Millar World continues this week with issue number two of Starlight, a new series I loved from panel one. Can the wonder and good feels continue, or is it doomed to suffer the horrible, wretched and inevitable fall most issues take in round two? Hell, is it good?
Starlight #2 (Image Comics)
Things take a decidedly slower turn this issue as our protagonist gets a visitor from outer space. If you missed the last issue, Duke is a man in his 60s who just lost his wife. He also took a trip to another planet 40 years ago and saved a queen and her people ala Flash Gordon. With his wife gone, his kids all off elsewhere living their own lives, Duke doesn’t have much to live for. So color him a bit tempted when a space boy shows up and asks him to go on a new adventure. Most of this issue spends its time with Duke thinking over whether he’s too old to go on any more adventures. It’s also got plenty of the boy, named Krish Moor, who is perplexed Duke isn’t living in a castle.
You gotta be in dire straits when you’re asking an old man to save your planet.
These two elements combined keep things interesting enough. Writer Mark Millar plays around with this new dynamic, but doesn’t delve too deeply. We get to see that Duke isn’t a crotchety old man by any means, but he’s also worried this is a bad choice. It helpsthat Krish is so gung ho and sure, Duke can jump back into the superhero business. “Enough” is the word to keep in mind though, because what occurs in the book doesn’t sustain the page count too well. We’re in it with this character, we want to see what he’ll do and say, but it’s all taking place over actions that could have been done in two pages. A decompressed issue for sure.
Goran Parlov continues to draw some sweet lines in this book. He continues his cinematic widescreen panels, and is exceptional with the facial expressions. He keeps the characters grounded and the emotional context at the forefront.
Earth is borrrrrinnggg.
Is It Good?
It is, although it suffers the second issue blues. There isn’t much action to speak of, and the one chance to do so with the flashback falls short. It does however continue the feels and feel-good nature of the protagonist.
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