Slamdown Town
2 total works
A boy’s wish to be a star wrestler is granted in this wacky middle-grade fantasy
Ollie and his older brother, Hollis, have wrestling in their blood: Their mom was a pro whose dreams of stardom were dashed by a devious opponent. Now she’s an overworked, underpaid ref at Slamdown Town, the local arena. Ollie’s goal in life is to win the golden championship belt for his mom—immediately followed by his other goal: to hang his bully of a brother from the roof by his tightie-whities. But there’s one problem: Ollie inherited their estranged dad’s puny frame, while Hollis got their mom’s brawn. Thus Ollie has resigned himself to a fate of wrestling mediocrity and wet willies . . . until the day Hollis gifts him a piece of stale gum and forces him to chew it. Ollie soon discovers that the gum—bought on eBay and formerly chewed by a wrestling legend— has an unusual side effect: the ability to physically transform Ollie into a pro wrestler. As Big Chew, Ollie’s finally able to put Hollis in his place and be a star. But when trouble befalls his family, being Big Chew gets a lot more complicated. In the end, Ollie knows he can’t have it all; and it’s only when he asks himself who he really is that he learns what it means to be a champion.
Ollie and Tamiko saved Slamdown Town and wrestling is popular again! New fans and, more important, new wrestlers have flocked to the arena. The rise in popularity draws two infamous wrestlers back to the arena: The Krackle Kiddos, Linton Krackle’s son and daughter, are Slamdown Town tag-team champions. They’re big, they’re bold, and they’re beautiful. No one—not even The Referee and The Bolt—can stop them. Until Tamiko is transformed into Game Over—the combo-savvy wrestler with a flair for turning her opponents into a pile of pixels—that is. She and Big Chew team up to give the Krackle Kiddos a run for their money. Being tag-team partners with your best friend is awesome . . . but will their friendship survive long enough to take down the competition?