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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
In the first of a proposed series of Arrowsmith books, Astro City writer Busiek builds a clever extended metaphor to play with the tropes of smalltown-boy-learns-that-war-is-hell stories. It's 1915, and Fletcher Arrowsmith is a Connecticut farm boy who heads to Europe to learn to fly and fight the Prussians. It's all pretty normal—except that in this world, magic has taken the place of technology, Connecticut is part of the United States of Columbia, Fletcher's actually learning to fly on his own (with the aid of a miniature dragon), the aerial battles are fought with swords (when they don't involve "incendiary bolts" or monsters), Fletcher's hometown buddy is a Lothingarian troll with a thick foreign accent, the deadly gas that the Prussians and Tyrolians use turns people into flesh-eating demons and Fletcher must search his soul after he discovers he has helped destroy Holbrück by dropping fire elementals on it. Arrowsmith's mixture of WWI aesthetics and sword-and-sorcery elements must've been tricky to pull off visually, but Pacheco holds his own, drawing with a slick-lined grace and understating the witty variations he's devised for everything from the soldiers' outfits to European architecture. Everything proceeds precisely according to the traditions of the genre, but the setup's ingenious enough to make the clichés tolerable.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is what a graphic novel should be!,
By
This review is from: So Smart in Their Fine Uniforms (Arrowsmith, Book 1) (Paperback)
It's 1915 and World War I is raging in Europe while America sits it out, . . . only this is a world where weapons are thaumaturgical, the volunteer Overseas Aero Corps flies without planes, the Bosch call up trolls and demons, and the Northern Gods are becoming disgusted with the whole thing. Fletcher Arrowsmith, son of a small-town blacksmith with isolationist tendencies, seeks not just glory but the chance to *do* something, to take part in the battle against evil. He and a friend leave home, enlist, enter training, and are shipped off to the front -- where they learn what war is really like, and that even the good guys are capable of bad deeds. This graphic novel is a first-rate combination of thoughtful, even profound storytelling, detailed setting (back story courtesy of Lawrence Watt-Evans), and artwork that absolutely glows. There's a hint at the end that Fletch's adventures aren't finished -- they're about to ship out to Verdun -- and I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Busiek does it again!,
By
This review is from: So Smart in Their Fine Uniforms (Arrowsmith, Book 1) (Paperback)
I get into such a bad habit with buying, and not buying, Kurt Busiek's comics. Since I do everything by mailorder, I'll forget if THIS month the new Astro City is available or did I miss a month already? So when Arrowsmith was announced, I was skeptical. I knew it would be good, Kurt doesn't disappoint, not even with Spider-Man/X-Factor! I was more worried that I'd forget to order it, miss an issue or two (like I did with Astro City: Local Heroes...the shame...), so I took a calculated risk.
I waited for the trade! In a way, I'm glad I did. I didn't have to wait month in, and month out waiting for the next installment. I could read it a few pages here, a few pages there whenever I felt like it, or I could gorge and read the whole thing in one sitting. The price is actually a better deal for TPB than monthly, so that's always a plus. The tricky part is, enough people have to buy the monthly, to make the TPB a viable option. Thanks everyone who bought it monthly, I, and I'm sure Kurt too, appreciated your efforts. The nice thing about Kurt's writing is he writes great story arcs. He's not writing for the TPB, so there is no filler and fluff to make a 4 issue storyline into a 6 issue one. If he does, he's good at pulling the wool over my eyes. :) I suppose I should give a brief synopsis of the book. Imagine a world where magic exists. Where the world of reality and fairytale co-exist. That's right, there are wizards in this world, and things that bump horribly in the night. Now, imagine it's 1915, World War I is raging, and warfare is anything but conventional. Now, get ready to see it through the eyes of young Fletcher Arrowsmith, as he enlists in the Overseas Airborne Corps (typing off 2 week old memory, so I may butcher the division...sorry!) to help save the world from those that do bad things. Ah, but with Kurt Busiek writing it, things can't be that cut and dry, can it? Re-teaming with Carlos Pacheco (Avengers Forever) they redesign the world in a way you've never seen before. Highly recommended for any comic fan's library.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Spectacular!,
By
This review is from: So Smart in Their Fine Uniforms (Arrowsmith, Book 1) (Paperback)
I think that perhaps the folks who are complaining about the "clichés" or "stereotypes" found in Kurt Busiek and Carlos Pacheco wonderful series Arrowsmith might be missing the point. Busiek has made a name for himself by revisiting classic stories and ideas and giving them a fresh look. Keep in mind that he helped start a comics imprint called "Homage Comics."
With Arrowsmith, Busiek takes the classic "fresh-faced boy goes off to war to fight the good fight and make a difference, while along the way learning about life, love, death, and the true nature of war" story and gives it a thorough shaking. First, the world that Fletcher Arrowsmith inhabits is quite similar to ours, but history is somewhat different. A map showing the United States of Columbia, Gallia, and Prussia is one indication that things are not quite what we're used to. Additionally, this is a world where magic and the mundane exist side by side. The scene where a New York City street bustles with activity as humans, trolls, dwarves, and other fantastic creatures go about their daily business illustrates this particular twist quite well. Finally, while this is very much a World War I story, the trappings have very much been altered. Gruesome battles still claim young lives by the thousands, but instead of traditional chemical weapons, the armies employ magical weapons that vampirize soldiers or incinerate entire towns. And the men of the Overseas Aero Corps are hotshot aerial fighters, but instead of flying planes, they're flying through the air with the aid of magical dragons. When you add these twists to a classic story, and factor in Busiek's talent for showing the humanity of even the most "stereotypical" of characters, you have something really special. It doesn't hurt that Carlos Pacheco's artwork is nothing short of breathtaking. His vivid style works just as well for a World War I epic fantasy as it does a sprawling superhero saga, and establishes the look and feel of the period as effectively as any artist I've seen since Paul Smith's work on the Golden Age. All told, I was extremely pleased with Arrowsmith. I had high hopes given the creators involved, and was not disappointed. Arrowsmith should appeal to fans of Busiek's other work, particularly the acclaimed Astro City, and is a series that fans of quality comic books should take a chance on.
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