Kirby: Genesis #1 – Review

 

By: Kurt Busiek (writer), Jack Herbert and Alex Ross (artists), Vinicius Andrade (colors), Joseph Rybandt (editor)

The Story: We get to see a whole lot of Kirby and his hot platonic friend Bobbi. The backdrop for their story is the sudden appearance of all sorts of weird stuff that hearkens back to when NASA’s Pioneer 10 probe, carrying a message for aliens on how to get to Earth, was lost in some strange effect. And the story opens…

The Review: I was absolutely flattened by the art. I mean, wow. Kirby’s face alone is worth the price of entry. It’s life-like, expressive and unique, with a wealth of details, from the slight hollows around his mouth and his perma-five-o’clock-shadow to the worry wrinkles on his forehead. The draftsmanship and respect for the precision of anatomy was eye-catching. Nearest comparators that leap to mind? Neal Adams or Cascioli, maybe with a bit of an Ivan Reis’ flavor of Boston Brand thrown in. The layouts are intriguing and gather no moss as we go from page to page. The smaller, close-up frames cram the eye towards the long, scenic views that are a riot of detail. The credits page was stunning not only for the scope and composition of the figures, with feet angling down to enhance the dynamism of the page (no pun intended), but also for the startlingly effective shift in color tone and lighting. And once the weirdness starts hitting the fan (and the midwest), Herbert and Ross channel the King and get some real Jack Kirby flavors working their ways into the artwork. Quite an artistic accomplishment.

Kirby Genesis #0 – Review

By: Kurt Busiek (writer), Alex Ross (art direction, layouts, covers), Jack Herbert and Alex Ross (art), Vinicius Andrade (colors), Joseph Rybandt (editor), Jack Kirby (concepts and characters)

The Story: In 1972, Pioneer 10 was launched to fly past Jupiter. It was fitted with a plaque, in case anyone in deep space ever found it, so as to be a first contact for humanity. The plaque shows the way to Earth. Issue #0 is about what happens to Pioneer 10, and the attention it draws.

What’s Good: Out of the gates, I have to say the art was superb. Ross’ layouts are strong and Herbert’s inks (as well as Ross’ own), convey a lot of texture and depth. And the raw awesomeness of Andrade’s colors really stood out on the double splash page of Jupiter and all of the brightly-colored Kirby creations that leapt off the page. Where the art team was going for a strong Kirby flavor (some of the poses, the reimaginings of the characters, etc), they did a great job and the Kirby tone just soaks through the paper. At the same time, they totally sidestepped all of Kirby’s problems with odd proportions and what I’ve always considered poor draftsmanship. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not knocking the King, but I think we’ll all agree that some of his art, even after 20 years in the business, could be pretty crude (his early Marvel stuff certainly showed he was conscious of being paid by the page). Whatever your feelings on Kirby’s draftsmanship, your don’t have to have any worries here. The art team brings beautiful detail to Pioneer 10, childhood exuberance, and reimagined Kirby aliens of all kinds (too many to list), bizarre Amazonian warriors, and space commandos with what looks like a battle bicycle.