Rip Kirby Volume 1 [Hardcover]

Alex Raymond (Author, Artist)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2009

Presenting the first volume of Alex Raymond's modernist classic Rip Kirby from its start in 1946. Created by Alex Raymond when he was deactivated from the Marines after World War II, Rip Kirby was a fresh approach to the genre, a departure from the prevailing hard-boiled style of detective fiction. Rip Kirby was urbane and cerebral, and used scientific methods as often as he used his fists when solving crimes and mysteries. Edited and designed by Eisner Award-winner Dean Mullaney, the strips are reproduced from pristine syndicate proofs that will allow readers to see, for the first time, the full luxurious detail of Raymond's brushwork. Includes a biographical and historic essay by Brian Walker, and an introduction by Raymond biographer and authority Tom Roberts.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Having relinquished the Flash Gordon strip to fight in World War II, Raymond returned to create something completely different, a new strip featuring scientist-turned-private-detective Rip Kirby, an ex-marine, a former athlete, and a genuine intellectual, a bookish-looking urbanite who smoked a pipe and even wore glasses. This postwar paragon solved cases with the help of his valet (and former safecracker), Desmond, and his fashion-model girlfriend, Honey Dorian. The cultured and cerebral Rip may not be as well known as Flash, but his strip was technically far better work than Raymond’s gorgeously drawn but stiff and stilted sf epic. And Rip Kirby’s influence on the medium was as profound as that of its predecessor: while the elegant, heroic visual style Raymond developed for Flash was widely emulated by the 1940s generation of comic-book superhero artists, the art for Kirby—as sophisticated as its hero, stylish as Honey’s apparel, and notable for its solid compositions, well-placed areas of solid black, and bold line work—set the template for the dramatic newspaper strips of the 1950s and beyond. --Gordon Flagg

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: IDW Publishing (September 15, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1600104843
• ISBN-13: 978-1600104848
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 11.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #404,487 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars At long last: Rip Kirby!!!, February 9, 2010

By 

Diego Cordoba - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Rip Kirby Volume 1 (Hardcover)

We finally get Alex Raymond's masterpiece back in print. Rip Kirby was done by Raymond when he found that his strips were taken over by someone else when he came back from the war, so he opted to create a new one and would for the first time ink with a pen. His pen and ink style on Rip Kirby would be the norm with the realistic strips for many years to come. Astute readers will notice that Raymond would revert to a brush later (drawing in a style similar to Caniff), where he would use bold brush strokes. He would eventually come back to his pen and ink style, which would influence countless other comic strip artists. He would, unfortunately, die in a car accident a couple of years later and Rip Kirby was continued by John Prentice, a capable artist on his own right, but far from Raymond.

This new reprint by IDW seems to be the definite one taken from the "best available proofs" of the strip. Actually, if these are the best proofs IDW had on hand, I wonder where the French, Spanish and Italian versions got their proofs from as they are ten times better than the American proofs. It's a pity that no major restoration was done to the strip as this version by IDW pales by comparison to the European versions. The main problem I see with the IDW books (aside of the average quality of reprinting), is that the strips are reprinted too small and the books are too heavy. Can anyone tell me how to read these books, aside of putting them on top of a table?

All in all, I've got mixed feelings about the book, but this being the only worthwhile version available in English, will have to do.

p.s.: For the collectors out there, try to check the French version published in the 90's (alas only one volume was printed) as the art is so crisp and clean, it makes all other versions pale by comparison.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great postwar dramatic comic strip, December 9, 2009

By 

Jim Davis (St. Charles, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Rip Kirby Volume 1 (Hardcover)

Alex Raymond's Rip Kirby is a worthy addition to IDW's Library of American Comics series. This series was groundbreaking in a number of respects. It dealt with a number of mature subjects in a refreshingly realistic way. It was also drawn with a brush when most comics were (and still are) pen and ink renderings. Rip Kirby was always a daily strip so this volume has no color at all except in the introductory material.

The artwork is wonderful and well reproduced - as well reproduced as it can be at this stage without major "restoration". Fortunately, very little seems to need anything so drastic. Curiously, there is an abrupt change in style towards the end of Chapter 7 "Bleak Prospects" and the beginning of Chapter 8 "Terror on the Thames" almost as if Raymond was spelled by an assistant while on vacation.

The stories are for the most part solid. The first two chapters are written as classic "whodunits" but that formula does not work particularly well in daily strip format and the remaining stories are straightforward crime dramas.

Characterization is also strong. Kirby and Desmond are likable and interesting while the villains are just great - ruthless and deadly. The only weak point is Kirby's girl friend Honey Dorian. She seems completely bland when compared to her competition, the mesmerizing Pagan Lee.

All in all, highly recommended to comic strip enthusiasts of all ages.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Alex Raymond's RIP KIRBY vol 1 A Masterpiece, December 1, 2009

By 

Mustafa Jackson "Twilight Zone Connoisseur" (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Rip Kirby Volume 1 (Hardcover)

Alex Raymond's RIP KIRBY: The First Modern Detective - Complete Comic Strips 1946-1948 is the first volume in what will prove to be an exceptional collection. This first edition in this collection is magnificent. The book is formatted well and has a nice simple design structure. I highly recommend this book to anyone and everyone who loves great illustration and a great story.

Alex Raymond was one of the finest practitioners of the lost art of newspaper serial storytelling. His illustrations of handsome men, beautiful women and amazing settings are one of the reasons the period between 1935 and 1960 are considered by some as the Golden Age of newspaper serials.

I cannot express how pleased I am that IDG Publications has taken the time and effort to produce his amazing illustrator's work. This book along with Tom Roberts' ALEX RAYMOND: His Life and Art (ISBN: 9781886937789) are a must have for everyone who enjoys experiencing great art from a time when men like Mr. Raymond elevated the art of newspaper serials to high-art.

Get your copy today.