Astro City Vol. 4: The Tarnished Angel [Paperback]

Kurt Busiek (Author), Brent Eric Anderson (Illustrator), Will Blyberg (Illustrator), Alex Sinclair (Illustrator), Alex Ross (Illustrator), Frank Miller (Introduction)

Book Description

Series: Kurt Busiek's Astro City | Publication Date: May 1, 2001

Kurt Busiek's Astro City: Tarnished Angel tells a story that would be just as compelling even if its hapless hero weren't made of metal. It's a familiar story: old supervillain Carl Donewicz--or Steeljack--gets out of prison old and broken, and just wants to spend his last years out of sight. Events, as they will, conspire against him, and his journey through prejudice, mistrust, andbackstabbing ethics is deeply moving. Brent Eric Anderson's penciling is precise and perfectly balanced between '70s superheroes and '40s pulp; Will Blyberg's inks are unparalleled. Readers who are tired of the hero-recycling that's been standard operating procedure at the major comics companies should reward themselves with a visit to Astro City. --Rob Lightner

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Kurt Busiek's Astro City: Tarnished Angel tells a story that would be just as compelling even if its hapless hero weren't made of metal. It's a familiar story: old supervillain Carl Donewicz--or Steeljack--gets out of prison old and broken, and just wants to spend his last years out of sight. Events, as they will, conspire against him, and his journey through prejudice, mistrust, and backstabbing ethics is deeply moving. Brent Eric Anderson's penciling is precise and perfectly balanced between '70s superheroes and '40s pulp; Will Blyberg's inks are unparalleled. Readers who are tired of the hero-recycling that's been standard operating procedure at the major comics companies should reward themselves with a visit to Astro City. --Rob Lightner

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Homage Comics (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 156389663X
• ISBN-13: 978-1563896637
• Product Dimensions: 6.6 x 0.4 x 10.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #443,625 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid but not Spectacular, October 1, 2000

By 

Keith Campbell - See all my reviews

This review is from: Astro City: The Tarnished Angel (Hardcover)

The fourth, and longest, of the compilations of Kurt Busiek's Astro City book has the most initial promise but seems to lose itself in the execution. Followers of the comic will know that the 7 issues of the "Tarnished Angel" arc were spread out over a very long time due to Busiek's illness. The product itself seems a little less focused than the previous 6 issue arc "Confessions." The central idea of the story is ingenious. A recently released supervillian returns to his tough neighborhood, populated by a variety of minor supervillians and black masks who work piecemeal for whomever they can. Someone is methodically killing off many of the black masks, and our protagonist, unable to find any other work (he has very conspicious steel skin) is hired to find the killer. As typical in Busiek's Astro City, no single event is unconnected with the City and world that surrounds it, and thus we are soon drawn into a story that reaches back into the history of Astro City's heroes. The weaknesses of the work become apparent as the story progresses. For instance, though we discover the identity of the killer (it's never really much of mystery) we are never given an adequate explanation of why the super powered hoods of Kiefer Square are killed off. This detail gets swept under the table as the stakes rise. While "Tarnished Angel" works very well at its primary intent, a character study of a troubled ex-villian trying to make things right, the lack of focus on certain plot events eventually becomes annoying. Too much of the action just happens and there are few if any suprises (the death of the Mock Turtle is one, but it is seemingly random and poorly explained.) Alex Ross's covers are, as usual, stunning, and Anderson's art, excellent without being distracting. Perhaps it is a compliment to Busiek's writing to say that "Tarnished Angel" is a great idea, which suffered from merely above average execution. A final note, the introduction to this book is written by Frank Miller, which would seem to be a bonus to fans. However, most of his remarks on the nature of comic book superheroes have already been made (and made with more relevance to Astro City) in the previous compilation's introductions. "Tarnished Angel" and the gritty Kiefer Square are a must for frequent tourists of Astro City, but first time visitors might enjoy themselves more taking the sights of Grandietti Cathedral in "Confessions" or seeing the sights atop Mt. Kirby in "Family Album."

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Steeljack's story is another "Astro City" triumph, January 6, 2004

By 

Michael J. Mazza - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Astro City Vol. 4: The Tarnished Angel (Paperback)

"Kurt Busiek's Astro City: The Tarnished Angel" is another fine graphic novel in the outstanding "Astro City" series. This seven-chapter story is about Steeljack, a metal-encased supervillain. Released from prison at the book's start, he is hired by a criminal kingpin to find out who is murdering other supervillains.

This is a powerful, rich, complex story. Steeljack's tale is intertwined with that of a number of other fantastic characters: whip-wielding Latino superhero El Hombre, high-tech British supervillain the Mock Turtle, and more. Many characters from the other Astro City volumes (Samaritan, Winged Victory, etc.) also make appearances.

Sort of a world-weary loser, Steeljack is a compelling, memorable protagonist. "Tarnished Angel" is full of great visuals, heroic battles, and moving human drama. The book as a whole is a fascinating look at the Astro City milieu from its dark side.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ok, Ok, I'm Getting To It!, May 7, 2003

By 

N. Chodoba "arrbogast" (Torrington, CT USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Astro City Vol. 4: The Tarnished Angel (Paperback)

Imagine you are a villain in a world of supermen (and women).

Imagine you have been in and out of prison for as long as you can remember and now all you want to do is lay low...

Then Imagine you see old friends killed off one by one in your old neighborhood, the only neighborhood you ever knew.

What comes next?

This is a very intense, downbeat tale of a super powered bad guy who has seen the error of his ways, but still feels a kinship to his old comrades in the bad guy business..

Extremely well written, and, in my humble opinion, well drawn as well. Read it and judge for yourself, this is an engaging piece of work!