Mark Millar is a
smart guy. Namely, he knows that comics
is a visual medium, and he works with some of the absolute best artists working
in the field. Starlight is no different. Goran Parlov is an artist whose work I don’t
remember seeing before, though I was aware of his name from Parlov’s run with
Garth Ennis on Punisher. So, I was anxious
to see what he could do, while also checking out some of Mark Millar’s recent
work (having also just read Kingsman, with art by the legendary Dave
Gibbons).
Starlight is an
homage to the adventure serials Millar used to watch as a child, heavily
influenced by one of the ultimate pulp/sci-fi heroes, Flash Gordon. And it is a pretty fun romp. Duke McQueen, the Flash Gordon analogue, is
older, his sons with families of their own, his wife recently deceased, his
life passing into twilight. Ever since
his adventures on the alien world of Tantalus, McQueen has lived with the fact
that his stories of adventure were never believed by the general populace,
leaving him as the butt of jokes from neighborhood children and, upon his
immediate return from Tantalus decades ago, news reporters. But, at this point in his life, McQueen has
resigned himself to being the target of ridicule.
Until a starship
from Tantalus lands in his backyard, a pink-haired child emerging in the rain
to greet him with both excitement and a bit of awe. Tantalus needs Duke McQueen again, to save
them from a new tyranny. Hesitant at
first, McQueen acquiesces and returns to the planet of his greatest triumphs,
Earth having nothing left for him.
From here, we get some
fighting, some acrobatics (from an old guy, but come on, it’s fiction), some
gunplay, a despotic villain, equally evil henchmen, flying cars, beautiful,
alien women, a twist, a feint, some slapstick, and flashbacks of exotic
adventure. There’s nothing new in this
book, and Millar isn’t trying to revolutionize comics, but the narrative hums
along smoothly, offering some fun scenes that all lead to the climax we expect,
with a nice emotional denouement that brings McQueen closer to his sons—or,
more to the point, his sons closer to their dad—and it’s professional and
competent and doesn’t trip over itself, plot-wise. It’s a fun, popcorn adventure.
That said: Damn, can Goran Parlov freakin’ draw. Oh.
My. Goodness. This is one of the most beautiful comics I’ve
read in a long time, and Parlov elevates Starlight far above its weight class
(to mix a horrible metaphor…shaken, not stirred, please). His figures look like they were based on
character sheets from Alex Toth, while the backgrounds and architecture feel
like they were lifted directly from an unpublished tome of Moebius’s work, and
it all just sings—aided wonderfully by coloring from Ive Svorcina. If you enjoy comics, and if you love great
comic art, you need to check this book out. Take your time, linger on every page, drink in
the wonder of Parlov’s art. Not since Scott
Morse, or maybe Frank Santoro, have I been so bowled over by an artist’s work
in a comic book. Parlov’s so good, I
might have to check out his work on Punisher now.
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