Broken Frontier

IDW continues its smart and impressive list of publications with this collection of a high flying and nostalgic adventure classic.  In this day and age of seemingly rabid comic throwbacks, it seems almost impossible that this collection didn’t already exist. 

Way back in 1982, The Rocketeer debuted as a back up feature in Star Slayer #2.  Eventually, it would have its own magazine and then a Disney movie.

This is an adventure comic in the most traditional sense.  Cliff Secord is a stunt plane flyer in 1938 L.A.  When a police chase ends in his hanger, a story worthy of a '30s serial is set into motion.  The bad guys leave a package that Cliff stumbles upon.  When he opens it, there before his eyes is a jet rocket pack.  His buddy builds him a helmet and the Rocketeer is born.

Initially, Cliff just wants to make a little cash as a flying man to impress his girlfriend, Betty.  However, when Nazi agents and G-Men start to hassle our reluctant hero, he finds out that lesson that Uncle Ben impressed upon young Peter Parker - “With great power” (and super cool rocket packs) “comes great responsibility.”

The book is thick with a time gone by.  Stevens captures the era not only in setting but in clothing and dialogue.  The reader is transported as if in a time machine.  The short action-packed chapters even match the greatest serial films from Flash Gordon to Gang Busters.  Then there is Betty.  Cliff’s girl bears a striking resemblance to that most famous of pin ups, Betty Page.

There are cliffhangers and mysteries for days all reproduced in this top notch collection.  Covers and rarely seen art round it out, along with a respectable biography of series creator Dave Stevens who passed away in 2008.  While his legacy in cartoons such as Super Friends and Godzilla is no doubt overshadowed by his production work on Raiders of the Lost Ark, the comic work here shows why the Rocketeer will be his most memorable mark on pop culture.  It is easy to see an influence that has spread to everyone after; from Dave Johnson to Tony Harris.  The action and line work here is unlike anything to come to comics since.

The dynamic layouts show a healthy respect for Eisner.  There is a storytelling prowess that is only matched by the aching tease of Stevens’ Betty.  This has to be the guy that Frank Cho and Adam Hughes want to be. It is all too easy to imagine Marty McFly hiding this comic in a special place.  All the while there is a charm and even an innocence that attracted the largest family entertainment empire in the world.

The Rocketeer: The Complete Adventures is a fantastic bit of holiday surprise from IDW.  Whether it is the beautiful oversized limited edition or the handsome standard-sized hardcover, it is a showcase of design that will be a welcome addition to any comics fan’s shelf.

The Rocketeer: The Complete Adventures by Dave Stevens is available now from IDW Publishing starting at $29.99.