Space Ghost Vol. 1

by David Pepose, Jonathan Lau (contributor)

Greed and corruption flourish in the darkness between stars. With the territories of the Galactic Federation spread far and wide across the vastness of space, pirates and hijackers ransack the distant colonies with cruel disregard for the innocent scientists living within them.

Yet there is a cosmic vigilante who metes out justice throughout the galaxy, bringing vengeance to those prey upon the defenseless.

Some say he is a policeman who has abandoned the strictures of the law. Others say he is a phantom, the sole survivor of a war-torn planet. And those who have survived his wrath claim he is more a force of nature, able to bend the very elements of Creation to decimate his enemies.

They call him the SPACE GHOST ― and his adventures begin here!

Collecting issues #1-6 of the otherworldly hit series written by DAVID PEPOSE and illustrated by JONATHAN LAU.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Science Fiction

144 pages, Hardcover

First published December 10, 2024

Reviews

[Little Timmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really good comic interpretation of this classic cartoon character. Very recommended

[Davy · Rating 4 out of 5]

For as long as I can remember, Space Ghost’s design has grabbed my attention. It’s simple yet striking. Something clicked when I would catch the cartoons as a kid and again when I would watch “Space Ghost Coast to Coast”. I’m a Space Ghost fan, through and through. Each issue is an episodic adventure that reeks of good clean fun. I’ll be back for more, there’s no doubt.

[Paxton Holley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m a fan of the Space Ghost cartoon from USA Network’s Cartoon Express. I was not really a fan of the Coast to Coast talk show version of Space Ghost. So I was intrigued to see where this comic would go.

And it’s pretty good. It takes the story seriously, shows us how Jan and Jace first met Space Ghost, and even a little bit of SG’s origin story. A little bit. I liked it.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Friendship ✔️ Adventure ✔️ Animals ✔️ Fun, campy, beautiful

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

A maniacal vigilante with more strength, wisdom, and regret than he can scarcely keep to himself. A galaxy overrun by corrupt foot soldiers and out-of-touch technocrats. A couple of orphaned kids, adventurous in spirit, but eternally grieving how their future was turned to ash before their eyes.

The tale of SPACE GHOST: WITH ONLY GHOSTS TO COMFORT US is familiar. And in the world of fiction storytelling, familiarity frequently courts one of two things: the banal, or the rawest veil of truth. SPACE GHOST is comfortably nestled closer to the latter. That crazed vigilante? He's feared for a reason. He's ambitious for a reason. And he's worked solo, successfully, for years, for a reason. That seemingly lawless galaxy? It's full of corrupt corporate villains (Dr. Xander Ibal), irritable and violent police officers (Brak), fanatical prisoners heeding doomsday prophecies (Zorak), and mad physicists who lost their family, as well as their mind (Moltar). And those orphans? Jan and Jace Keplar are two adventuresome souls caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.

SPACE GHOST carries the narrative and visual aesthetic of a noir crimefighting book, wields the fantastical and dynamic breadth of gambles native to Golden Age sci-fi, and keeps close to its heart the practical and consequential storytelling tropes that ensures each of these stories churns forward. The result is a good and healthy mesh of old-school villains, traditional themes, and contemporary drama.

For example, readers eager to see Space Ghost pull no punches when trashing lizardmen or wringing the necks of escaped prisoners will get their full. Lau's art is amazing: dynamic posing, brutal shadow play, reliably original panel arrangement. This is an action book, a superhero book, and a sci-fi book, with few gaps in-between.

Similarly, readers eager for a friendly reminder of how or why old heroes take on young students will also get their fill. Jan and Jace are sharp, motivated, annoying, and have a super-intelligent pet monkey. These kids make mistakes and they get into trouble. But they also apologize for falling short and learn to grow up the hard way. For example, when Jace, the boy, is depressed over purportedly taking the life of a serial baddy, the whole crew must wrestle with the reality that fighting crime in space is truly merciless work not fit for a child.

The usual caveats apply. When journeying into the depths of space for such galaxy-endangering exploits, readers can expect characters to apply exquisitely simple solutions to counterbalance egregiously complex problems. And when mopey backstories threaten to overtake the primary narrative, readers can expect a murderous giant robot, a massive energy monster, or a hadron collider to get thrown into the mix. In short, these are the types of sci-fi stories for which big problems get bigger, until they don't. In the end, most problems can be solved with a blaster set to kill, a good punch to the face, or a clever bit of betrayal. All in the name of justice.

[Duncs Comics · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's kind of the era of nostalgic cartoon revivals in comics with the Transformers/GI Joe Energon universe, Space Ghost, Darkwing Duck, Gargoyles, Dick Tracy, Jason Aaron's TMNT and Thundercats all being popular titles releasing right now. We have more on the way too in the form of Silverhawks, Power lords and Captain Planet. And I'm loving having an entry point in these franchises where I don't have the same childhood reference as other readers might. It's so cool that these beloved characters and stories can live on in comic book form. These stories excite older fans and invite a new audience as well.

My impression of Space Ghost so far is that it is kind of like Star Wars: Skeleton Crew but with superheroes instead of Jedi. It's sci-fi fun in space with the titular superhero at the centre of the adventure. Given that my only connection with Space Ghost prior to this is getting glimpses of the 'Coast to Coast' Cartoon Network show when I was heading to bed as a kid, I am pleasantly inquisitive about who this character is and what we are going to learn about him. I assume Coast to Coast was 'mature' in the sense of being an adult comedy, and Pepose's story is wisely 'mature' in that it is serious in tone and action-packed. The audience has grown up, and so the winning formula is to inject just the right amount of 'grit' into this series without it becoming too exaggerated or forced, and Pepose achieves that.

After the initial introduction of the main trio, we get the first story arc with Zorak, who is brilliantly depicted as this unpredictable, hyperviolent cult leader who intends to summon some kind of apocalyptic locust. He is one of the two or three other Space Ghost designs I am familiar with, and this iteration of Zorak is a lot of fun. Between him and those cat-like aliens who wear Polynesian-esque masks which we see earlier on, I'm excited to see more of Space Ghost's rogues gallery and explore space with him. I might need to seek out some earlier Space Ghost media soon, because this book is really entertaining so far!

What else can we give the Space Ghost treatment? Birdman, SWAT Kats, Street Sharks? Keep these coming!

[Norman Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a dark and realistic interpretation of the Space Ghost mythos. For anyone under about 60 years old who only knows Space Ghost from the silly talk show he did on Adult Swim, it will probably be a culture shock. For those of us who know Space Ghost from the Saturday morning cartoons of the 1960s, it's still a bit of a culture shock, but Pepose keeps the basic tenets while forging a new, more adult origin featuring classic villains such as Brak, Zorak, and Moltar. It remains to be seen whether Pepose will incorporate other of the Hanna-Barbera characters such as Jonny Quest and the Herculoids into an extended universe the way Jeff Parker expertly did with his run at DC five years ago. So far, though, I'm enjoying this nostalgia trip, and I hope new readers will get onboard this exciting adventure. The excellent artwork by Jonathan Lau has a very modern style, not cartoony at all, which for now is an appropriate way to go on this series.
Note: I binge read the individual issues.

[Alex Boyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 1966 cartoon was still around when I was growing up as a kid: it's simplistic but fun, and done in a clean, memorable style as designed by artist Alex Toth. I bought it on DVD for my own kids. It never caught fire like Scooby-Doo but was fairly briefly something they enjoyed.

I thought this new comic series (6 issues collected here) had excellent art and manages a pretty good balancing act of a more mature storyline that doesn't get into anything overly intense or drag the concept into gore and extreme violence. It's for early teens and older rather than kids, but it's an interesting new look at the concept.

[Jaime Guzman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am a huge Hanna-Barbera fan and when I saw that Dynamite was coming out with comic books based on their characters I had to pick this book up.
What they did to keep the essence of Space Ghost while giving us glimpses of his past was pretty cool. These characters no longer seemed two dimensional but fully realized characters with the heft of emotions.
At this volume 2 has completely sold out in both paperback and hardcover. I hope they come out with a 2nd print run so that I can continue to enjoy these new adventures of this Hanna-Barbera classic superhero.

[Nick Pratt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I came to this as somebody who knows very little about Space Ghost other than the Coast to Coast cartoon. I’d heard good things about this series, but after reading I suspect there is a lot of nostalgia at play. I didn’t find anything particularly new or interesting about the story. It’s very by the numbers and the characters aren’t very deep. The reading experience was saved by excellent artwork. Unless you are already a fan, your mileage may vary with this one. 2.5/5

[AviChaim Snyder · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Thoroughly love every bit of this book! Pepose and Lau can simultaneously show respect for the source material, having a sense of nostalgia towards the characters but also creating new and exciting stories for the characters to go on. This book is awesome and both Marvel and DC need to take a page out of Pepose's book. Couldn't recommend more! Grade: A

[Clayton Strang · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was super excited to see that Space Ghost was getting a modern comic, and I was right to be. The art is amazing; everything you’d want from a great comic art. The writing is a little clunky, but I just imagine it as if Hanna Barbera took itself a little more seriously. I’m hopeful that as issues continue to come out, the writing will find itself.

[Matthew Supinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite hero stories I’ve read in a while. So refreshing to have a hero story where you learn enough about the hero, but pick up more as you read. You also have these other characters on the side that have good stories and their own side issues that they resolve as the main plot goes on. You should absolutely read it.

[Jacob Klimoski · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great story. I didn't know too much about Space Ghost prior except seeing his late night talk show a little bit when I was a kid. This had all the bits that you need in an intro to a character. Had some good heart, especially towards the end of the trade. Good stuff!

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pepose plays it straight in this new Space Ghost comic. Jan and Jace see their parents die and Space Ghost takes them in as they fight all the bad guys you remember from the fantastic cartoon. It's exactly what I wanted if you're a fan of the Alex Toth designed TV show.

[Greg Trosclair · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really fun introduction to a classic character. I really hope this version of Space Ghost lasts for a long time.

[Alex Fyffe · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

[Rafael Umaña · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ssooooooo good. Banjo approves

[Jon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have strong nostalgia for the Ghost but this didn't make me feel anything except boredom. I'd rather just look at the Alex Toth art books again.

[Leann Tipton · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story was great. The text was often too small to read.