Astro City

• Title: Astro City #35
• Comic Vine: link
• Writer: Kurt Busiek
• Artist: Ron Randall

Presented from the perspective of the teenage grandson of the original Jack-in-the-Box, Astro City #35 offers us a brief history of both the boy’s grandfather and father (who would pick up the mantle years later after the original was killed in a final tussle with the Underlord and his Weirdies).

Consumed by his family’s crime-fighting history, one no member of the family wants him to become involved in, and a desire to make his own mark in the world, Jerome Johnson‘s wistful tale that reminds you of the best aspects of old school comics while offering a modern take on everything you want a comic about super-heroes to be.

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• Title: Astro City #33
• Comic Vine: link
• Writer: Kurt Busiek
• Artist: Brent Anderson

“Things Past” continues as we spend more time with the reunited former super-villains Steeljack and Cutlass. The villain turned private eye passes some time sharing a few stories of contemporaries of theirs unable to give up the life and the cost each eventually had to pay. Steeljack also takes his old friend to visit the Fix-It Man, and that’s when things go all to hell.

As to the mystery of what is happening with Cutlass, that only deepens with the second issue of the arc which leads to the death of another old friend of Steeljack’s and to a schmaltzy villain-themed restaurant franchise whose owner must hold some answers about what is going on.

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• Title: Astro City #32
• Comic Vine: link
• Writer: Kurt Busiek
• Artist: Jesus Merino

Astro City #32 begins a new arc centered around a former villain attempting to turn his life around. After putting his nefarious career behind him years ago, Steeljack has managed to carve out a small niche for himself working salvage while moonlighting as a cemetery manager, a private detective, and bounty hunter chasing down bail jumpers. His life isn’t easy, but it’s peaceful enough… until a woman from his past shows up in his office asking for a favor.

It’s an interesting choice to open the story at the end. Even if we don’t know the how exactly, we’re told at the beginning that none of this will end particularly well for our unlucky protagonist (despite his good intentions). Given the introduction of Cutlass and her favor we can also make an educated guess as to the who that will eventually lead Steeljack to waking up in a pile of rumble being questioned by the police.

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• Title: Astro City #31
• Comic Vine: link
• Writer: Kurt Busiek
• Artist: Jesus Merino

With the help of guest-artist Jesus Merino, with Astro City #31 writer Kurt Busiek offers up a story from the perspective of a monster who, it turns out, isn’t all that monstrous. Told from the perspective of the Living Nightmare, a nightmarish creature that feeds on the fear of others, who escapes captivity not to wreak havoc but to do some serious soul searching, the story is one of introspection about what the creature is and who it wants to become.

Frankenstein Monster stories are hardly new, but in this day and age taking the time to explore the empathy of the creature rather than let it wreak wanton destruction down on innocents is something unexpected, anywhere but Astro City that is.

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