Staff Picks (Jun13): Buck Rogers In 25th Century By Howard Chaykin #1

Publisher: Hermes Press

In 1929 a story ran in Amazing Stories. “Armageddon 2419 A.D.” by Philip Nowlan became the inspiration for the first science fiction comic strip, Buck Rogers in the 25th Century.  Anthony “Buck” Rogers, along with Wilma Deering and Doctor Huer, became the template for sci-fi adventure stories such as Flash Gordon, Adam Strange, and Star Wars.

While others have attempted bring Buck and company to the comic books, in every instance the projects failed to live up to its historical importance. Buck is the preverbal man out of time, a futuristic Rip Van Winkle and a precursor to Steve Rogers, another man living out of time.

With years of producing successful collections of the classic Buck Rogers daily and Sunday newspaper strips under their belt, Hermes Press is now producing all-new adventures of the first sci-fi action hero with comics legend Howard Chaykin.

In this new series written and illustrated by Chaykin, the writer/artist known for political-socio-economic influenced stories in American Flagg as well as reinterpreting classic characters like The Shadow, Blackhawks, and DC Comics’ sci-fi characters in Twilight, combines a back-to-basics approach with his unique touch. The history and background of a man from 1929 becomes an important part of the character that awakes in 2049 and has to deal with century of changes while seeing how little some things changed. This is Howard at his best, totally enthusiastic and into the characters, their history and their attitudes.

While I was a fan of Flash Gordon first, I became a fan of Buck Rogers with that first oversized collection from Chelsea House. I was a fan of Chaykin from his Crusty Bunker days and his work on Fritz Lieber’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser up to his current work doing covers for The Shadow. Hermes Press’ Buck Rogers in the 25th Century comic series is a welcome addition to my collection and is a case of not wanting to wait for the trade.

~ Steve Leaf