Unless you’re the Rocketeer, flying is a piece of cake. Characters seem to do it with ease and even the Rocketeer has no problems after his first test run. The problem is, maybe some people want a rollercoaster ride rather than a cake walk when they fly. New series Wild Blue Yonder does just that, only it’s more of a rocketship than a rollercoaster. Issue #2 comes out today…is it good?
Wild Blue Yonder #2 (IDW)
Last month we were introduced to this new series without much pussyfooting around to speak of. We’re introduced to a girl named Cola, a pilot whose sole purpose is to protect a flying freighter of a ship. Cola’s mother runs a very special airship that doesn’t need gasoline to fly but only sunlight. Needless to say it’s highly coveted by all, especially one very evil man who’s willing to do whatever it takes to get it. To gain an advantage there are men that strap rocket packs to their backs and act like bullets to stave off the bad guys. Unfortunately those bad guys have had their number more often than not lately, so Cola recruits a newbie to join their fold.
Mommy issues.
Writer Mike Raicht certainly has his head on straight when it comes to the universe he’s built. So far everything is real and grounded without any overreaching exposition or convoluted characters. The world reads like a formulated history of sorts and you won’t once question its reality. This is partly because the characters seem so realistic. Everyone speaks naturally and actions are taken that are understandable.
Is that Blade?
The villain in this series hasn’t had much characterization however, and whenever he’s on the page he seems to be your typical brooding evil boss man and nothing more. There does seem to be an infrastructure of people around him that don’t see him as pure evil, but so far he hasn’t had much in the way of commanding deaths and doing bad things. It doesn’t help his look is straight from a cliched Nazi war film, even if he’s black, and you can’t see much of a soul inside him yet.
Wake up!
Artist Zach Howard continues to impress with a strong showing of texture and detailed work. His work with expressions is particularly strong and while there are times the inking is so overhanded that it’s hard to decipher action—particularly when the bad guys are at the mines—everything in the air is breathless and clear. It’s possible this was on purpose, but it muddies the bad guy scenes even further.
Proof dirty can be pretty.
7.0
- Enough grit to break a tooth!
- Believable universe
- Flat bad guy
- Twist ending wasn’t so surprising
The issue ends with a very unsurprising, for me anyway, “twist” ending. This, combined with a slowly growing frustration of not knowing the bigger picture, took me out of the comic. I love Cola and the heroes in this comic, plus the jetpack wearing “bullets”, but I need more as far as what this world is about outside of the very small melodrama we’ve seen so far. Obviously time will tell if this series opens up, but based on how good it looks and how great the ideas are within it so far, I’m rather optimistic this could end up being a must buy series.
Is It Good?
Decent. The action sequences are good but so far I need more to really love what is going on.
Join the AIPT Patreon
Want to take our relationship to the next level? Become a patron today to gain access to exclusive perks, such as:
- ❌ Remove all ads on the website
- 💬 Join our Discord community, where we chat about the latest news and releases from everything we cover on AIPT
- 📗 Access to our monthly book club
- 📦 Get a physical trade paperback shipped to you every month
- 💥 And more!
