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Airboy: Deluxe Edition
When acclaimed comics author JAMES ROBINSON (Starman, Fantastic Four) is hired to write a reboot of the 1940s action hero Airboy, he's reluctant to do yet another Golden Age reboot. Just what the hell has happened to his career-?! His marriage?! His life?! Hey, it's nothing that a drink can't fix. It's after one such night of debauchery with artist GREG HINKLE that the project really comes into its own.
Quite literally. Because Airboy himself appears to set the two depraved comic book creators on the straight and narrow. But no one in this story has their life go according to plan. Read the entire series in one hardcover collected volume, which features a brand new story dealing with the reaction to the comic's initial publication that doesn't turn out the way anyone expects...least of all Robinson and Hinkle. A satirical look into the comic book industry paired with the debauchery of Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
Quite literally. Because Airboy himself appears to set the two depraved comic book creators on the straight and narrow. But no one in this story has their life go according to plan. Read the entire series in one hardcover collected volume, which features a brand new story dealing with the reaction to the comic's initial publication that doesn't turn out the way anyone expects...least of all Robinson and Hinkle. A satirical look into the comic book industry paired with the debauchery of Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.
120 pages, Hardcover
First published January 26, 2016
5 people are currently reading
136 people want to read
About the author
James Robinson
1,270 books237 followersJames Dale Robinson is a British writer of American comic books and screenplays.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
December 4, 2015
James Robinson is in a bad place. He’s spending too much time getting fucked up on booze and drugs because he’s dissatisfied with his work at DC and the pigeonhole he’s found himself in at this point of his career as “the guy who reboots Golden Age characters”. So when he’s approached by Image publisher Eric Stephenson to reboot Airboy, another Golden Age character, he’s hesitant but takes the job for the cash.
Teaming up with artist Greg Hinkle, the two struggle to come up with a fresh take for this unknown and outdated intellectual property - so they resort to getting fucked up on booze and drugs for ideas! An epic Hunter S. Thompson-like bacchanal later and the two wake up to see the larger-than-life character of Airboy standing in front of them. But… he’s just a comic book character… isn’t he?
Airboy really was a popular comics character from WW2 who had adventures flying planes and shooting down Nazis. Except readers in the post-war years lost interest and the character’s publisher eventually moved away from comics allowing the rights on the property to lapse until it became public domain.
Also: this is easily one of the best comics of the year! Robinson writing himself and Hinkle into the comic as these debauched characters is an inspired decision but then putting Airboy alongside them is a slam dunk. The fish-out-of-water angle works beautifully as Airboy finds 21st century San Francisco deeply disappointing to great comedic effect, especially when he wonders whether James and Greg are supervillains and this is all a trick! James and Greg make a brilliant double act too, the pair bumbling through the weirdness they find themselves in in a charming and entertaining way.
But it’s more than the setup that makes this a really interesting comic; it’s also Robinson’s brutal self-deprecation and honesty about himself that makes this so compelling. Not that I’m certain everything he reveals here is 100% true but there are elements to them that feel real. He touches on his bad experiences and falling out with DC after many years working there (his New 52 Earth-2 series was poorly received and he partially blames editorial interference, something MANY creators who’ve worked at DC these last few years have also complained about), his misadventures in Hollywood (his movie Comic Book Villains sank without a trace and his screenplay for the dismal League of Extraordinary Gentlemen movie effectively ended his film career), and how comics readers these days care more about the likes of Scott Snyder and Geoff Johns than anything he does.
Greg Hinkle is a revelation. Besides some fantastic imagery, including the exceptional drug sequence and the action scenes in the second half of the book, he chooses to draw “our world” in one colour, so a lot of the book is coloured in the green seen on the cover, but he colours Airboy and his world in full colour. It’s also worth mentioning there is a LOT of full frontal male nudity – Hinkle’s glorious horse cock (hey, if you’re drawing yourself nekkid wouldn’t you big yourself up?) gets quite a bit of air time!
There was some controversy in the second issue when Robinson unintentionally insulted the Trans community with a scene in a gay bar’s toilet. It was an outdated stereotypical jokey slur that (pun not intended) doesn’t fly in the 21st century but Robinson did apologise extensively for it. I don’t believe he meant any malice so it didn’t ruin the comic for me. There’s only one punching bag in this book and it’s James Robinson.
Airboy is an absolutely superb comic that takes a long-forgotten character and rejuvenates him by throwing him into a post-modern/magical realist story about a comics writer trying to get his life in order. I’ve never read anything like it. James Robinson may be lamenting his seemingly atrophied career but Airboy proves he may have been down but not out. It’s a return to form for Robinson and arguably his best comic yet while being a tremendous break for Greg Hinkle whose work we’ll hopefully see lots more of in the future.
Airboy is one of the most original and outstanding comics of 2015 – don’t miss it!
Teaming up with artist Greg Hinkle, the two struggle to come up with a fresh take for this unknown and outdated intellectual property - so they resort to getting fucked up on booze and drugs for ideas! An epic Hunter S. Thompson-like bacchanal later and the two wake up to see the larger-than-life character of Airboy standing in front of them. But… he’s just a comic book character… isn’t he?
Airboy really was a popular comics character from WW2 who had adventures flying planes and shooting down Nazis. Except readers in the post-war years lost interest and the character’s publisher eventually moved away from comics allowing the rights on the property to lapse until it became public domain.
Also: this is easily one of the best comics of the year! Robinson writing himself and Hinkle into the comic as these debauched characters is an inspired decision but then putting Airboy alongside them is a slam dunk. The fish-out-of-water angle works beautifully as Airboy finds 21st century San Francisco deeply disappointing to great comedic effect, especially when he wonders whether James and Greg are supervillains and this is all a trick! James and Greg make a brilliant double act too, the pair bumbling through the weirdness they find themselves in in a charming and entertaining way.
But it’s more than the setup that makes this a really interesting comic; it’s also Robinson’s brutal self-deprecation and honesty about himself that makes this so compelling. Not that I’m certain everything he reveals here is 100% true but there are elements to them that feel real. He touches on his bad experiences and falling out with DC after many years working there (his New 52 Earth-2 series was poorly received and he partially blames editorial interference, something MANY creators who’ve worked at DC these last few years have also complained about), his misadventures in Hollywood (his movie Comic Book Villains sank without a trace and his screenplay for the dismal League of Extraordinary Gentlemen movie effectively ended his film career), and how comics readers these days care more about the likes of Scott Snyder and Geoff Johns than anything he does.
Greg Hinkle is a revelation. Besides some fantastic imagery, including the exceptional drug sequence and the action scenes in the second half of the book, he chooses to draw “our world” in one colour, so a lot of the book is coloured in the green seen on the cover, but he colours Airboy and his world in full colour. It’s also worth mentioning there is a LOT of full frontal male nudity – Hinkle’s glorious horse cock (hey, if you’re drawing yourself nekkid wouldn’t you big yourself up?) gets quite a bit of air time!
There was some controversy in the second issue when Robinson unintentionally insulted the Trans community with a scene in a gay bar’s toilet. It was an outdated stereotypical jokey slur that (pun not intended) doesn’t fly in the 21st century but Robinson did apologise extensively for it. I don’t believe he meant any malice so it didn’t ruin the comic for me. There’s only one punching bag in this book and it’s James Robinson.
Airboy is an absolutely superb comic that takes a long-forgotten character and rejuvenates him by throwing him into a post-modern/magical realist story about a comics writer trying to get his life in order. I’ve never read anything like it. James Robinson may be lamenting his seemingly atrophied career but Airboy proves he may have been down but not out. It’s a return to form for Robinson and arguably his best comic yet while being a tremendous break for Greg Hinkle whose work we’ll hopefully see lots more of in the future.
Airboy is one of the most original and outstanding comics of 2015 – don’t miss it!
May 6, 2019
Geez! My innocent eyes. 🙈
November 11, 2015
This was a pretty fun book.
Fun, that is, if you don't mind an exorbitant amount of drug use, foul language, and a couple of images of hairy dongs.
It's also got superheroes and Steam Punk Nazis - so there's that.
Essentially it's the story of a comic creator that feels down on his luck and has a shot of making his way back into the industry.
It's more than that, though. It's about picking yourself up, dusting yourself off and going for it. With ... well ... Like I said earlier ... with a big hairy dong.
There are times where the comic kinda breaks the fourth wall in a way. Not in the normal sense where a character will turn and talk to us, the audience, but there are moments that draw in our real world, our present time and it really makes for a good chuckle or two.
This story is like the book (and movie) Fear And Loathing in Las Vegas, only for comic book creators.
In my mind, that makes it something worth reading.
Fun, that is, if you don't mind an exorbitant amount of drug use, foul language, and a couple of images of hairy dongs.
It's also got superheroes and Steam Punk Nazis - so there's that.
Essentially it's the story of a comic creator that feels down on his luck and has a shot of making his way back into the industry.
It's more than that, though. It's about picking yourself up, dusting yourself off and going for it. With ... well ... Like I said earlier ... with a big hairy dong.
There are times where the comic kinda breaks the fourth wall in a way. Not in the normal sense where a character will turn and talk to us, the audience, but there are moments that draw in our real world, our present time and it really makes for a good chuckle or two.
This story is like the book (and movie) Fear And Loathing in Las Vegas, only for comic book creators.
In my mind, that makes it something worth reading.
January 9, 2021
Parádní jízda.
Teda pokud nepotřebujete nutně číst příběh o Airboy-ovi a stačí vám šílenost, o tom jak vyhořelý Robinson netuší jak napsat reboot Airboye a tak si pozve Hinkleho k sobě do města, kde se místo psaní šíleně nafetují.
Celé je to odlehčené a nedá se to moc brát jako jakási terapie, spíš jako rýpání do sebe samých a michání satiry s pubertálním humorem.
Jo, je to pecka.
Teda pokud nepotřebujete nutně číst příběh o Airboy-ovi a stačí vám šílenost, o tom jak vyhořelý Robinson netuší jak napsat reboot Airboye a tak si pozve Hinkleho k sobě do města, kde se místo psaní šíleně nafetují.
Celé je to odlehčené a nedá se to moc brát jako jakási terapie, spíš jako rýpání do sebe samých a michání satiry s pubertálním humorem.
Jo, je to pecka.
November 5, 2016
Hated it. This was a recommendation from a comic book store in Dallas but woof! What a miss. Too much whining about how he's not as famous as other comic book writers. Definitely NSFW with all the sex scenes, drugs and way too many penis pics. The writer and artist definitely think more of their genital size than I ever want to. Save yourself the time and skip it.
January 4, 2024
Gave us a look behind the scenes at a creative process surrounding the idea of rebooting a long lost character and I hated it.
January 6, 2024
4.25 stars. In the forward to this book, James Robinson says he wants this book to be sincere more so than anything else and I think that in a weird and messed up sort of way, he hit that perfectly. I love autobiographical comics and the way that the creative team explored a writer stereotype and a story through a somewhat (or possibly totally) true tale such as this was brilliant. I definitely don’t think this book would be for everybody, but I certainly enjoyed the read.
January 29, 2024
A hilarious spin on the classic writer with writer's block writing about writer's block.
James Robinson and artist Greg Hinkle play overtop versions of themselves in this. James is contacted by the CEO of Image Comics, who apparently works in a beautiful large penthouse overlooking the city, to reboot Airboy which has now fallen into the public domain.
James has zero ideas and enlists Greg to draw. Instead of working on the comic they go on a drug bender. The next day the real Airboy appears in their apartment!
I really enjoy Hinkle's manic detailed artwork. His use of color is great - The real world is green and dull. Airboy's world has more color. I did find the color to be a bit too dark throughout, perhaps a digital version would look brighter.
The comic is pretty short but tells a pretty good redemption story. I wouldn't mind seeing a sequel or some sort of spin-off. James and Greg get back together for one last bender!?
James Robinson and artist Greg Hinkle play overtop versions of themselves in this. James is contacted by the CEO of Image Comics, who apparently works in a beautiful large penthouse overlooking the city, to reboot Airboy which has now fallen into the public domain.
James has zero ideas and enlists Greg to draw. Instead of working on the comic they go on a drug bender. The next day the real Airboy appears in their apartment!
I really enjoy Hinkle's manic detailed artwork. His use of color is great - The real world is green and dull. Airboy's world has more color. I did find the color to be a bit too dark throughout, perhaps a digital version would look brighter.
The comic is pretty short but tells a pretty good redemption story. I wouldn't mind seeing a sequel or some sort of spin-off. James and Greg get back together for one last bender!?
March 31, 2017
The best thing James Robinson has written in years. Robinson takes a hard look at himself and then amps up his awfulness to 11. Greg Hinkle's art is inspired. I liked how our world is all a monotone green while Airboy's is full color.
James Robinson is burnt out and burned his bridges at DC. So when Image calls and offers him a new book featuring Airboy, he takes it for the paycheck. He meets with Greg Hinkle to come up with ideas for the book. Nothing is forthcoming, so they head out for a drink. Robinson leads them into a night of Hunter S. Thompson level of debauchery and they both wake up seeing Airboy in the flesh. Airboy is disgusted with our world and at a point Robinson and Hinkle shift into Airboy's world. This book is definitely NSFW and full of male genitalia. But it's a raucous, self-deprecating, rip-roaring good time.
James Robinson is burnt out and burned his bridges at DC. So when Image calls and offers him a new book featuring Airboy, he takes it for the paycheck. He meets with Greg Hinkle to come up with ideas for the book. Nothing is forthcoming, so they head out for a drink. Robinson leads them into a night of Hunter S. Thompson level of debauchery and they both wake up seeing Airboy in the flesh. Airboy is disgusted with our world and at a point Robinson and Hinkle shift into Airboy's world. This book is definitely NSFW and full of male genitalia. But it's a raucous, self-deprecating, rip-roaring good time.
July 23, 2016
Wow what a great fresh concept. I very much enjoyed this journey of "finding one self"or "loosing oneself) . We all go through changes ( no so self-destructive ) as life continues on, some changes are harder than others throughout life. A creative mind that looses oneself or believe in oneself. Great read (not for young readers)
January 9, 2021
1. Dvojica koko*ov.
2. Tento komiks obsahuje viac penisov než Game of Thrones.
3. Tento komiks obsahuje viac užívania drog než Trainspotting. Ok ne, ale približuje sa.
4. Vtipné a správne vulgárne.
5. Perfektná kresba ktorá ma navnadila pozrieť si viac vecí od Hinkla.
6. Ak očakávate príbeh o Airboyovi, tak ho aj dostanete, aj ste totálne vedľa.
2. Tento komiks obsahuje viac penisov než Game of Thrones.
3. Tento komiks obsahuje viac užívania drog než Trainspotting. Ok ne, ale približuje sa.
4. Vtipné a správne vulgárne.
5. Perfektná kresba ktorá ma navnadila pozrieť si viac vecí od Hinkla.
6. Ak očakávate príbeh o Airboyovi, tak ho aj dostanete, aj ste totálne vedľa.
March 22, 2018
A washed-up comics author is tasked with bringing back a beloved old character - Airboy - but struggles to do so. Instead, he convinces the up-and-coming artist that is supposed to do the book to take copious amounts of drugs with him, and the two fellows find themselves drawn into the world of Airboy himself. It's a pretty fun read.
February 12, 2017
For everyone screaming, "We want more full frontal male nudity!!" Your request has been heard. James Robinson and Greg Hinkle get crazy with Airboy and his crew. It's four issues of fun. If you don't check it out the Nazis win.
July 9, 2018
This comic is not recommeded for prudes. The authors created characters with their own names in a scenario where they have to reboot Airboy. Most of the time they are just high on an assortment of drugs or having casual sex with varous partners. The graphical part is interesting. It's mostly monochrome until Airboy shows up. His vivid colors reveal the stark difference between his world and his views on life and ours. Airboy often criticizes the decadence of the modern world even going as far at to say that winning the war made little sense, but he never stops fighting and his zest for life is transferred to James in the end.
James Robinson is offered a chance to get away from working at DC Comics and reboot Airboy, a Golden Age comic character, for Image Comics. James reluctantly accepts, while criticizing his job at DC. He teams up with artist Greg Hinkle to get the creative juices flowing. They get drunk and drugged while hitting the nightclubs, but they still don't have a story going. The night ends in a threesome with a random woman from a bar. The next morning Airboy himself pops through the window and what follows in an adventure with highs and lows that will help James see where his life has gone wrong and how he can get past his depression.
James Robinson is offered a chance to get away from working at DC Comics and reboot Airboy, a Golden Age comic character, for Image Comics. James reluctantly accepts, while criticizing his job at DC. He teams up with artist Greg Hinkle to get the creative juices flowing. They get drunk and drugged while hitting the nightclubs, but they still don't have a story going. The night ends in a threesome with a random woman from a bar. The next morning Airboy himself pops through the window and what follows in an adventure with highs and lows that will help James see where his life has gone wrong and how he can get past his depression.
June 21, 2021
James Robinson does his version of Hunter S. Thompson, as he uses a version of himself to be the protagonist of his own story.
I really didn't know what to expect from this book. I've heard the name "Airboy" in the past, but didn't really know much about the character or his history. Which is part of the premise of this book. People have forgotten about him and don't really know who he is or what he is about. So when Image asks Robinson to write a story about Airboy, Robinson is at a complete loss as to what to write. He gets the artist, Greg Hinkle, to come down and brainstorm ideas, but instead they get wasted off of booze, cocaine and apparently heroin, and completely waste their time with debauchery. This is then interrupted by the appearance of the character of Airboy himself, as he somehow crosses over to our reality to be horrified by the environment and by these two - what he perceives as - scumbags.
I loved the way that Robinson makes the whole story meta, as its a story about what the comic should be about, and then it just writes itself with the appearance of the main character... very trippy and very cool. The art was really expressive and cartoony yet grimey. It was a perfect fit for the book as it matched the sillyness of the more ridiculous parts, and yet was able to convey the dirty and grimey nature of the "Real" world.
I really enjoyed this. It was such a pleasant surprise as it really did its own thing and didn't follow the conventional method of "rebooting" or "reimagining" an old character for modern times. Instead, it allows that type of rehashing of an old character to take on a life in itself, and also allowed for some real introspection of the artist and the writer especially.
I would recommend this if you are not offended by vulgar language, nudity, and a little violence. This is definitely not for kids, so keep it away from the young ones. But if this sounds like your type of thing, you have to check it out.
I really didn't know what to expect from this book. I've heard the name "Airboy" in the past, but didn't really know much about the character or his history. Which is part of the premise of this book. People have forgotten about him and don't really know who he is or what he is about. So when Image asks Robinson to write a story about Airboy, Robinson is at a complete loss as to what to write. He gets the artist, Greg Hinkle, to come down and brainstorm ideas, but instead they get wasted off of booze, cocaine and apparently heroin, and completely waste their time with debauchery. This is then interrupted by the appearance of the character of Airboy himself, as he somehow crosses over to our reality to be horrified by the environment and by these two - what he perceives as - scumbags.
I loved the way that Robinson makes the whole story meta, as its a story about what the comic should be about, and then it just writes itself with the appearance of the main character... very trippy and very cool. The art was really expressive and cartoony yet grimey. It was a perfect fit for the book as it matched the sillyness of the more ridiculous parts, and yet was able to convey the dirty and grimey nature of the "Real" world.
I really enjoyed this. It was such a pleasant surprise as it really did its own thing and didn't follow the conventional method of "rebooting" or "reimagining" an old character for modern times. Instead, it allows that type of rehashing of an old character to take on a life in itself, and also allowed for some real introspection of the artist and the writer especially.
I would recommend this if you are not offended by vulgar language, nudity, and a little violence. This is definitely not for kids, so keep it away from the young ones. But if this sounds like your type of thing, you have to check it out.
June 7, 2019
Not at all what I was expecting. I was expecting something similar to the Eclipse series, with some far out action and characters. And well, we got that, but this sure isn't the Eclipse series.
This was great, one of the most original and funny comics ever. I've always loved comedy featuring caricatures of real people (Think Curb Your Enthuiasm, or the Ricky Gervais comedy series Extras.) and this is basically that same concept in comic form. You have the writer and artist portraying themselves as total degenerates, and then along comes Airboy. Does he save the day and drag the pair back into the light, or does he slip into the darkness himself? A little bit of both actually. It's a series that breaks the fourth wall in a different way with the writer and artist the featured players in the story. It's a probably a little too raunchy for some readers, but if you don't mind some adult comedy you need to check this out. I really don't know if fans of the original Airboy would like this or not, because it has little to do with that series. But I was a huge fan of the Eclipse Airboy series, and I thought this was hilarious. If you want some dirty comedy that's not the usual, try this one.
This was great, one of the most original and funny comics ever. I've always loved comedy featuring caricatures of real people (Think Curb Your Enthuiasm, or the Ricky Gervais comedy series Extras.) and this is basically that same concept in comic form. You have the writer and artist portraying themselves as total degenerates, and then along comes Airboy. Does he save the day and drag the pair back into the light, or does he slip into the darkness himself? A little bit of both actually. It's a series that breaks the fourth wall in a different way with the writer and artist the featured players in the story. It's a probably a little too raunchy for some readers, but if you don't mind some adult comedy you need to check this out. I really don't know if fans of the original Airboy would like this or not, because it has little to do with that series. But I was a huge fan of the Eclipse Airboy series, and I thought this was hilarious. If you want some dirty comedy that's not the usual, try this one.
April 16, 2024
"Airboy" combines brilliant artwork, an elaborate and accurate portrayal of San Francisco and a
disturbing depiction of deep addiction and self sabotage into a lackluster meta-fiction adventure. In this book, the Golden Age Airboy character and his entourage, now safely in the public domain, interact with cartoonized versions of the book's writer and artist as they engage in one dysfunctional drug addled "adventure" after another. The result is truly disappointing on two counts: first the very real issues of addiction and mental illness are flaunted but never given their due attention; second the book does a brilliant job of portraying the "Airboy" characters but quickly abandons them to focus on the stoned and not entirely likeable creatives behind the book itself.
Unfortunately, anyone who just wanted to read a new "Airboy" story or explore re-envisioned Golden Age characters is out of luck. This book is recommended for extremely hard core fans of 40's patriotic comics who absolutely have to read the latest take on Airboy and anyone who likes to find the silver lining in deeply flawed works.
disturbing depiction of deep addiction and self sabotage into a lackluster meta-fiction adventure. In this book, the Golden Age Airboy character and his entourage, now safely in the public domain, interact with cartoonized versions of the book's writer and artist as they engage in one dysfunctional drug addled "adventure" after another. The result is truly disappointing on two counts: first the very real issues of addiction and mental illness are flaunted but never given their due attention; second the book does a brilliant job of portraying the "Airboy" characters but quickly abandons them to focus on the stoned and not entirely likeable creatives behind the book itself.
Unfortunately, anyone who just wanted to read a new "Airboy" story or explore re-envisioned Golden Age characters is out of luck. This book is recommended for extremely hard core fans of 40's patriotic comics who absolutely have to read the latest take on Airboy and anyone who likes to find the silver lining in deeply flawed works.
June 16, 2024
James Robinson is tasked with writing a reboot of Airboy, which leads him and his artist counterpart on an all-time bender. Airboy is a pretty quick read with as many surprising twists as it has images of Greg Hinkle's giant dick. Every page was a new, strange, often unpleasant surprise - but I mean that in the best way! It's a very fun, very odd fever dream.
July 25, 2016
So.
Back in the 80s, back before some of you were born, there was a small independent comics company called Eclipse Comics. They did this thing I found really awesome*, they took a little remembered comic book from the Golden Age, Air Fighters Comics and brought the characters out of retirement. And they released the new stories biweekly, for 50 cents an issue! I was in love, and I think i collected every issue.
*obligatory 80s terminology for authenticity
Fast forward to 2016, when I find a new Airboy on the shelves of my local comics shop.
!!!!
I grab it and take it home, without even thinking!
So.
It turns out, that this is the "Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas"-esque interpretation of a writer debating the decision to write Airboy again, off with his artist on a drug-and-alcohol-induced imaginary journey with the "real" Airboy of the 1940s. This is laced with sex and drugs and alcohol and nudity and "mature themes"
Use at your own risk. It's good, but not the comic I had bought into.
Back in the 80s, back before some of you were born, there was a small independent comics company called Eclipse Comics. They did this thing I found really awesome*, they took a little remembered comic book from the Golden Age, Air Fighters Comics and brought the characters out of retirement. And they released the new stories biweekly, for 50 cents an issue! I was in love, and I think i collected every issue.
*obligatory 80s terminology for authenticity
Fast forward to 2016, when I find a new Airboy on the shelves of my local comics shop.
!!!!
I grab it and take it home, without even thinking!
So.
It turns out, that this is the "Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas"-esque interpretation of a writer debating the decision to write Airboy again, off with his artist on a drug-and-alcohol-induced imaginary journey with the "real" Airboy of the 1940s. This is laced with sex and drugs and alcohol and nudity and "mature themes"
Use at your own risk. It's good, but not the comic I had bought into.
June 15, 2016
BLEW MY MIND !!!! AWESOME !!!!! Robinson demonstrates us once again how creative one can be with the comics medium. Greg Hinkle's extraordinary talent is a discovery for me. A book to cherish.
August 28, 2017
Read it in one session, blew my mind.
Great ideas, great setting and colouring, great book!
Great ideas, great setting and colouring, great book!
October 6, 2021
Airboy is James Robinson’s return to his avant-garde roots. For comic book aficionados you will remember his work from London’s Dark, Bluebeard, Illegal Alien and some others I can’t remember, then he went off to work in the mainstream, getting a hit with his Starman Vertigo series. Thought most of the younger collectors I know have never heard of it.
Airboy himself is now a public domain character about a flying ace in a weird plane – the wings actually flap like a bird – who started out in the 1940s, then was resurrected in the 1980s by Eclipse, now has a few more books going for it. If you’ve never heard of him, don’t worry. No background is needed to understand the action here. James Robinson puts himself in the book, being offered a chance to work on a new Airboy series, which he is wildly unenthusiastic about. After spending a day and a night ingesting drugs with the artist attached to the series, Airboy himself appears and hilarity ensues.
There is a certain amount of naval gazing in this book. A certain amount of whining about his career, about not being that famous, about what a horrible person he is. This can be taken in various ways, but you never really feel sorry for the man, because he has had a career that would be the envy of many others. His lamenting that his creative juices might be tapped and his dislike of his current work for the big two. While the meta part has been done before – see Grant Morrison, see Kurt Vonnegut, see Dave Sims, see Sergio Aragones etc. – I feel its done well here. This is a deeply personal work, with not much action, except at the end. It isn’t standard comic book fare, but to me was worth the price of admission.
Airboy himself is now a public domain character about a flying ace in a weird plane – the wings actually flap like a bird – who started out in the 1940s, then was resurrected in the 1980s by Eclipse, now has a few more books going for it. If you’ve never heard of him, don’t worry. No background is needed to understand the action here. James Robinson puts himself in the book, being offered a chance to work on a new Airboy series, which he is wildly unenthusiastic about. After spending a day and a night ingesting drugs with the artist attached to the series, Airboy himself appears and hilarity ensues.
There is a certain amount of naval gazing in this book. A certain amount of whining about his career, about not being that famous, about what a horrible person he is. This can be taken in various ways, but you never really feel sorry for the man, because he has had a career that would be the envy of many others. His lamenting that his creative juices might be tapped and his dislike of his current work for the big two. While the meta part has been done before – see Grant Morrison, see Kurt Vonnegut, see Dave Sims, see Sergio Aragones etc. – I feel its done well here. This is a deeply personal work, with not much action, except at the end. It isn’t standard comic book fare, but to me was worth the price of admission.
October 4, 2017
Basically the kind of comic I'd write if I ever got the chance.
The depraved misappropriation of a Golden Age character to suit one's self-indulgent needs through a metafictional take on loathsome self-examination, without being too much of a hipster ironic take.
This is Robinson calling back the Sturm und drang of his Starman run. And while's is not entirely innovative and a bit problematic (Robinson makes a major faux pas)--it's honest. When a writer is no longer sure he can hack it anymore...
The depraved misappropriation of a Golden Age character to suit one's self-indulgent needs through a metafictional take on loathsome self-examination, without being too much of a hipster ironic take.
This is Robinson calling back the Sturm und drang of his Starman run. And while's is not entirely innovative and a bit problematic (Robinson makes a major faux pas)--it's honest. When a writer is no longer sure he can hack it anymore...
December 17, 2021
I'm not a big fan of Robinson, but this one is very funny and the art is fantastic. The writing is as good as it was going to be, given the material and Robinson's peccadillos. The funny bits are on point and even the self-effacing stuff doesn't come off as cringey or whiny. A lot of the work is being done by the art in this department. There is that mix of great craftsman effortlessness with the levity of an assured eye and a clear hold of the farcical aspect of the story. Really liked it.
June 4, 2017
Very meta. A comic about a duo of comic writers who're debating whether to revive an old comic series and end up as characters in said series. Lotsa drug use, lotsa (male) full-frontal nudity, so beware if you're not into adult themes.
It also gets fairly tedious before it ends, to be frank.
It also gets fairly tedious before it ends, to be frank.
January 25, 2023
4.5 stars
A full-on 'balls outs' (very literally on some pages) take on the comics creative process, with lashings of (too many) drugs, sex and self-analysis (or would that be self-flagellation?) Very meta, but the appearance of Airboy himself, in a strange way, actually grounds the book...
A full-on 'balls outs' (very literally on some pages) take on the comics creative process, with lashings of (too many) drugs, sex and self-analysis (or would that be self-flagellation?) Very meta, but the appearance of Airboy himself, in a strange way, actually grounds the book...
May 25, 2017
James. I forgive you for LXG.
Thanks for all the dicks I loved each and every one of them!
Thanks for all the dicks I loved each and every one of them!
June 15, 2017
I loved this series. I picked it up in issues every month it came out. Love every bit of it.
March 7, 2018
Fantastic art work, good story (maybe a little wordy at times). Really great visuals, I thought.
July 8, 2018
Muy loco, muy bueno!
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