Comics work best when the collaborative aspects of writer, artist, colorist and letterer all combine to provides their best work. Now if you consider the same sort of process, but applied to the combining of genres, where disparate items are combined to deliver something new, well kind of new, you get an idea of the how Star Runner Chronicles work.
For those keeping score, this is the third volume of three issues of Aurora Palmer’s adventures. We have seen Aurora start her adventures, have her existence challenged and this time around she is at that stage in life where she faces her biggest challenge yet….. her future! Where will she go, back to the stars or stay on Earth? With whom will she be with, her Earth boyfriend or the mysterious handsome liege from her home planet? Throw in a number of fractions vying to control her power and you have the bare bones of this new volume.
James Watson has cleverly developed Aurora and her cast to allow the book to grown in an organic way. Star Runner could be described as a mix of Supergirl meets Sweet Valley High, with Buffy the Vampire Slayer type of relationships, if not the horror elements. Now my first wife used to love Francine Pascal’s twins, in literary form. Reading Star Runner has that sort of vibe; all the cast are nice, friendly and practically perfect in every way. Even the big bad from the last series is now Aurora’s bestie. Watson mixes in the girl lost aspect from Supergirl to keep things moving along, with a Star Trek level of scientific techno-babble. With some many aspects in play, Watson works hard to make each element work. The setups and dialogue work well; remember that this is an all ages type of book, so complex ideas and motives may seem few and far between.
Lee Cordeiro provides the art in a wholesome manner. When you think, young woman on the cusp of adulthood with various relationships and superpowers, in today’s world of comic books that could mean anything! Cordeiro’s art has a nice, simple line feel to it, where body types aren’t accentuated or sexualised. It’s obvious that a lot of the cast are “pretty young thing”, yet Cordeiro never sways from his all ages approach. With art being so easy on the eye, it makes the techno-babble less intimidating. One of the inconsistencies I noticed, with the introduction of Maxine, the red-head is wearing glasses which disappear on the second issue. Maybe her look was too much like the Baroness character from G.i. Joe. I would have also her scar to be more obvious in certain panels though these are minor quibbles at most. Carlos Eduardo help accentuate the characters frameworks from very detail backgrounds with colorist Mohan Sivakami having great fun, display a brightness to proceedings especially around the scenes where Aurora’s powers are manifested. finally, a huge shout out to letterer Wilson Ramos Jr. who does a terrific job keeping the sheer verbiage sorted and well delineated without affecting the art in any shape way or form.
Whilst not specifically aimed at me, I cannot state how enjoyable this series has been. Watson’s writing has gone from strength to strength, ensuring that his brand of storytelling is preserved. A must for fans looking to introduce their kids into the world of comic books!
Writing – 4.5 Stars
Art – 4.5 Stars
Colors – 5 Stars
Overall – 4.5 Stars
Written by; James Watson
Art by; Lee Cordeiro
Inks by; Carlos Eduardo
Colors by; Mohan Sivakami
Letters by; Wilson Ramos Jr.
Published by; Atlantis Studios