‘The Rocketeer: The Great Race #1’ Review
Written by Stephen Mooney | Art by Stephen Mooney | Published by IDW Publishing
I absolutely love The Rocketeer. Granted, I am a sucker for anything set in the 1930s and 1940s, be it comic book, film, or pop culture, but Dave Stevens created something beautiful with The Rocketeer. For those that came in late, The Rocketeer was created by writer/artist Dave Stevens way back in 1982 and originally had a home at Pacific Comics. A homage to those old 1930s and 1940s movie serials Stevens’ work was hugely influential at the time and still is to this day. Stevens died in 2008, sadly, but IDW has kept the torch burning with various Rocketeer projects since then, both reprints and original stuff. With this one, Stephen Mooney has decided to do all the heavy lifting himself, both writing and drawing, and it’s a lot of lifting, as this series is celebrating the 40th anniversary of The Rocketeer‘s first appearance.
No pressure then.
It’s the late 1930s, and paranoia is everywhere as war gets ever closer in Europe. Even stunt pilot Cliff Secord is caught up in it, as the West Coast radio stations are full of suspected sightings of German spies around every corner. Cliff decides he has to investigate the latest sighting and, attaching his jet pack and golden helmet, soars into action as The Rocketeer, gorgeously drawn by Mooney in a full-page panel. Turns out the stories were true, a German cell is indeed hiding out on American soil, and Cliff’s naiveté and arrogance see him nearly taken out by gunfire. Cliff’s not your run of the mill hero, he really is just an enthusiastic amateur with a jet pack. He survives, just, and is rattled enough to question if he should re-think his future.
One look at his girlfriend Betty, you can see why. Betty is typical cheesecake, a clear homage to Bettie Page, and drawn spectacularly. In a teddy no less. Mooney clearly has Stevens’ eye for the ladies. Artistically speaking of course. Yep, that’s settled, Cliff is giving up his life of wild adventure and jet packs for love and domesticity. He’s not in the least bit interested in the upcoming international air race with its huge money prize, no sirree. Unless a mysterious world-renowned industrialist and inventor asked him to pilot their cutting edge Bugatti Model 100 in said race of course. Delton Nkosi is a Howard Hughes type and wants to make the world a better place. Apparently.
So, what’s a flyboy to do? Cliff wants to do the right thing by his girl but to do that he needs money, which this will pay handsomely. Yet he’s promised to stay out of trouble. Something’s got to give. Actually, Bettie’s on board with this. If it stops Cliff strapping a rocket pack to his back and getting shot at, she’s all for it. The fact it all ends in Paris is a plus too. So, Cliff’s in, racing in a field that includes some world-class pilots. We soon see, however, that not everyone is playing fair. A German, the Iron Baron, is taking part, whose main mission is to find and steal Nkosi’s rocket technology. That’s the same rocket technology Cliff will be piloting. Luckily for Cliff, he just can’t break the chain with his hero identity, and The Rocketeer equipment is going along too. All we need now is Dick Dastardly, and we can get this Wacky Race started.
First, the bad. This is most definitely a fan service book, so I’m not sure if any non-fans will enjoy this. 1930s adventure stories are quite niche anyway, and Mooney makes the assumption you know who everyone is from the start. That being said, visually, it’s an absolute delight. Mooney’s artwork is simply gorgeous, and atmosphere just drips off every page. The layouts and composition are just wonderful. The writing is decent enough, though a little choppy with rapid jumps from scene to scene. I do love the dialogue though, Mooney really captures the sound and feel of that era. The overall feel of the book is better than the actual content, though that’s pretty good too. The book also has an excellent 8-page text piece on Dave Stevens and The Rocketeer, which is a wonderful read.
If I was giving a score just on the cover and art, it would be 5 stars no doubt. I just feel the writing is a slight drop from that very high standard. Would I recommend it? Absolutely.
You’ll definitely believe a 1930’s man can fly.
