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The Rocketeer #1
The Rocketeer: All 5 Action Chapters!
The Rocketeer!
All 5 action chapters!
All 5 action chapters!
70 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1985
About the author
Dave Stevens
97 books27 followersDave Lee Stevenswas an American illustrator and comics artist. He is most famous for creating The Rocketeer comic book and film character, and for his pin-up style "glamour art" illustrations, especially of model Bettie Page. He was the first to win Comic-Con International's Russ Manning Most Promising Newcomer Award in 1982, and received both an Inkpot Award and the Kirby Award for Best Graphic Album in 1986.
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Contents
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
October 21, 2023
A glorious love-letter to old pulp novels and comics! This is an absolute classic, with fast-paced action, a swift plot, and a wonderful 1930s atmosphere, that makes me want to rewatch the film, along with the other great pulp films from the 1990s and early 2000s: the Shadow, Dick Tracy, the Phantom, etc...the Batman '89 popularity did wonders for the pulp lovers.
April 4, 2019
Dave Stevens' artwork is great. His writing... not so much. I think much of the charm of this book is in recognizing the references (Bettie Page, Doc Savage, etc.) something that is done all the time now, but wasn't much when it was published. Otherwise, it's rather simple, but a quick read and still fun. Just not as much fun as when I first read it oh, so many decades ago.
August 14, 2018
Dave Stevens' The Rocketeer is a classic, steeped in 1930s slang and atmosphere. The artwork is top-notch, and the Introduction in this volume by Harlan Ellison is as grumpy and honest as any comic fan could hope to find. The action and the pace of the plot is fast and engaging, as well.
Why the 3-star rating? The story is a product of its time, almost more style over substance, and while the action moves things along, poor Cliff Secord seems to just tumble along through it all. He lacks drive and purpose, other than his obsession with flying gadgets and Betty. Maybe that's the simple sort of guy he is. For me, the quality of the art and expressiveness of every character in every panel nearly pulls it up another star. This is definitely worth a look-see, and don't let my harsh judgement stop you, if you truly appreciate the fine art of graphic novels.
Why the 3-star rating? The story is a product of its time, almost more style over substance, and while the action moves things along, poor Cliff Secord seems to just tumble along through it all. He lacks drive and purpose, other than his obsession with flying gadgets and Betty. Maybe that's the simple sort of guy he is. For me, the quality of the art and expressiveness of every character in every panel nearly pulls it up another star. This is definitely worth a look-see, and don't let my harsh judgement stop you, if you truly appreciate the fine art of graphic novels.
July 23, 2017
The success and failure of something always depends on how well its appeal translates beyond those already predisposed to like it. The Rocketeer, for instance, was designed to appeal to people nostalgic for old Hollywood serials. It met an enthusiastic response from critics, and gained enough exposure that it joined the rush to find movie vehicles to complement 1989's successful Batman reboot. And it was also one of the many, many failures to do so.
Now, such failures aren't always because of the actual quality of the product. Success does not translate into quality anymore than failure translates to a lack thereof. The failure of 2011's Green Lantern but the success of 2008's Iron Man says more about capturing the zeitgeist than anything. The latter' best trick was pulling Nick Fury and the promise of the Avengers, creating the idea of being a part of something, out of its hat. The character himself was as culturally meaningless as Green Lantern, whose movie existed in an equally meaningless vacuum.
Dave Stevens created an ode to the old serials in the wake of Star Wars making them relevant again. But Star Wars, and later, Indiana Jones, did it by making the concept new and vital again. Rocketeer is virtually exactly like the old serials. That's why the movie failed whereas the character in general still exists in sporadic new material (the same can be said for other cinematic failures of the time, including the Phantom, the Shadow, and even Dick Tracy).
The original comic makes all this clear. If you're nostalgic for the stuff, you'll probably love it. The effusive praise from Harlan Ellison will ring true to you. If you're not, it reads like hokum, and Ellison sounds like he's blowing so much hype. If one thing's clear, it's that the design of Rocketeer is the one truly timeless element of the story; everything else pails in comparison, just plain doesn't hold up.
The absolute strangest part of the whole thing is that Stevens takes repeated jabs at Hollywood, even though his inspiration clearly comes from Hollywood. The movie feels more natural because the material is in its element; the comic becomes more limited in its appeal the greater the distance from when it was created. Ellison references other comics featuring nostalgic acts like this, but they're already lost to history nearly forty years later, the way the serials were when George Lucas began raiding them for inspiration.
So I rate this as less than its reputation would suggest because it's not as good as it ought to be. A thing for nostalgics.
Now, such failures aren't always because of the actual quality of the product. Success does not translate into quality anymore than failure translates to a lack thereof. The failure of 2011's Green Lantern but the success of 2008's Iron Man says more about capturing the zeitgeist than anything. The latter' best trick was pulling Nick Fury and the promise of the Avengers, creating the idea of being a part of something, out of its hat. The character himself was as culturally meaningless as Green Lantern, whose movie existed in an equally meaningless vacuum.
Dave Stevens created an ode to the old serials in the wake of Star Wars making them relevant again. But Star Wars, and later, Indiana Jones, did it by making the concept new and vital again. Rocketeer is virtually exactly like the old serials. That's why the movie failed whereas the character in general still exists in sporadic new material (the same can be said for other cinematic failures of the time, including the Phantom, the Shadow, and even Dick Tracy).
The original comic makes all this clear. If you're nostalgic for the stuff, you'll probably love it. The effusive praise from Harlan Ellison will ring true to you. If you're not, it reads like hokum, and Ellison sounds like he's blowing so much hype. If one thing's clear, it's that the design of Rocketeer is the one truly timeless element of the story; everything else pails in comparison, just plain doesn't hold up.
The absolute strangest part of the whole thing is that Stevens takes repeated jabs at Hollywood, even though his inspiration clearly comes from Hollywood. The movie feels more natural because the material is in its element; the comic becomes more limited in its appeal the greater the distance from when it was created. Ellison references other comics featuring nostalgic acts like this, but they're already lost to history nearly forty years later, the way the serials were when George Lucas began raiding them for inspiration.
So I rate this as less than its reputation would suggest because it's not as good as it ought to be. A thing for nostalgics.
February 20, 2009
A big beautiful love letter to Golden age comics and cliffhanger serials.
A down on his luck stunt flyer stumbles across an expiremental jet back and ends up as a reluctant super hero when he discovers that nazi spies as well as the jet pack's creator are after it.
Thrills, adventure, beautiful art work, nice touches of humor and the 'reveal' of the jet pack's creator all combine into one of the all time great comic stories.
Shame that Dave Stevens did so few Rocketeer stories as he has captured the magic of Golden age comics without that annoying need so many other writers have to make everything gritty and realistic.
The Rocketeer exists in the thirties that existed in the movies and pulps.
A down on his luck stunt flyer stumbles across an expiremental jet back and ends up as a reluctant super hero when he discovers that nazi spies as well as the jet pack's creator are after it.
Thrills, adventure, beautiful art work, nice touches of humor and the 'reveal' of the jet pack's creator all combine into one of the all time great comic stories.
Shame that Dave Stevens did so few Rocketeer stories as he has captured the magic of Golden age comics without that annoying need so many other writers have to make everything gritty and realistic.
The Rocketeer exists in the thirties that existed in the movies and pulps.
March 15, 2008
I'm sad that it took Dave Stevens passing away this past Monday, March 10, 2008, to dust off my Rocketeer comics and read them again. I sure am glad I did, though. These are fun, wonderfully crafted adventures. The art is simply gorgeous, and the awesome humanity of the book's creator really shines through (and not just because he and Cliff Secord share the same face).
I hope you're whoopin' it up in Heaven, Dave. And I hope someone gets these books back in print soon so others can share the joy.
I hope you're whoopin' it up in Heaven, Dave. And I hope someone gets these books back in print soon so others can share the joy.
December 31, 2018
A rollicking fast paced adventure set in the late 1930s. The discovery of a prototype engine pack, stowed away in a jet by a couple of German spies, before they are apprehended by the law, leads aviator Cliff Secord, along with some help from ace engineer Peevey, to use the jetpack to revitalise his act in an airshow. But when both the Feds and the German agents get wind of him, he tries to keep the jetpack from falling into their clutches.
With story and awesome art by the legendary Dave Stevens, this collects the five chapters of 'The Rocketeer' into one volume. You definitely get a sense that it's certainly set in the 30s, especially with the settings and with some of the vocabulary that is very evocative of the time. The art is superb! Some of the best comic art I've seen, making you linger on some of the comic panels longer just to savour some of the added details and visual expressions on the faces of the characters. And with Stevens reknowned for pinup comic art, Cliff's girlfriend Betty, modelled on vintage pinup model Bettie Page, gives him ample excuse for some exquisite pinup art too!
Well worth picking up if you're a fan of golden age comics, vintage serials and of the movie that was based on the comic.
With story and awesome art by the legendary Dave Stevens, this collects the five chapters of 'The Rocketeer' into one volume. You definitely get a sense that it's certainly set in the 30s, especially with the settings and with some of the vocabulary that is very evocative of the time. The art is superb! Some of the best comic art I've seen, making you linger on some of the comic panels longer just to savour some of the added details and visual expressions on the faces of the characters. And with Stevens reknowned for pinup comic art, Cliff's girlfriend Betty, modelled on vintage pinup model Bettie Page, gives him ample excuse for some exquisite pinup art too!
Well worth picking up if you're a fan of golden age comics, vintage serials and of the movie that was based on the comic.
January 28, 2026
A bit on the boring side, but this was a pretty good short comic.
August 18, 2018
Edición española publicada para coincidir con el lanzamiento de la película. Ejemplar extraviado.
March 9, 2010
Por la cantidad de páginas, supongo que abarca bastante más que el comic español de saldo que me compré hace unos años. Provisoriamente lo dejo marcado igual, y cuando suba la edición española, si veo que no tiene nada que ver, seguro mude la review y desmarque este tomo. O quizás me haga el boludo. Lo que sí es probable es que si algún día lo releo lo rerreseñe.
November 25, 2012
Liked the movie? Then you'd love this Graphic Novel collecting all the Dave Stevens stories of the Rocketeer.
Stevens makes it look so simple! Simple Story! Simple Artwork!
But it's all so frakin Beautiful!
Others have tried giving us new Rocketeer stories and tales... some have been nice, but none have even come close to matching the art and stories of the original.
Stevens makes it look so simple! Simple Story! Simple Artwork!
But it's all so frakin Beautiful!
Others have tried giving us new Rocketeer stories and tales... some have been nice, but none have even come close to matching the art and stories of the original.
March 21, 2008
Save Stevens art pays homage to a wonderful character and a bigger than life time in history. His panels are clean and complete, compelling the eye to spend a couple of extra seconds admiring them before moving on. Highly recommended to comic book nerds everywhere!
Want to Read
October 20, 2008Just bought the movie, and gave it a rewatching, awesome, loved it when i was a kid and still love it now. But I noticed in the credits that it was based on graphic novels, so now im hunting them down, can't find them yet though :(
November 26, 2007
Genre: Graphic Novel
Fun. I liked it better then the movie; less wholesome ;-)
Fun. I liked it better then the movie; less wholesome ;-)
Read
August 23, 2008isbn,original
April 22, 2009
I still remember... The very first graphic novel I ever readed. I was 7 years old, but my monstrous mother destroyed it! Bitch!
July 5, 2011
If you're a fan of comic art and originality, it does not get better than this.
December 23, 2012
Never understood why these average stories were so highly rated by others
June 21, 2016
The original retro-revisionist pulp hero and still one of the best.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews