Phipps takes a sidestep away from satirizing the superhero genre to poke some fun at fight games (and movies) like Street Fighter. Champions from across the multiverse are gathered to fight it out to see who is top dog with the prize being ultimate power. Unfortunately, this didn’t work as well for me as the other books did. I never really felt like Gary was in this power league. Gary is great for a one liner and he often thinks of very clever things to do, but this came down to a raw power match and that really isn’t Merciless—except that somehow he keeps finding the raw power to win.
The best part of this story is actually the introduction into this series of Jane Doe from Phipps other series that starts with I Was a Teenage Weredeer. I absolutely love that series and it was nice to see her again. Write some more Bright Falls Mysteries Mr. Phipps.