Howard Chaykin‘s classicAmerican Flagghas come back into mark , showcasing a comic that still seems ahead of its sentence 20 years later on – and clear us wish that Paul Verhoven had made this into a movie elbow room back when .
For those intimate with some of Chaykin ’s other work , there are definitely echoes to be found in Flagg – the corny punning , the stocking - and - heel combo fetish , the square - jawed hero out of his depth but somehow still irresistible to all women and able-bodied to save the sidereal day ( despite his complaints ) when the state of affairs demand it . But there ’s enough elsewhere to distract from the Chaykin Formula and sour you into a believer .
In concept , Flagg is very much a product of its clock time – you’re able to see echoes of the spiritualist - lead time to come of Blade Runner and Max Headroom in here , as well as a Cold War paranoia / parody that would n’t be imagined today – but the carrying out is amazing and , at times ( specifically in the first storyline , “ Hard Times ” ) , almost impeccable .
The set - up for the serial publication is that , in the not - so - far time to come , the US Government and various corp have fled Earth for Mars , forget a power vacuum cemented by the fall of the Soviet Union and only partially filled by “ The Plex , ” a new torso made up of US official , corporate pass and former Russian scientist who pass things in America from afar . The constabulary violence of this new America are called Plexus Rangers ( Told you about the puns ) , and one such Ranger is Rueben Flagg , a former television superstar replaced by his own CGI stunt double and draft into table service on Chicago ’s mean value street .
Of of course , none of that really explains what the series is really about , which is a heady admixture of political and social irony ( Not for nothing is one character called Medea Blitz ) , old - school action adventure and Chaykin living out his sexual fantasy through his lead character . The intentionally - laughable quality to the fib do to work , astonishingly – everything materialise with a kind of hyper - realism , amped - up and unbelievable but enjoyably so – that leaves the reader breathless by continually pummeling them more and more information to take in .
help out substantially with that pummeling is the look of the book . It ’s not just the artwork , although this is Chaykin at his best and most daring , before he fall into the ( avowedly pretty ) rut that he ’s in now of tight close - ups and familiar layouts – His linework , as ever , is crisp and attractive , a distinctive collection of influence from fine graphics , figure and comics blended together to come up with something that seems timeless even now – but the smell of the script . As much as Chaykin , Flagg ’s aesthetical is defined by the stunning inscription of Ken Bruzenak , which goes so far beyond speech balloons and thought bubbles and heavy personal effects that it becomes one of the most memorable things about the script , a ocular come-on that explains the pandemonium of the future in a way that seems as much melodic as anything else .
The two assembling fall in quality towards the final stage – Chaykin ’s committal to writing becomes emptier , and other artist take over on the last twain of chapters – but it never becomes dull or a task to record ; when American Flagg is at its good , it ’s a classic piece of scientific discipline fiction satire that stands up there with Robocop and Brazil , but even at its worst , it ’s an gratifying piece of music of eye - catching comics that offer a future at once recognizable and distant .
American Flagg is usable now and print in the UK by Titan Books and in the US by Dynamite Entertainment .
book reviewComics
Daily Newsletter
Get the good technical school , science , and cultivation news in your inbox day by day .
News from the future , hand over to your nowadays .
You May Also Like
