Courtesy of DC Comics
DC Comic's Starman is not your average comic book hero. Unlike many of his peers, he does not even sport a costume. In fact, he woks in a junk store.
Contributing Reviewer
Remember comic books? "I don't read comic books." "Comics are for kids." Yeah, yeah...
What you need to do is read Starman, written by James Robinson, with art by Tony Harris and Wade Von Grawbadger, published monthly by DC Comics. First off, this is not your average comic book, and Starman is not your typical superhero.
Currently, the guy calling himself Starman is Jack Knight, the skinny, goateed, twentysomething son of Ted Knight, the original Starman of the 1940s.
Jack does not wear a costume; heck, he doesn't even own a costume. When he is not stopping crime, he runs a junk store that contains a collection of original movie posters, old toys and original Frank Sinatra recordings. Jack's motivations for being Starman help set the book apart from others as well. Early on, Jack made a deal with his father that if he would be Starman, and carry the family legacy, Ted would return to his life of science, and use his gifts to benefit mankind through his discoveries.
Since taking the mantle of Starman, Jack has discovered that he has a flair for the heroic and deeply enjoys helping others. In today's world of angst-ridden "heroes," Jack is an anachronism: he does the right thing because it's the right thing to do.
The book is set in the fictional Opal City, a collection of art deco and Victorian influences; and filled with curious characters, including the Shade, a one-time supervillain who now prefers to aid young Jack in his battles.
What brings life to the book however, is Robinson's writing. His prose sings on the page. Robinson, a fan of Dickens and gritty crime novels, perfectly combines the two in Starman. Adding to the atmosphere of Starman is the art by Harris and VonGrawbadger, a throwback to classic comic art, with a style, a voice all its own.
Starman is not your normal comic book, as Jack's adventures are far from those of a typical superhero. For instance, he annually talks with his dead brother in the cemetery; he sold some bad guys a mystical Hawaiian shirt after they broke into his shop to steal it; and in a strange turn of gender roles, Jack was raped by a female villain, who is now raising their son to hate his father as an ultimate means of revenge. To call the book unconventional is an understatement.
Take this month's issue, for example (No. 29, $2.25). Hyped as the perfect jumping on point for new readers (read: if you're going to buy any issue, buy this one), it starts with a text piece, "The Shade's Journal," which explains everything up to this point.
The story then starts up with the return of Jake "Bobo" Benetti, a professional bank thief and former foe of Jack's father, who has just been released from jail. Benetti mulls over his options, and decides that since robbing banks is all he knows, he might as well give it another go. Needless to say, Bobo has a run-in with Jack, and the story takes a completely unexpected twist that will bring a smile to even the toughest reader.
If Starman piques your interest, you might want to check out Starman: Sins of the Fathers, a collection of Starman No. 0-No. 6; Starman: Night and Day, which collects issues No. 7- No. 10, and No. 12-No.16; and The Shade No. 1, the start of a four-issue miniseries which chronicles Shade's battles with the powerful Ludlow clan through the years, all written by Robinson. They are available for the asking at a comic shop or bookstore.