Artist: Axur Eneas
Review: Will Dubbeld
Opinions on crowd-sourcing to get comics published run the gamut,
from luminary creators poo-pooing Kickstarter to other names in the
business using it to launch their own creator owned projects. I can't
speak for all of the feature writers here at The Hammond Comics Blog,
but personally I think it's a great avenue for industry unknowns to get a
book out there to the masses.
Consequently when a book comes across my Kickstarter radar that seems
to have a solid premise and creative team, I'll usually give it a go.
Thus my introduction to The Adventures of Aero-Girl.
Granted, the elements touted in the pitch were right up my alley. It
had a Pulpy, almost Atomic Age feel. It had goggles and jetpacks and a
gorilla.
There needs to be more of all these things in comics.
So I tossed in my dollars and received a neat new comic in trade.
The Adventures of Aero-Girl tells the tale of young Jacqueline
MacKenzie, a superhero aspirant who is a sidekick-in-training under the
super hero Battle Jack.
Battle
Jack is the protector of the fictional city of Foxbay, possessor of a
power called the Battle Spirit, and Jacqueline's father.
Feenstra writes the father/daughter dynamic rather well, balancing
elements of doting parenthood, good natured chastising, and lighthearted
action without being sappy or preachy.
Battle
Jack and Aero-Girl fight their way through foes that are generously
sprinkled with Golden Age sentiment, such as the Three Ring Gang (that
includes amongst their number a bearded lady with prehensile beard hair)
and Dr. Chimera, a madman with a penchant for genetic splicing.
Sadly, we are treated with a sparse appearance of Jak-Jak the superpowered gorilla, but the tease is worth it.
Axur Eneas' art is superb. Crisp and animated without looking too
cartoonish, Eneas crafts a detailed vision of Foxbay and its
inhabitants, both fair and foul. The stylized art has a look that would
transfer well to traditionally animated media. As a bonus, the last few
pages of the book had some concept art/character designs and fan art.
In a market bogged down with Flashpoints and Ultrons and enough
angst and pathos to make 1995 envious, it's refreshing to read an all
ages book that doesn't carry any continuity baggage or editorial
micromanaging. The major publishers should take note of books like The
Adventures of Aero-Girl, and follow suit. The only complaint I could
even muster about this book is that it's too darn short. I wasn't ready
for the last page, hoping instead the book would sprout another ten
pages or so.
I settled instead for re-reading it another couple of times.
I'll
be looking forward to the next three installments of this book, and
with any luck it'll find it's way into a collected edition at some
point.
Keep an eye on this one, folks. I've got a feeling it's going places.
Thanks for all the kind words. I'm glad you liked our book :-)
ReplyDeleteMuchas gracias for the comment, we put a lot of effort to gave you a cool first issue, I'll work harder for the next one :D
ReplyDelete