Two of the things that I love most about comics is just the unfiltered well of creativity and the eclectic tastes of both the creators and the readers. Every week there is so much creativity on display on our new release racks it boggles my brain. One imprint that continues to impress me with both its creativity and the variety of genres they publish is that of Ghost Machine. I know I sang the praises of the imprint a few weeks ago, but guess what… I’m going to do it again!
This week, Ghost Machine is proud to present their latest new series and the first in their new shared Family Odyssey universe: Rocketfellers #1. This new time-traveling family comes from the creative heavyweights of Peter Tomasi (Batman and Robin, Supersons) and Francis Manapul (Flash) and both of them have brought their whimsical tastes to the title.
The best pitch I can give this book is to think of it as a Disney/Pixar version of the Fantastic Four. The Rocketfellers are an average 25th century family who just so happen to discover a terrible secret about the “perfect” society that they live in. Fleeing to the past, the family find themselves in the Time-Zone Protection Program (think witness protection where they hide you in time rather than in somewhere like Alaska). They need to adjust to our modern day and hide their secrets from their neighbors or risk dooming the future and themselves. It has the heart and heartbreak of the best Pixar movies like “Up” and the adventure hopping action and family drama of the early Fantastic Four.
Francis Manapul is a true highlight of the book. He is one of the modern-day greats of artists who’s constantly evolving style keeps him from ever becoming stale. There are elements of his New 52 Flash series on display here, but his growth as a draftsman is on display with every single panel of this book. His colors and linework have evolved and truly mesh with the feel and tone of this title. Even the little bits of the 25th century that we see in this first issue are both of one future but not of the worst kinds of sci-fi futures where everyone dresses the same.
Peter Tomasi brings his talent for crafting believable families and cranks it to eleven. Tomasi’s strengths are titles where the generations have to learn how to grow with each other and what a better way to display that than also having the family deal with the generational divide between the 21st and 25th centuries. Tomasi quickly introduces each of the Rocketfellers to us, but by the end of the issue you have a clear grasp of who each of them are (heck, you’ll even know what the dog is all about). To help with both Tomasi’s writing and not get in the way of Manapul’s artwork is the incredibly talented Rob Leigh on letters.
Rocketfellers is so different from the other titles coming out from Ghost Machine but fans of those other titles shouldn’t sleep on this one. Like Redcoat or Rook: Exodus, Rocketfellers takes the Ghost Machine of the greatest creators telling their stories their own way.
Get lost in the future with this family stuck in the present.
Save the world, read comics!
Tripper
P.S. It’s that time of month again where December’s Lighthouse Keeper subscriptions are coming due. Subscribers to Lighthouse Keeper got a FREE COMIC this week and another write up on why we loved it. This is a great way to get the best of the best comics each week and a little bonus of free comics. If you’ve enjoyed any of the Lighthouse titles that we have recommended all these months, we highly suggest that you subscribe to Lighthouse Keeper. You save money and get the best comics pulled right away for you!
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