Customer Reviews

Silver Star: Graphite Edition

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

 

 

First the good stuff:

I loved the format of the book. The introduction is informative and well-written. Numerous sketches are included. The original screenplay proposal comes along with all this, and everything is done on a high-quality paper. In a nutshell, the reader gets to know as much as he wants about the Silver Star.
Most importantly, there is the art. Jack's pencils are tight and easy to follow. There are quite a few pages of fully inked artwork inserted in this graphic novel, so a reader gets a great comparison and a feel for Kirby's creative process. The lettering is all printed in a polished and professional way. The end result of this is a peek at the early stages of a Kirby work without the reading experience being reduced at all.
Lastly (for the good), is that this is a JACK KIRBY graphic novel. I would agree that this came after Jack's prime. There are a couple sequences where story inexplicably jumps forward. However, EVERY page still contains brilliance. The art is bursting with energy. Shadows, backgrounds, gestures, expressions... it is all there and it is fantastic.
The story is a fine example of Kirby's creativity. Jack's best stories contain timeless and important themes and ideas. Both the Eternals and New Gods dealt with technology and mythological themes. Jimmy Olsen, believe it or not, had genetics and cloning in its best storylines. Reading these stories today, they still seem relevant and even cutting edge to me. The Silver Star also contains these big concepts. Silver Star also has Darius Drumm... Jack's best bad guy since the incomparable Darkseid!

Now for the bad:

Kirby was perhaps the greatest comic artist ever. I also touched upon his gift for big ideas and grand concepts. However, having a super-powered imagination and being an mega-talented artist does not mean a man is automatically a great writer. In this work, I have to admit that my enjoyment of the art and the cool concepts (in Silver Star, Jack again dives into genetics and technology) was dampened by huge plot holes, corny dialogue, a love interest sub-plot that did not work at all, and a puzzling ending. I understand it is a comic book that isn't shooting for realism, and I can suspend my disbelief. Despite that, I still felt the storyline just did not come together in a satisfactory way.

To sum up, I think anyone really into Jack Kirby, superhero comics, or great comic art will love this book. For the rest of us, it is a pretty good ride, but a far cry for The Eternals of The Fourth World stories.

SILVER STAR: GRAPHITE EDITION is a trade paperback collection of legendary writer/artist Jack Kirby's second creation for Pacific Comics. A shelved movie concept from the mid-1970s, Kirby brought Silver Star to comics in 1982 as a companion book for Captain Victory. The story tells of the conflict between those individuals known as "Homo geneticus": engineered beings with the power to reshape matter at the atomic level, as well as other more frightening abilities. Morgan Miller, known as Silver Star, seeks out the others of his kind to prepare them for the coming of the evil Darius Drumm, who would turn the Earth into a wasteland.

This is by no means the best story Kirby wrote in his career; however, there's no disputing that it is big. Big action, big characters... just BIG! It's a very interesting concept that fits well with his other epic works such as The New Gods and the Eternals, but focusing on mortals rather than immortals. The ideas Kirby brings forth in this story are both bizarre and wonderful; unfortunately, the dialogue is absolutely awful, to the point of being embarrassing - that is, when it makes sense at all. It was nice of Pacific Comics to give Kirby free reign on this story, but a co-writer or strong editor really would have helped to make it more readable. Luckily, the original screenplay written by Kirby is included in order to clarify some points. While the storyline of the screenplay is not the same as the comic, it does help somewhat.

As for the art, do you even need to ask? While Kirby may not have been the best at dialogue, his art is never in question. Almost all of SILVER STAR: GRAPHITE EDITION is reproduced from copies of Kirby's un-inked pencils. The lines are intentionally rough, but you can really see The King's creative process at work. The texture of each line and shadow is clearly visible, and the power and dynamism is by no means lessened. A few inked pages are included when the pencils were not available, as well as inked versions of each cover. In addition, the story has been re-lettered for clarity.

Obviously, the purpose of this reprint is not to dazzle readers with the story, but to show us the raw creative power of King Kirby. So, while I wouldn't get your hopes up in terms of the story, the un-inked art alone should be enough to amaze Kirby fans for hours (general comics readers may not be so impressed). I'm hoping that TwoMorrows Publishing will do this with other Kirby works. Be sure to keep your eyes open for a color hardcover collection of Silver Star, available in summer 2007 from Image Comics!

Silver Star: Graphite Edition (The Complete Visual Novel In Pencil Form) by Jack "King" Kirby is the compilation works of the legendary comic book illustrator whose "Silver Star" concept in the mid 1970's was originally intended as a film screenplay but was too much ahead of its time for the Hollywood movie makers of that decade. Creatively presenting this historical comics landmark in the form of a graphic novel just as Kirby drew it in pencil and with no color inking, Silver Star presents six of Jack Kirby's original mini-series books of action-packed, enthralling superhero stories brought to life with distinctive Kirby art. A seminal event in comic book annals, Silver Star is very strongly recommended for all fans and collectors of Jack "King" Kirby's comic book and graphic novel art and authorship as a unique addition to his legendary body of work.

The book was sent in a perfect state and very efficiently.