Reviewer: Kevin S. Mahoney
Story Title: Thicker Than Water
Written by: Kurt Busiek
Art by: Brent Anderson
Color Art: Alex Sinclair
Lettered by: John Roshell of Comicraft
Editor: Ben Abernathy
Publisher: Wildstorm Signature
This is the end of the first movement of the Astro City epic, a tale of two brothers, one cop one crook, and what becomes of them during a darker period in the City’s history. While they have slowly been driven apart by events in their own respective lives, a lot has been going on inside the borders of AC. A certain future Furst reptile has made a few forays into heroism, which got the government into a bit of a tizzy. The citizens have experienced massive disillusionment, ironically at the hands of an extra-dimensional hallucination made real. A set of formerly human/currently alien ambassadors have escaped government containment, and the general public cannot reach any sort of consensus on how to handle it. If there wasn’t enough out of control, Nixon and his merry men have made people doubt the foundations of their very government. There practically isn’t another conceivable way to ratchet up the uncertainty any further, unless you include the upcoming execution of convicted traitor and former national hero Alan Jerome Craig, AKA the Silver Agent!
Some readers of this series and these reviews might skip down at this point, in an effort to learn if Craig lives or dies, or what exactly was behind the construction of his monument. Skim all you want folks, I’m leaving that out. I will mention that those questions are answered at the close of this issue in Charles’ internal monologue. So buy the book if you want the skinny, Busiek probably still has some hefty medical bills to pay after his long bout with heavy metal poisoning.
The real focal point of this issue is the convergence of Charles, Royal, and the Blue Knight during a massive if rather short-lived nonhuman attack. One sibling puts everything on the line for the other. Long buried resentment of the capes escapes a certain character and is used to brilliant effect. Some of the series’ most subtle and genuine human drama results from the fallout from this confrontation. It’s not a rosy resumption of a family ethic. It’s not a kiss off. It’s a believably awkward moment that could lead anywhere, certainly enough to hook literate fans of good characterization on the first segment of AC DA Book Two.
The art succeeds in spite of the many handicaps the plot places on it. It’s a period piece, set in 1973. There are accurate clothes, hairstyles, and whatnot. The city’s timeline seems preserved, as does its cavalcade of heroes (including the first Starwoman and the long-dead Leopardman unless mine eye deceives me). There are several ridiculously fantastic things that need to be drawn alongside dozens of more established characters, all recognizable on a single page. It’s packed but miraculously not crowded. The fonts succeed where there is an effect to be made and serve the narrative and the characters the rest of the time. The palette used adds to the art without ever jarring it. The muted colors found in the smoky bars contrast with the few brightly lit outdoor scenes to good effect. Given all that occurs on and off panel this issue, the lack of flaws in the art seems impossible. But if Astro City has taught its readers anything, it’s the frequency with which the impossible occurs there.
