Broken Frontier

When you buy a Rick Veitch comic, you never just buy a single story. You buy a history, a time capsule, a zeitgeist. A specific moment in time that is remembered, analyzed and distilled into a pure form of entertainment. With ‘Shiny Beasts’ you don’t just get the stories; you get the energy, emotions and a behind the scenes look of an iconoclastic artist who is one of the best in this tiny industry and how he started out.

Contained in this TPB are short stories of the eighties fantasy variety that first appeared in Epic Illustrated , that legendary foray of Marvel Comics into creator-owned and adult territory. The stories range from 1978 to 1983 (with two exceptions). Rick Veitch obviously enjoys working in the genre, free from the constraints of capes and copyrighted box office heroes.

The glorious days of the early psychedelic seventies were passed and the world was gearing up to be invaded by cyberpunk , there was a resurgence of hard sci fi and fantasy ventured into unexpected territories. In this climate, where the Sony walkman and the ghetto blaster were let loose upon the world, Marvel Comics took a chance on adult stories and the climate was just right for mad Rick Veitch and his sarcastic look upon the world.

Tucked away behind an eerie mesmerizing cover that manages to be eighties sci fi and contemporary at the same time, we get collaborations with Alan Moore, John Totleben and Steven R. Bissette, representing for many their first forays into the trenches of big time comics publishing. Each story works in the same vein: setting up the premise, delve into the complications raised by given premise to slide into a given solution, close the story with a twist that lets you see the ending in a new light. Basic short story 101 but the difference here is that it is always coupled with good characters and beautiful art. Not too concerned about social etiquette or political correctness, Veitch tells his stories in an earnest way that is full of life and creativity - which is half the reading enjoyment already. Not all stories succeed in the twist-fase and a few are just a simple letdown - Solar Plexus for instance - and the black humor of Bratpack is not yet fully present but there are a few jewels in there. ‘Landmass’ is a nice take on capitalism while the Alan Moore-penned ‘Love doesn’t last forever’ is a nice character study on love and obsession. Together with ‘Ghosts in the machine’ they are the finest and drive their point home the best.

The painted art and storytelling bears the mark of early Veitch but it’s a proud patch to wear. It’s intricately detailed and the bright colors leaping off the page are a joy to the eyes and bring the stories to life in a very succulent way. This is not in some small measure due to the printing job. It’s a quality paper with a cardboard cover that gives the colors the chance to be bright and explosive, just as they intended to be. No doubt that the original printing in the Epic Magazine was much worse and muddy. The colors help the visual storytelling, being most apparent in ‘Shiny Beast’ and ‘Solar Plexus’ which takes place in the heart of the sun.

Many effects and bright splashes look like they were done with the computer but I’m afraid not, true believer, this is all done before the digital age. ‘Ghosts in the machine’ takes place in a VR-environment with battle droids and, according to the text piece in the back, was made to come as close as possible to the visuals of a computer without using a computer (because they weren’t handy yet to the general public). Just looking at this short piece should convince you of the energy and effort that was put into these comics by their creators. For a tutorial on this - which involves photography reversal, zipatone and computer grids done with a pen - check the text piece at the back

Although this is very clearly a Veitch-comic with humanity drawn as sly wrinkled creatures, incapable of beauty, it is obvious that this is early work. Sequences don’t flow like they do in his more recent work like ‘Can’t get no’ or ‘Army@love’. Panels are sometimes overly detailed and there’s a tendency to go out of the way of standard panel arrangements and breaking borders for the sake of showmanship. Luckily, the craftsmanship is so high in these stories that the masterful skill Veitch will develop is already showing and therefore these comics are still a joy to watch and read.

This is intended to be the second in a tetralogy reprinting his earlier work. The first was ‘Abraxas and the earthman’ which I also highly recommend and the last will be his Marvel graphic novel ‘Heartburst’.

Take a tour inside the warped mind of Rick Veitch and read his first forays into adult comics. 'Shiny Beasts' is an eighties sci fi black box that will give you a trippy kickback to an earlier time in the medium and a glimpse into the beginnings of a celebrated creator.

Shiny Beasts by Rick Veitch went on sale King Hell on May 31 and retails for $16.95.