Astro City: Life in the Big City
Written by Kurt Busiek, Penciled and Inked by Brent Anderson, Covers by Alex Ross.

It's not easy to make superheroes work. I define "work" by making them effective, fun and enjoyable for all audiences, comic readers or not. Not many superhero comics can reach a non-comic audience -- that takes both skill and a specific approach. On Buffy the Vampire Slayer, series creator Joss Whedon tackled superheroics by mixing them with the paranormal, using known horror conventions as metaphors for the emotional events facing the characters.

In Astro City, writer Kurt Busiek performs similar tricks. The series' setting is Astro City itself, a mid-western metropolis with the largest heroic population in the world. But the focus is on the people who live in there, the "Astro Citizens" and how their lives are affected by the presence of superbeings, who are often utilized as metaphors of the problems and events happening to each episode's narrator. Also, the superheroes are usually spins on known archetypes.

Life In The Big City is the collected edition of the first Astro City volume, an original 6-part miniseries. Chapter One, entitled "In Dreams", gives us a look into the mind of Samaritan, Earth's mightiest hero, as well as the sacrifices he must make to do his duty. Chapter Two, "The Scoop", tells the tale of a rookie reporter in 1959 who is on the verge of getting the ultimate scoop of his very young career: The Silver Agent's assembling of The Honor Guard, a team of heroes who battle Shirak, the lord of a Shark Cult. But will anyone buy his story? "A Little Knowledge", the third chapter, follows Jimmy "Eyes" Eisenstein, a two-bit crook, as he discovers the secret identity of vigilante, Jack-In-The-Box. But what will he do with this knowledge? Blackmail? Go to the press? Tell Jack's enemies? In one of my favorite stories, "Safeguards", we are shown the dilemmas of a woman living in Shadow Hill, the supernatural/monster neighborhood of the city, as she wonders if she should move downtown or remain in the place where she knows all the rules and how to protect herself. The fifth chapter, "Reconnaissance," centers on a strange old man named Mr. Bridwell, who is actually an alien spy compiling information on superheroes-- but why does he keeps staving off an invasion? Does he sees something worthy in humanity? The last chapter brings us back to the Samaritan as he goes on a date with a superheroine called the Winged Victory. How will a date between Earth's most famous heroes progress?

There is a certain feeling of deja vu in Astro City -- not due to the stories themselves, but rather the superheroes, all of whom are spins on classic archetypes. Samaritan is an obvious twist on Superman, while Silver Agent feels quite a bit like Captain America, and Winged Victory has a very Wonder Woman-ish air to her. They're not rip-offs by any means, but, when you see them, you can easily trace their origins. Regardless, they still have a distinctive individual feel. Yet another fun note about superheroes in the series is that, when viewed by normal people, their dialogue and actions seem incredibly cartoonish and unnatural. They only become real in close, personal situations. This is a nice, subtle touch that actually portrays how we might actually perceive superheroes if we lived into their world. All of these elements result in a great character-driven book that remains a terrific read for superhero fans or people who have never gotten them.

Art-wise, the story looks good. Penciler Brent Anderson has a very old-school, classical style that works well for Astro City, since the book is filled with a certain nostalgia for Golden Age comics. Anderson inks himself and probably uses more blacks and cross-hatching than his art really needs, but it doesn't detract from his storytelling ability. He, along with cover artist extraordinaire Alex Ross, create wonderful costume designs for the characters. And as you'll see in the sketches in the end, the city itself also has been designed with great care and detail. Ross' artwork, both his covers as well as his sketches, is included with the trade paperback -- one more reason to get it, as his beautiful, fully painted work is a must-see.

There you have it. If a new, fresh take on superheroes interests you, or if you find yourself fascinated with an Everyman's view of a fantasy world, I recommend Astro City. With its great takes on known archetypes, classic art, award-winning covers and stories, this city is a place you'll want to visit often.

-- Yannick Belzil

Astro City: Life in the Big City, published by DC Comics, is currently available in trade paperback through comic retailers.

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