A new mini-series from IDW Publishing, celebrating the 40th anniversary of the character. This is The Rocketeer: The Great Race #1.
Ace stunt pilot Cliff Secord has returned from his New York Adventure to a West Coast steeped
(W) Stephen Mooney (A/CA) Stephen Mooney
in paranoia over the looming war in Europe. Having finally had enough of his near-death scrapes as the high-flying Rocketeer, the only thing in Cliff’s crosshairs is The Great Race: a prestigious, winner-take-all air race that runs from California to France! Maybe it’s finally time to smarten up and fly straight . . . by taking his best girl Betty to Paris! But other parties want to win the race for their own nefarious ends, and Cliff will need to decide which prize is truly the most valuable of all.
This is an excellent beginning to this new mini-series. Set in the pre-war era, and well suited to the character. There is the rumblings of Nazi soldiers looking for an edge against America. In the middle of this is Cliff Secord who, as the Rocketeer, is wanting to find something exciting, but also look after Betty.
In this, after a brush with some local Nazis, he is made an offer that may help America in the upcoming war. It also attracts his interest with a race in the skies.
There is a lot of good setups here, establishing all the key players and their motivations. There is also those who are up against him and what their plans are.
The action is good and well-paced and Stephen Mooney is well placed here on art and story duties. I really enjoy both his storytelling and art style and this suits him down to the ground.
I really enjoyed the pacing of the story, with some well-told panels, and some good foreboding for the future.
This issue is mostly setup, with the race to come, but it gets you involved and is an enjoyable read.
