Red Rocket 7

Red Rocket 7 #Complete

by Mike Allred

In the mid 1950s, seven mysterious beings show up in coastal Oregon, fulfilling a prophecy foretold in the scripture of a distant world. One of them--Red Rocket 7--goes on to make musical history with the biggest names in rock and roll--from Elvis and the Beatles to David Bowie, Nirvana, etc. Here is high sci-fi adventure for fans of pop culture. Graphic novel format.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Music, Science Fiction, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Comic Book

Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Michael 'Doc' Allred (Also Credited as M. Dalton Allred) grew up in the 60's and 70's and was surrounded with the best in pop culture and a steady diet of music, movies and comic books including the three B's: Beatles, Bond and Batman to the point of obsession.

So it should come as no surprise that he keeps a hand in film and music (He's the lead singer and guitarist for The Gear), but comic books have always been a seminal source of joy for Mike and that joy remains the main ingredient in most of his work.

Allred first tasted success in the comics field with his wildly popular MADMAN series, which is currently being developed for a live action film with filmmaker Robert Rodriguez. His earlier work from GRAFIK MUZIK was turned into the cult hit movie G-Men from Hell directed by Christopher Coppola (featuring Robert Goulet as the Devil). Other work includes Red Rocket 7, his history of Rock and Roll told in the context of a sci-fi adventure storyl the Madman spin-off THE ATOMICS and his magnum opus, THE GOLDEN PLATES, where he's illustrating the entire Book of Mormon.

Mike counts the secret to his success to be his wife, and creative partner, Laura Allred, who is is considered to be one of the best colorists in the business.

Reviews

[Joni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extraña combinación de documental y ciencia ficción con seres inmortales que escapando de una raza alienígena a través del tiempo se va contando el inicio, florecimiento, desarrollo y apogeo del pop rock. A pesar de su originalidad algo no cierra en el trasfondo fantástico y el dibujo de los más flojos que le conozco a Mike Allred, parece hecho a las apuradas, sin buenas terminaciones. No deja de ser un cómic interesante que aporta mucha data de música.

[Drew · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read it when it was first published in the late 90s, returning to it 20 years later was both nostalgic and a reminder of the vast generational shift in which many of the artists featured in the series are now very much the "classic rock" of grandparents. It's also great to look at a period of artistic difference from Mike Mignola with the fat, sharpie like lines he used for the series, and the colors from Laura Allred popped per usual.

[Shaun Phelps · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've seen dune critical reviews of this work. I recognize the cheesy nature of writing Red into music history. There is so much heart written into this work, though, and it's a different storytelling evolution for Allred. Instead of the existential philosophy exploration found in Madman this looks at life and love and loss from a different angle. A bit more grounded in reality--which is odd to say given the overall premise.

[Fugo Feedback]

Me encantaría conseguir este libro-disco en edición española, pero por lo que veo está más que difícil. De todos modos, dejo como to-read esta edición hasta nuevo aviso. Cuando pueda me pongo a jugar a reconocer a los íconos musicales que aparecen en la portada.

[Angie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another one that I don't really think is specifically YA.

[Su · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was introduced to this graphic novel by my Book Club, and I’m really glad I read it. I believe this is the first Mike Allred piece, I’ve read or written about, and for the most part I enjoyed it. Unfortunately, the music survey of all of Mike Allred’s favorites from the 1950s until the early/mid ‘90s was distracting and indulgent at best, and annoying and elitist at worst. Like the guy at the shop who just has to keep throwing trivia at you until he finds the one thing you didn’t know and can prove he “knows more”. But the content that actually revolves around Red Rocket 7, his unorthodox family, and a literally universal religion and the interconnectivity of all beings was really fun and interesting to read, thought-provoking even.

Artistically, I felt this was so fun and pretty! I was really into the glossy pop art pages and Allred’s colorist (and wife!) did amazing work! It’s a feast for the eyes for sure (in some cases maybe more than your eyes wanted - the dialogue is really packed and often cramped into panels). I also adore how pretty/handsome Allred’s male characters are drawn - and their hair! He’s so detailed and obviously so caring in depicting them all. But his female characters, in comparison, come across as lazy to me.

I just wish Allred had been more focused on the titular character and his narrative, and less on “who’s who” of music according to Allred’s taste. I will say for the ‘90s it was bold in its tackling of social issues and Black-White race relations which was refreshing.

[Ignacio · Rating 2 out of 5]

La reconstrucción de la música popular del Reino Unido y EE.UU. entre los 50 y los 70 lo mola todo, sobre todo cuando elabora ciertas situaciones de las que apenas hay evidencias, como el encuentro de Elvis y los Beatles o la muerte de Brian Jones. El problema es que esta se encuentra empotrada en una historia un tanto... "simple" que pone al personaje de Red y sus hermanos clones en ese tiempo y lugar, perseguidos por unos alienígenas muy malos que... (cosas niu eich de los 60 para las que ya no tengo mucha paciencia). Esas páginas, salvo un par de momentos, invitan a la lectura en diagonal y no ayuda un Allred poco inspirado en el entintado. Se carga la gracia de su dibujo con una línea muy gruesa, tosca en demasiados momentos, y las escasas ganas de dar detalles a unas ilustraciones que, en el gran formato del tebeo, lo hubieran agradecido. Al precio de portada se me hace muy cuesta arriba recomendarlo, pero ahora mismo está de saldo y si gustan los Beatles, los Stones y/o Bowie, y los delirios pop, tiene un pase.

[Mark Schlatter · Rating 2 out of 5]

A tale of pursued aliens coming to Earth, with one of them becoming a minor player in and observer of the early days of rock and roll. It's less trippy than a lot of Allred's work (say, Madman), but the grounded nature doesn't help the story. There's tons of religious imagery (I'm guessing much of it taken from Allred's Mormon faith), a huge amount of storytelling through narration (the letters written by Red Rocket 7), and a thick inking style that makes everyone look somewhat blocky. Moreover, there's such an overwhelming earnestness when discussing the rock and roll scene that I got tired of seeing "important scenes from history".

I reread this to see if I was keeping it in my collection, and I'm not.

[Vittorio Rainone · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bellissimi e coloratissimi i disegni degli Allred. Fregano sempre: non si può non comprare un prodotto con una confezione così attraente. Salvo poi ricredersi leggendo la storia, che è piuttosto insulsa. Non proprio illeggibile, ma neanche degna di nota.

[Eddie Arafat · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think the creator had a lot of fun drawing famous musicians through the years. I felt like the message as a little heavy handed and the story fell on some tropes.

[Giovanni Tarquinio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Peccato per la traduzione ad minchiam

[Javier Muñoz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Este cómic destila amor a la música por los cuatro costados, se nota que Mike Allred es un apasionado del rock y que tiene una cultura musical bastante sólida... este es un cómic que apreciarán mucho más aquellos que se toman la música (y en concreto la música popular de la segunda mitad del siglo XX) realmente en serio, porque el número de referencias y detalles de interés es abrumador, aquel que no le siga el juego del quién es quién musical a Mike Allred tiene muchas menos posibilidades de disfrutar el cómic en toda su magnitud.

Red Rocket 7 es un alienígena que llegó en los años 50 a la tierra, desde el principio tiene claro cuál es su pasión, el mundo del sonido y la música rock en particular... uno de sus hermanos relata a una periodista su periplo por distintas épocas de la música popular, siempre entre bambalinas y trabajando en los estudios de grabación, durante el cual fue conociendo a personajes en la historia del rock... paralelamente Allred nos cuenta el peligro que corren Red y sus hermanos si se exponen públicamente, ya que un grupo de enemigos de su planeta natal les buscan sin descanso.

Es un cómic que me ha gustado mucho, pero creo que tiene algunos defectos que merece la pena apuntar, en primer lugar Allred intenta hacer dos cosas muy distintas a la vez, por un lado hacer un recorrido por la historia del rock y por otro contar una historia de ciencia ficción, creo que los dos aspectos se terminan resintiendo un poco... en segundo lugar creo que en esta obra Mike Allred intenta cumplir sus propios sueños, todo gran aficionado de la música ha deseado alguna vez haber podido contactar con sus grandes ídolos en los momentos clave de su carrera, haber podido compartir con ellos algunas grandes experiencias.... esto es lo que parece que refleja Allred durante gran parte del cómic, da la impresión de que utiliza a Red como avatar suyo, poniéndole en situaciones que él mismo hubiera deseado vivir.

En todo caso creo que hay que fijarse más en las cosas positivas, casi todas en el apartado gráfico, la representación de los instrumentos musicales, en especial las guitarras y los amplificadores es simplemente perfecta, la atención al detalle es exquisita, aquí una rickenbacker no se parece a una sg ni a una hollow-body más clásica... la cantidad de guitarras representadas es espectacular: telecaster, mosrite, metropolitan, stratocaster, les paul, jaguar. Otro aspecto a reseñar es la fidelidad de los retratos de estrellas del rock, muy conseguidos, se puede adivinar perfectamente a quién pertenece cada cara, no sólo por sus facciones, sino por sus expresiones típicas, y son muchas las que aparecen en un momento u otro, diría que cientos. Finalmente la historia sin llegar a ser especialmente memorable si que es entretenida y con un punto adictivo.

En resumen, una gran opción para los grandes aficionados a la música rock, como cómic por si mismo cumple adecuadamente pero demanda algo de pasión por el tema que trata, si no se tiene no se disfruta con plenitud.

[Andrea ⭐️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Desde hace unos meses tenía ganas de adentrarme en el mundo de los comics, pero no llegaba a encontrar el adecuado para dar el paso: la mayoría que encontraba eran relacionados con los superhéroes, como los de Marvel, y debo confesar que ese universo no me interesa mucho.

Hasta que un día en la sección de comics de la biblioteca de mi pueblo me topé con este comic, el cual me llamó la atención por su portada, y al leer la sinopsis decidí que era el adecuado para comenzar con ellos.

Red Rocket 7 mezcla la ciencia ficción con la música. Debo reconocer que el aspecto musical me llamó más desde el primer momento que el de la ciencia ficción, pero la combinación de ambos me ha resultado muy bien llevada; aunque en el argumento algunas cosas no me han llegado a encajar del todo. El ver plasmada en viñetas la historia de grandes bandas y artistas desde la década de los 50 hasta los 90 como Elvis Presley, Los Rolling Stone, Los Beatles o David Bowie me ha fascinado, e incluso he descubierto aspectos o hechos de algunos de ellos que desconocía.

El estilo artístico del cómic me ha gustado mucho, especialmente unas viñetas finales del libro que me han maravillado, como una de David Bowie, que me parece una auténtica pasada.

Aunque debo reconocer que el final me ha parecido un tanto flojo, esperaba algo más potente, ya que ante él literalmente me he quedado como “¿Ya? ¿Este es el final?”.

En definitiva, Red Rocket 7 es un cómic con el que pasaréis un buen rato y que disfrutaréis aquellas personas a las que os apasione el rock n' roll de la segunda mitad del siglo XX.

[D.M. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a fan of Mike Allred from back in the Grafik/Graphique Muzak/Musique days; I've been a pop & rock afficianado for about that long, as well. However, there's always been something about this best-of-both-worlds book (and indeed the entire multimedia project of which it was part) that's been off the mark for me. The art is, typical of Allred, stunning and the colours are, typical of the other Allred, gorgeous. It would be a fun traipse through the history of pop & rock if it didn't seem to take itself so seriously! The Judeo-Christian (and Mormon, presumably) space opera backdrop is utterly distracting and everything moves at to fast a pace to feel believable (The reporter meets an alien clone, gets his weird and unreal story, then SLEEPS WITH HIM?! Th' hell?).
It's a must-have for fans of Allred, and probably an entertaining one-time read for music buffs, but beyond that (even with the help of the movie Astroesque and CD Son of Red Rocket 7) ultimately dissatisfying.

[Deana · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was given to me years ago, but I'd never really been interested in reading it. I picked it up now because it was relatively short and I needed some distraction one night. It was a lot more interesting than I'd expected, though nothing spectacular. My favorite part was kind of a sub-point of the story - Red Rocket 7 was extremely interested in music, and it details his interactions with many musicians throughout the years. It was fun to see the artist's interpretation of the musicians and ways in which he imagined Red Rocket 7 interacting with these people. The main story, though, was a little odd. Somewhat religious overtones, intermixed with space adventures and science. And the ending was kind of weird. Overall an interesting read, but nothing I'd read over and over.

[Gingaeru · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't get much enjoyment out of this (I am a fan of "Madman," early "Madman," anyway). It's an unbalanced back-and-forth between the present-day story and the backstory. The attempt to insert the title character throughout the history of rock & roll is rather ham-fisted. It's also a pretty subjective representation of events. I didn't care for the characters or the religious overtones.

Some of the art is alright (I like the bits where aliens are mutilated). Laura messed up on the page where Brian Jones dies: Red 5 and Red 7 appear to swap swim trunks between panels (making an awkward scene that much more so).
...

5/10

[Matt Shaqfan · Rating 4 out of 5]

THE BEATLES, THE STONES, ELVIS, LITTLE RICHARD, T-REX, BOWIE...the history of rock n roll told thru sci-fi-pop-comic-art.

can't describe it any better than that...jeez... mike allred. genius. i still like MADMAN better, but you can tell this is just done out of pure love fer music and comics and stuff. BONUS! this new collection (not the one pictured above) is now the size of a 7"!! but one complaint--the dandy warhols show up too much. i used to like them, but they're douchebags. this book, and mike allred however, are not douchebags.

[Dominick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally serialized in the 1990s, this odd series brings together SF, comics, and rock and roll in a quasi-religious narrative about clones, immortality, and the great lost chord. Lovely Kirbyesque gonzo art, rather pedestrian writing, and a meandering plot more interested in likening the protagonist to major 1950s and 1960s rock icons than in telling a sensible story. And since it's reproduced at a smaller size than originally intended, it looks cramped.

[Bryson Kopf · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure this is going to really mean anything to a reader who isn't up on their rock history; but this is a fun trip through the first 20ish years of rock. Featuring a nicely retro sci-fi background, we follow the adventures of Red Rocket 7, a rock n roll loving clone of an alien fugitive. Rock is very obviously near and dear to Allred's heart, and it really shows on every page of this book. Mike's art and design is beautiful, and Laura's colors are stunning as usual. A ton of fun!

[Smofers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Did not like the history lesson and the 'I so hung out with beatles' feeling. The story was what I like and it was disregarded so that I could learn the history of David Bowe. Which would be cool if red rocket did not hang out with every musician in the last decade. All I want to know is, did he smoke pot with any no names?

[Raina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lushly colored (holla Laura Allred!) sci-fi comic in which an alien is inserted into 20th century popular music history.

Yeah, kinda nuff said. Saw the Allreds at the last Oly Comics Fest (2012) but somehow had never read this.

[Lucas · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the art, the trip through rock and roll history, everything. Er, except the story, which didn't totally engage me like Madman always did. That Beatles cover, um, cover was fantastic, though. Great rendition of Black Francis.

[Spoon · Rating 4 out of 5]

flawed, but super-geeky fun.

[Ken · Rating 4 out of 5]

More Allred. Different story, same Allred.

[Eric Orchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautifully drawn and really fun. Allred at his best.

[Northern K Sunderland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely amazing.
A detailed chronicle of the history of Rock & Roll, with space aliens and robots!
A really great read!

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really, really, really wanted to like this since it seemed like as if Ziggy Stardust were Doctor Who, but it just didn't work out for me.

[Patrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

A fun visual pop art look at the history of rock and roll thru sci-fi glasses, but completely falls apart with a disaster of an ending.

[Richard Gombert · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting, but way too preachy!

[Javi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muy fan de Allred. Me lo he devorado.