it through Comic Jumper. And never one to turn away from a shameless plug, you can even buy 'Splosion Man and The Maw from the Xbox LIVE Marketplace without ever leaving Comic Jumper. If they tried to pack any more extras inside Comic Jumper, they probably wouldn't have had room for the actual game.

When you see Twisted Pixel's name attached to a project, you can pretty much guarantee you're in for an off-the-wall and wildly entertaining experience, and Comic Jumper: The Adventures of Captain Smiley is no exception. Seeing the "emoticon on steroids" blasting his way from panel to panel and book to book, complete with all the "POW!"s and "BAM!"s worthy of any self-respecting comic series, it more than enough to tug at the heartstrings of any fanboy. Captain Smiley and Star are just two near-mint heroes trying to break out of their polybagged world, saving gamers from the evils of boredom and monotony along the way.

Final Score: A