Customer Reviews

American Flagg! Vol. 1 (v. 1)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Image puts Marvel and DC to shame with this definitive edition of one of the most distinctive and memorable comics of the 80s, by one of the most creative (and underappreciated) writer/artists in the field.

This is a professional-quality hardbound edition that will remain definitive for years to come. This volume features a real (gasp!) SEWN BINDING, high-quality, matte-finish paper, a gorgeous job of restoration, and even a sewn-in ribbon bookmark. All at the same price-point as DC's glued-binding, printed-on-newsprint Fourth World Omnibuses (and 1/2 - 2/3 the price of Marvel's Omnibus series, which also "feature" glued bindings).

This is how you do it, people.

After several failed attempts to bring out this collection it has finally arrived. It is hard bounded and with quality paper and looks great. This collection covers the "Hard Times", "Southern Comfort", "State of the Union", and "Solidarity for Now" story lines which build on one another. In addition it included two wrap-up stories and a additional story from HC. The stories in this collection are great and although written in the 80's, still feels relevant. This is what Chaykin fans have been waiting for and its really here. Bring on Vol 2.

In the early 80s Howard Chaykin launched one of the most innovative and influential comics of the decade. His dynamic storytelling style uses the media as a Greek Chorus to fill us in on the background of the world and keep us up to date on the story. Reading it you quickly see how it influenced the structure of Watchmen, Dark Knight Returns and other classics of the late 80s and beyond.

His story forecast the collapse of the Soviet Union and a hyper-media, hyper-violent America abandoned by its masters. The main character is an ex-TV star replaced by a CGI version of himself. Some of his vocabulary like Go-Gangs and Policlubs made its way into other science fiction like Shadowrun.

25 years later its still timely and still a darn good read.

I picked up this collection of the original American Flagg! comic books after reading a glowing review by none other than Michael "Literary Fiction" Chabon. My esteem for Mr. Chabon is so great that I purchased the book sight unseen; it wasn't until it arrived at my office that I realized I'd unwittingly delved into the garish, sordid, and often ridiculous world of the (*gasp!*) graphic novel. (Actually, that's not true. I knew I was ordering a comic book. My point is that if Monsieur Chabon were to write a glowing review of the copy on the back of a shampoo bottle, I'd buy that, too. In my defense, Chabon is establishing himself as one of the literary giants of this generation; even the oft-misunderstood science fiction community gave him a tip o' the old space helmet when they awarded him BOTH the Hugo and Nebula awards for The Yiddish Policemen's Union.)

Andy, a friend, observed that comic books have come a long way from their pulpy, pop-culture roots. This edition is as physically different from its newsprint predecessors as can be: it's hardbound, hundreds of pages long, and comes complete with a sewn-in bookmark. The only drawback is that Silly Putty no longer copies the pictures.

The content, though, is first-rate. Admittedly, I had a little trouble following the nuances of the story at first. However, I think this is due to the complexity of Chaykin's impressively detailed creation, rather than some sort of narrative failure on his part. What's more, my experience with graphic novels is decidedly limited, so it wasn't until the second or third issue that I began to understand how to follow a story by both reading AND looking at the pictures.

Chaykin's creation is a masterpiece of the anarchic American dystopia. In retrospect, American Flagg! could be characterized as "cyberpunk," though this genre didn't really exist when Chaykin penned his first panels. The story chronicles the adventures of Reuben Flagg, a one-time TV star who's been replaced by a computer-generated version of himself. Flagg is also (somewhat inexplicably) a member of the Plexus Rangers, an elite police force responsible for the security of the massive arcologies ("Plexmalls") that serve as the bastions of civilization on Earth. Not surprisingly, Chaykin's Earth of 2046 is anything but peaceful.

For all of the sex, drugs, and high-tech violence in American Flagg!, it is still a comic book. Wacky sound effects, high-heeled boots, and a talking cat-cum-sidekick are all present. The work also possesses a charmingly irreverent innocence that's revealed most obviously in the facial expressions of its characters - though it be decidedly R-rated, American Flagg! manages not to take itself too seriously.

Ultimately, Flagg!'s appeal is based on the strength of its story. Chaykin's business card, rather than "Comic Book Artist," should say "Storyteller." Whatever the medium, a good yarn is a good yarn, and American Flagg! is one of the best.

In the intro, Chabon calls to attention what so many of us felt for so long; That this little-known book is the (not so)-secret third part to the holy trinity of the birth of the Modern Age of comics. Sure, everyone's heard of Watchmen and if there's a comic reader who missed Miller's Dark Knight out there, I haven't met them.

What about Flagg though? American Flagg hasn't had a decent collection printed in decades, while we've seen the other two cape-clad books go through collection after collection. In 1983 Chaykin was doing things that some STILL fear today. His paneling in itself has imprinted itself on the comic world like few others can claim. This book had a hand in bringing some of our favorite modern characters to the frontlines, inspiring them to be relevant, real and for God's Sake, to have a sense of humor about themselves.

I've attempted to introduce this book to a lot of people; but until now, they were forced to either buy the old collected paperbacks from the 80's (if they could even find them) or worse still, track down the countless single issues. This new collection marks an age where AF! can truly be reintroduced to a new generation of readers in a collected, easy to find format.

As other reviews said above, it's a top notch production, with great binding, thick matte pages, intros, outros & even a new Chaykin Flagg! story in the back! Hopefully this classic saga will be more than the Sonic Youth of comic books after this; hopefully Wizard and the rest of the comic mags are smart enough to make the big deal out of this release that it deserves.

At Amazon's sale prices, this huge 400+ pg. hardback is a steal. If you dig smart, political pop art that's well written/drawn and action packed, you'll love Flagg. You won't regret this purchase, I promise you. Enjoy!

When this series originally appeared in the Eighties, it was strikingly clear that Chaykin was a major comics talent and that FLAGG! was far beyond the ordinary in its originality and tasteful raunch. The stories flow, so unlike so much "graphic novel" prattle and peep being published today. The characterization is truly remarkable with all-too-human characters who enchant even as they repulse. In many ways, with its sleazy reality vids, ugly and brutal, but entertaining hyperviolence, and sleazy and inept politicos, the series proves a bit too prophetic to our own day. All of it together produces great comics reading with a sheer lovely bent to the literary that endures and endears. The epitome of the medium.

So, Amazon never sent me this book. Ever. Sure, I did get a tracking number all manner of information indicating that that product would be in my hands in a handful of days. But the product never arrived. Now, yes I can't complain because I did get a full refund on the product. Nothing gained, nothing lost.

But I find it noteworthy that when I first purchased the product, as a pre-order many moons ago I only paid $39.99 on the product. Not soon before the product was released, but before it was 'sold out,' they began charging $69.99 for the thing. So honestly, something tells me that it really wasn't 'lost.' Somebody screwed up, charged me and others too little on the book and never alleviated the error. And rather than being forthright about it? They just came up with a wonderful fabrication. This is not the first time Amazon has "lost" products that were then mysteriously raised in price; they've done it a great many times especially with Graphic Novels and Hard Cover Edition Graphic Novels.

The book itself? I did get it eventually from a different merchant, a different site and it is great. I'd actually owned a good number of the original American Flagg! floppy comics from First Comics back in the 80's and it was great then. The presentation and the restoration on the art and the colors is great. Though I wish they'd included a bit more material; though I anxiously await the next volume in this collection.

Image puts Marvel and DC to shame with this definitive edition of one of the most distinctive and memorable comics of the 80s, by one of the most creative (and underappreciated) writer/artists in the field. This an interesting take on shoping malls

Volume One of the American Flagg collection was tremendous. This one isn't. It's OK, but gets redundant when read cover-to-cover. The on-going assault of the senses with visuals, and words, and battles, and explosions, and half-clad women gets less and less interesting as the story goes on. It appears to me that Chaykin started running out of story in this volume, and needed to fill the pages.

When I first read the series I read one issue a month, as they came out, and never noticed the redundancy. Now that I have all the issues collected in one book they scream out at me.

If you buy this book, don't rush through it. Read one chapter a month.

Howard Chaykin's "American Flagg" series was one of the seminal graphic novel (OK, comic book) creations of the 1980s. It kicked down old barriers in art, layout, lettering, storylines, subject matter, etc. Even though it was the tale of the adventures of a Martian Jew with a talking cat, "Flagg" was always (sometimes terrifyingly) realistic.
A rare true patriot (and a liberal one, to boot), Flagg struggles mightily with a post-collapse Chicago where almost everyone has descended into a morass of lust, ignorance, violence and greed. With his cadre of friends and allies, he fights the good fight and has a lot of sex in his spare time.
The "Flagg" series -- the first dozen or so issues reprinted here -- also deserves special attention for the way Chaykin pointed the way toward the seedy future (our present) and its obsession with flesh, blood, "reality" shows and cynical political extremism.
This collection includes a new Flagg story (at the end) and is a handsome volume, except the binding feels a little stiff, as it it's about to crack with too much handling.
That's too bad, because the Flagg stories are worth (and often, because of their complexity, demand) rereading.
A great pick for anyone wanting to own part of the great comic series of all time.