Flight Explorer, Volume 1

by Kazu Kibuishi (Editor, Contributor)

The first volume in a new series presents an anthology of comics and graphic short stories that revolve around the theme of flight, including works by noted comic book and graphic novel creators, top animators working at Pixar and other major studios, and new Web cartoonists, including Kean Soo and Kazu Kibuishi.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Short Stories, Childrens, Science Fiction, Middle Grade

112 pages, Paperback

First published March 25, 2008

About the author

Kazu Kibuishi (born 1978) is an American graphic novel author and illustrator. He is best known for being the creator and editor of the comic anthology Flight and for creating the webcomic Copper. He has also written (drawn) the Amulet series. The webcomic artist and noted critic Scott McCloud has said that some of Kazu Kibuishi's work is so beautifully drawn that "it hurts my hands when I look at it".

Reviews

[Lata · Rating 3 out of 5]

Has some good stories, and some okay stories. Liked the story with the cat balloonist.

[CraftyChara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Copper: Mushroom Crossing by Kazu Kibuishi
Egyptian Cat: Perfect Cat by Johane Matte
Jellaby: First Snow by Kean Soo
Big Mouth by Phil Craven
Missile Mouse: The Guardian Prophecy by Jake Parker
Fish N Chips: All in A Day's Work encourages by Steve Hamaker
Zita The Space: I f Wishes Were Socks by Ben Hatke
Wooden Rivers: Rain Slickers by Rad Sechrist
Delivery by Bannister
Snow Cup: 2nd Verse by Matthew Armstrong

[Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This reminded me of Explorer: The Mystery Boxes but for younger readers, although I suppose the point is to make this more like the Flight series, but for kids, but I haven't gotten to any of the Flight books yet so can't compare them myself.

I was already familiar with a number of the authors and artists but a few were unknowns that I'll now be looking for more of. Not the most consistent in terms of quality, and some of the stories were incredibly short, to the point where there wasn't even a story, but a few others picked up the slack. I was really disappointed that Kazu Kibuishi's entry was one that I'd already read in Copper, (though it's one of my favorites) but still, I was hoping for something not previously published. The Zita the Spacegirl story was new to me (though there is a sequel, Legends of Zita the Spacegirl that I haven't read yet and it might appear in there.) Another tale about a mouse was also one that I'm not sure if it was published previously or not or new for this collection. It was from the Missile Mouse #1 The Star Crusher series. Finally, I really want to check out Jellaby now; this was actually one of the really short stories, but it managed to capture my attention and succeeded in making me want to check out the full book. It was just too cute for words.

So, not the greatest anthology but also not the worst. Some stories were a waste of space while others made me immediately check my library to see if I could put something by the author on hold. My biggest disappointment was that Kibuishi's story wasn't new, and it also made me miss Copper all over again. Check this out if you're looking for some new children's graphic novel artists, but definitely don't buy it blindly. I love Kibuishi and want to own everything he's contributed to, but sadly this one will forever remain a library rental.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

As with any anthology, there was stuff that was great and stuff that was more trivial. It was all gorgeous, and I think the weakest pieces were the very short, one-gag bits. Some of them were lovely in a way that might work better for adults than for kids.

But the book has a Zita story in it, as well as a Kibuishi short (which is darling) and a couple of other things that were really pleasing. Slight, but worth my time.

[Alyson (Kid Lit Frenzy) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is Kibuishi's MG version of his flight series. I found it to be fun, quirky, and something that 9 & 10 year olds will really enjoy. Looking forward to others in the series.

[Gideon · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was good exiting and a total wow. it had a bunch of story's in one. the disappointing part is that the story on the cover is last.it had a one eyed robot and a agent mouse.

[Halley Hopson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super cute little collection.

I especially loved the art style in the story 'Fish N Chips: All in a Day's Work' by Steve Hamaker. The colors were beautiful.

[Corina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kids loved this anthology featuring excerpts/stories from several artists, mostly new to all of us. I thought the stories varied widely in quality (and length), but I think the sheer variety made it really engaging for the kids. Definitely a good way to sample several series to help us decide what to look for next!

All appropriate for young kids - probably ideally geared towards middle grade. The Missile Mouse story contains the word "crap" if that's an issue. Also I had to explain about mummification/sacrifice since I'm positive that concept went way over their heads.

Copper: Mushroom Crossing by Kazu Kibuishi
Egyptian Cat: Perfect Cat by Johane Matte
Jellaby: First Snow by Kean Soo
Big Mouth by Phil Craven
Missile Mouse: The Guardian Prophecy by Jake Parker
Fish N Chips: All in A Day's Work encourages by Steve Hamaker
Zita The Space: I f Wishes Were Socks by Ben Hatke
Wooden Rivers: Rain Slickers by Rad Sechrist
Delivery by Bannister
Snow Cup: 2nd Verse by Matthew Armstrong

[Derryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Copper mushroom crossing 4⭐️
Egyptian cat 3⭐️
Jellaby first snow 2⭐️
Big mouth 5⭐️
Missile mouse 5⭐️
Fish N chips 5⭐️
If wishes were socks 3⭐️
Wooden river rain sticks 3⭐️
Delivery 2⭐️
Snow caps 2⭐️
Over all 3 stars 🖤🖤🖤

[Adam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun graphic novel. It is full of short stories. Some are super short and others are a little longer. There's some great humor and awesome art. Each storyline has its own artist. I will certainly recommend this to middle school aged kids and I will be picking up volume 2 myself.

[Cara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've never heard of this kind of graphic novel before. It has short stories in it, and I loved it! Most of the stories were cute and fun, but there were a couple that I will be looking into to see if there are full volumes.

[Kerry Paginton · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 stars

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some cute stories. Most were very short.

[Eliza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anthology of a number of different graphic novel authors.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great collection edited by Kazu Kibuishi.

[Hoogie · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Paul Graham Terpstra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent series. Very simple straightforward stories with not much depth to them.

[Nathan Bartos · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good that this was short because by the end, I was a little over it, but a lot of the stories were good and fun, just not great.

[LORIANN (my opinion doesn't mean much, but ...) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cute little quirky read.

[roctopus · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.25 stars

Eh.

[Colette! · Rating 4 out of 5]

Super fun read for everyone in the family. I'm docking it a star because I've tried in vain to find Volume 2 only to realize I've been had -- there IS NO VOLUME 2.

[Steve S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fun, short stories. All with good art. Each story is like a 2-5 minute read. This book seems awesome to have in a waiting room for kids or adults to pick up for a quick easy read.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun.

[Adam Sequoyah · Rating 5 out of 5]

MPA ratings: PG for violence and for mild language

[Sir Vicks of Steele · Rating 5 out of 5]

This collection was such a a fun surprise! I didn't realize that every story would be different and I loved each one. The art and genre changes were so fresh and fun. I loved the story about the wishing sock! And Missile Mouse was super fun.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

With the Harvey Award-winning anthology series Flight, editor Kazu Kibuishi has created a bit of a phenomenon. The short-story anthology had not been a popular format in comics for many years, but the critical acclaim and reader attention Flight achieved changed all that. Flight's introduction into the marketplace changed the way many publishing houses viewed comic anthologies, encouraging them to release material of their own in that vein. Because of the quality of work it contained as well, Flight became not only the flag-bearer but also the gold standard for all anthologies to live up to.

Recently, Kibuishi and his co-contributors turned their attention towards stories geared for younger readers with Flight Explorer. As it stood, the series was already rather kid-friendly, but Kibuishi has said that, in creating this new Explorer anthology, he simply wanted to "[bring] into focus the all-ages comics we've always had." In fact, Explorer contains stories starring a few familiar faces of characters seen in previous volumes of Flight such as Kibuishi's own creation "Copper" and "Jellaby" by Kean Soo. It does leave readers to ponder whether this new series was really necessary or not, but perhaps this branching out will also lead to a tonal shift to more adult-oriented content in the next volume of Flight itself, which was just released earlier this week.

This first volume of Flight Explorer contains ten stories in all which vary greatly in length, totaling a little more than a hundred pages. Most of the stories are very brief, measuring ten pages or less, but a few are longer (the "Missile Mouse" story by Jake Parker is longest at twenty pages). The tales are both serious and humorous, and they come in a variety of genres from science fiction ("Zita the Space Girl") to action/adventure ("Fish N Chips"), featuring locations as diverse as ancient Egypt ("Egyptian Cat") and the African jungle ("Delivery"). In short, there is a little bit of something for everyone in this anthology, giving it a very broad appeal.

All the stories are of very high quality as well, featuring very outstanding art and brilliant coloring. Kean Soo's "Jellaby" story is one example, a heartwarming tale of a purple monster and his human best friend. In this volume's installment "First Snow," Jellaby is exposed to the stark landscape of a snowfall for the first time, his purple color standing out beautifully against all the white, and the detail the artist puts into drawing each snowflake is intricate. The first page of "Delivery" is another strong example of the attention to detail found in each story, as the artist Bannister skillfully conveys the way the streaks of sunlight pass through the thick green undergrowth of the jungle.

Most of Flight Explorer's stories also have positive messages; the best such example can be found in the tale "Big Mouth" by Phil Craven. An overly large, overly loud creature has difficulty making friends at first due to his size and volume, but eventually he is able to find a friend who accepts him for who he is. At the very least, stories such as the "Snow Cap" tale by Matthew Armstrong or "Wooden Rivers: Rain Slickers" by Rad Sechrist, while neither one has a message per se, are completely innocuous and simple fare that children can enjoy.

In the end, Flight Explorer is certainly recommended to anyone who has children as a good read for any age group. However, some adults might find a few of the stories too slight and inconsequential to justify the $10 purchase, for, like most children's books, it is possible to read the entire thing in ten or fifteen minutes. Should the tone of Flight itself remain as kid-friendly as it has been, it would be a much better value than this Explorer series since it features similar stories of the same degree of quality, but with three times the length at only twice the price.

[Katrina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daniel really liked it. Hoping to find more

[Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun kids version of the Flight anthologies.

[Sarah BT · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've seen the Flight comics in my library young adult collection, but they are almost always checked out and I never get to read them myself. I used this module as a chance to finally read one. I picked up Flight: Explorer mostly because it had a short story about Jellaby, which I had been wanting to read since I first read the Jellaby graphic novel by Kean Soo.

I loved this collection. Just like short stories are perfect ways to find new authors, this graphic novel collection is a great way to be introduced to new illustrators and art styles. Each story has somewhat of an adventure theme to them and this collection is perfect for younger readers.

It's really hard to say which story I liked the most-they all were great. I really enjoyed Jellaby: First Snow, because I have a soft spot for the purple monster, and Kazu Kibuishi's Copper, story about a boy and his dog who have an adventure hopping across large mushrooms, made me laugh out loud.

I would give this to readers who enjoy graphic novels and also readers who aren't typically fans of the format. There's so much to pick from that I think readers will find something they enjoy. I would also pass this on to critics of graphic novels-I think this collection, as well as the other Flight collections, are a great example of the storytelling that can be found in graphic novels.

[Brenton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Flight Explorer is the new sub-series of the Flight comic anthologies, consisting of Flight fare that is more kid-suited. That alone doesn't automatically mean that I wouldn't enjoy it less than the normal Flight anthologies; I do enjoy plenty of fun kids books, after all. About half of these tales are continuations of serials previously started in the first four volumes of Flight, and it's nice to finally see some of those characters that haven't been around for two or three volumes. On the other hand, the fact that there are only ten stories and that none of this light fare is balanced out by the rougher edge of some of the normal Flight material had it feeling a bit limp to me. I know that it's just about perfect for kids who are interested in comics, but it's hard to read something under the Flight title that doesn't hit home as well as the normal volumes and appreciate it for all it is.