Star Wars #07-38 - the Marvel stories bridging the gap between the first two movies

Following the debut of the original "Star Wars" film, Marvel was in the well negotiated position when it comes to tie-in material. The comicbook adaptation of the movie was selling well in multiple formats, and the plans were made for Roy Thomas and Howard Chaykin to continue working with the characters past the end of the movie. With Star Wars becoming a huge cinema success, the sequel was guaranteed, putting Marvel in an interesting position when it comes to their comics.

Without a clear idea of quite how George Lucas was going to proceed with the next movie, Marvel and Roy Thomas opted to focus on Han Solo and Chewbacca. The two "star-hoppers" (the term that was everywhere in these early issues) thus continue on to star in a modestly designed retelling of "Seven Samurai". As one of the earliest Star Wars stories, it's full of oddities like a Don Quixote Jedi knight wannabe and the infamous Jaxxon antropomorphic rabbit, but it's more interesting in what it sets up.

By the time the story ends, both Roy Thomas and Howard Chaykin have finished with their commitment to Star Wars, and the new creative team get to follow-up on their subplots. Archie Goodwin writes and veteran Carmine Infantino chart the best selling title's course to another basically standalone space opera adventure, this time dealing with the film's whole principal cast. The story deals with two fractions warring on an ocean-based planet, and what it lacks in ambition it at least makes up in retaining the core of Star Wars.

The several oneshots that follow respectively tie up a Roy Thomas subplot, introduce an intriguing new character and finally feature the first traditional fill-in issue of the run, scripted by a young Chris Claremont. It's still early days for Archie Goodwin's Star Wars run, but glimmers of a broader shape can be gleaned while Carmine Infantino was using a break to focus on their ongoing story.

With the next extended storyline, it proves to be an extended arc featuring numerous complications set around Wheel, the space station casino. It also features the first major appearance of the movie antagonists (as seen on the cover, prophetically subtitled "Empire strikes"), teasing a Luke Skywalker/Darth Vader showdown. What the readers ultimately get is a multi-layered plot filled with intrigue, gladiatorial matches and close calls involving splitting the cast and reuniting them again, only to escape before getting too directly involved with their archenemy.

The conflict is personified by the Wheel's manager, a complex figure that fills the role of the villain, with a surprisingly well developed character arc that resolves on a very complete point. As the ex-senator enjoys his own semi antagonistic relationship with the Imperials, the role of a true antagonist is still to be filled in this group of issues.

Following another fill in issue, this one bizarrely featuring an Obi Wan Kenobi story set in the days of the Old Republic, Goodwin returns to continue his story. After their brush with the Imperials, and the first real glimpse of Darth Vader, the creative team readies an imperial fraction previously mentioned only in passing - the House of Tagge. The highly competitive family vying for the Emperor's affection ends up proving a major threat for Lucas' heroes in these stories.

Baron Orman Tagge is introduced as Darth Vader's rival, a goggles wearing nobleman brandishing his own lightsaber. The book cleverly ends up relegating the movie antagonist to a subplot that does not interfere with the already in production second movie. Vader's actions in these issues mostly stem from his trying to gauge the identity of the rebellion's Force sensitive addition, which end up introducing one of "Empire Strike Back"'s strongest thematic points, suggesting a close collaboration with Lucasfilm.

Yet, what is most interesting is how the creators deal with another part of Star Wars lore that figures in the eventual follow-up to the film's conclusion. Namely, a oneshot story calls back to the original movie, by featuring a Han Solo and Chewbacca adventure dealing with their debt to Jabba the Hutt. The character appears as depicted in the earliest Roy Thomas and Howard Chaykin's issues, which featured a notably different design, based on a random Mos Eisley Cantina alien. More importantly, Goodwin and Infantino tie up the subplot involving Han's debt to Jabba, which reappears in the shooting script of the original "Star wars" movie. Thus a one-off issue relegated to being a foot-note in the larger Star Wars saga ended up creating a continuity problem, but more importantly provides an interesting look at the nature of the Marvel-Lucasfilm collaboration.

And while this string of issues introduces a solo Princess Leia story and a Chris Claremont written Annual with its own set of continuity questions, what is most interesting is the way Goodwin and Infantino proceed. The creators use the backdrop of the House of Tagge's blockade of the rebel base in the Yavin system to have Luke Skywalker return to his native Tattooine, years before the third film's iconic beginning.

The creators use the occasion to stage a small reunion with the characters eventually excised from the first movie's final cut, whose small roles could be first glimpsed in the movie's novelization. The main plot deals with another Baron Tagge contrivance, a new Empire weapon devised by his scientist brother and poised to provide the advantage in the fight against Rebels.

Compared to the striking decorum of Jabba's palace and its immediate surroundings in "The Return of the Jedi", this slight excursion feels once again like the creators returning to odd bits of the original film (much like the previously mentioned original Jabba scene), while still maintaining the through-line of Luke and his friends foiling the Tagge family Imperial plots. It culminates in the lightsaber clash with Baron Tagge, followed up a major Rebel attack at the Tagg family devised new Imperial weapon.

The final pre-"Empire Strikes Back" storyline eventually returns Vader to prominence, as he makes his play. The Dark Lord of the Sith utilizes the Tagge/Rebel conflict to further his own ends, by manipulating both sides into basically eliminating each other. The book also teases another clash with Luke Skywalker, with their lightsaber duel advertised on the final issue's cover. In a remarkable plot twist, Vader ends up fighting the duel by proxy using Baron Tagge in his place to gauge Luke's fighting prowess.

Having finally learned the identity of the Force sensitive Rebel fighter, Vader's decision to postpone the duel to effectively take place in "Empire Strike Back" may feel a bit anti-climatic, but the plot mechanics that enable it provide a miniature statement of intent. By having Tagge appear in the guise of Darth Vader to a helpless Luke, Marvel  both reveals their intent regarding his status as a Vader replacement in these issues, as well as directly foreshadow the major clash with Vader featured in the then-forthcoming movie.

The second movie adaptation was delayed for an issue featuring a fill-in story pencilled by Michael Golden. Ironically, Luke and Leia's adventure in a parallel galaxy ends up sporting the strongest visual identity of Marvel Star Wars stories thus far.

What followed it was the "Empire Strikes Back" movie adaptation, featuring Al Williamson's gorgeous linework. Archie Goodwin writes using the movie's shooting script and the finished visuals as the guideline, much like Roy Thomas did before him. Following the adaptation, Goodwin has remained involved with the title mainly in the editorial capacity, his own pre-"Return of the Jedi" Star Wars stories relegated to a couple of issues preceding the next creative team. 

They would have to grapple with bridging two Star Wars movies, in the face of both the readers and Marvel creators having a much firmer grasp on the particulars of Lucasfilm's cinematic vision with these characters and their universe. Yet, the stories featured in #7-38 remain charming in their own, slightly off-brand way, mapping an early Star Wars universe by trial and error that still provides aficionados with an interesting curio and a look back at the first days of what eventually became a huge franchise.

the Shadow returns

In 1986, mainstream superhero comics were forced to reevaluate their criteria, based on the debuts of the new critical darlings, "Watchmen" and "the Dark knight returns". And while both of these prestige format DC comics limited series were commercial hits as well, it's notable that the latter, Frank Miller's bold reimagining of the Batman mythos for the 21st century, got published almost side by side with his former studio mate's new project, coming from a very similar creative stand point.

At the time, Howard Chaykin was already lauded as the writer/artist of "American Flagg!", the cyberpunk satire that paved the way for a new type of genre comics in America, it's type being felt both in superhero and the alternative parts of the industry. In retrospect, the creator's work on the Shadow proved a temporary diversion in one of his attempts at trying his hand on work for hire concepts, that coupled with his subsequent revitalization of "Blackhawk", wound up being continued upon by the company's other talents. And while DC quickly gave up on following Chaykin's vision, trying their best with the more traditional approach on the Golden age concept, the 1986 mini-series stands up as a work that delivers all that it promised to.

Howard Chaykin's reconfiguration of the Shadow for the 1980s was just that, which goes to explain a lot about the controversy that it caused, during it's initial publication. As an other media character licensed to DC comics, any adaptation of the Shadow was always going to catch the purists as a surprise. This is ironic in a lot of ways, considering Batman reportedly being heavily inspired by the radio drama/pulp novel anti-hero, particularly taking into account the popularity Frank Miller's radical take on the Dark knight enjoyed at the time. Chaykin was purposely trying to attract a broader audience with his approach on the Street & Smith licence, but the conservative and ostensibly compartmentalized comics market proved uncompromising. Thus, "Blood and judgment" ended up being lauded presumably only by the Chaykin devoted, which wasn't that small a number considering the popularity the creator enjoyed at the time.

In a way, much like DC's other flagship, Superman, the Shadow was come to be identified by a myriad of details, all stemming from the different incarnations of the company owned property. Thus, each and every new iteration of the concept consists of the new creative team getting to pick and choose the elements, as it suits the editorial approved new direction. Chaykin, of course, did all this, but with a freedom reserved for the select few of the most sought after comics professionals - the ability to add a lot more of his personal touch to a new spin on the decades old icon.

When it comes to Chaykin, a large part of the appeal of his work lies in his layered, powerful art, perfectly suited for pulp-era adventure comics. Yet, Howard is also an ambitious storyteller, who doesn't let the escapist trappings of his chosen field of entertainment completely rob him from indulging in personal excesses. These have everything to do with the politics of the day, and thus, his Shadow is by it's very nature, a contradiction. In the writer/artist's fiercely independent hands, the very character design appears the same, but irrevocably changed, from the familiar icon, which has nothing to do with the fact that Shadow carries uzis, and not his signature 45s (in fact, the action scenes never slow down for the reader to notice the distinction). Just looking at Chaykin's drawing of the silhouetted figure, dressed in a black coat furnished with a scarf, with a wide-brimmed hat on top, betrays everything the project's about. Simply put, Chaykin's vision completely overpowers the Shadow'' original look, and is a far cry from the signature hook nosed, gaunt avenger - and the creator knows it.

The title characters' costume design was something was probably inarguable, and Chaykin did his best at making it his own. Thus Lamont Cranston sports the same stocky, muscular, glass-jawed look of all of his protagonists, and that's for the best. Because, everything else besides the costume is pure Chaykin.

The creator's uncompromising work stars from the very first page, as he opens with a scene of a crime, that gives way to an assortment of murders, graphically depicted on the page. All of these rapid cuts are devoid of any sort of context, introducing a whole slew of character names, and basically acting to alienate all but the most stubborn of readers. Gradually, a plot starts to emerge that is legible even to those not familiar with the Shadow's extended cast of characters, but just as soon as Chaykin reveals the direction he's taking the title in, the first issue is over. Yet, the cliffhanger ending goes a long way into enticing the audience to continue with the series.

By utilizing a rare splash page, the effect is even more direct, serving a simple purpose of promising more Shadow by Chaykin. Once again, Lamont Cranston, though dressed in a fitting suit, looks nothing like his usual depiction, but that doesn't stop him from proudly revealing himself as the original Chaykin protagonist. The creator was wholly aware of the work for hire nature of the assignment, but that didn't stop him from producing a very experimental first issue, capped by the introduction of his signature male model on the last page, as if he was directing a movie adaptation of the Shadow, with a very sly opening shot of himself in the title role.

Having introduced the plot and the characters (in his own way), Chaykin proceeds to spend all of the second issue on developing the motivation behind the story arc. Considering the largely flashback nature of the segment, it also doubles as providing the clearest indication of the writer/artist's take on the protagonist. As expected, Howard draws from several different interpretations of the character, and by presenting his origin, gets to explaining the continuity reasons for the Shadow's retirement following 1949 (the year of the cancellation of "the Shadow magazine"), all of which tie neatly with the threat that draws him from his Oriental seclusion.

For a writer so concerned with the radical reinvention of the property, Chaykin leaves his Golden age adventures as more or less the same as presented before, with one major distinction. The main sources of the Shadow's 1930s adventures diverged slightly in the matter of the avenger's secret identity, with novels explaining that Lamont Cranston was the assumed identity of WW1 pilot Kent Allard. Howard decides not only to continue the idea novel writer Walter B. Gibson had, of Allard knowingly impersonating Cranston in his quest as the Shadow, but goes even further in the four part mini-series, by making the distinction between the two men the focal point of the plot, centered around the Shadow's formative Oriental years.

Thus, concentrating on the identity crisis, the writer/artist solves the matter of finding a suitable villain, and both makes "Blood and judgment" a story that could only be told using the Shadow as the protagonist. As for the Asian backdrop, it's characteristically over the top, with the creator placing mythic Shamballa at the heart of the main character's motivation, while revealing enough about the ancient civilization to irk all but the most devoted of readers. Namely, in dealing with the hints of the Shadow's supernatural nature, Chaykin falls to his characteristic least subtle, presenting the oriental mystics as basically a race of supermen, equipped with flying cars, and miraculous healing technology. Hence, the training they imparted on the Shadow is nothing less than making the strange creature in black nothing less than metahuman, paralleling the origins of his new publisher's Superman.

Yet, by dispersing with the admittedly unconvincing martial arts explanation for his agility, Chaykin also firmly crosses the line straining the suspense of belief, and actually undermines some of the intrigue of his lead. This stylistic choice is perpetuated by the continuing appearance of Cranston's two sons, who contribute little to the story, except for calling to attention the extent of revision at play. Fortunately, the rest of the supporting cast provides some interesting color, most notably Harry Vincent and Margo Lane, Cranston's closest former aides, who, when faced with their elderly lives being turned upside down all of a sudden, find solace in one another.

Yet, most of the space in the penultimate issue is reserved for Harry's daughter Mavis, another Chaykin addition, and the supposed reader identification character. Still, despite being introduced as the spunky police profiler, playing the routine role of the journalist-like "love interest", once the Shadow shows her the make up of his new operation, she submits to the will of her "Master". The character subsequently fades into the background, and the writer/artist seemingly loses all interest in her, while setting up the climatic confrontation with Mavis as just one of the Shadows' many agents.

Along the way, the reader is treated to a brief look at another of the anti-hero's female agents, one with whom he maintains a much more professional relationship. This is no surprise, considering that Lorelei's brief on panel appearance consists of some of the most bizarre scenes in the whole series. Eventually, as a truly memorable female presence, the reader finds himself warming up to Mercy Preston, the presence behind so much of the carnage in "Blood and judgment".

Sadistic, obsessed with sex and death, she is in many ways a perfect fir for the Chaykin's version of the Shadow, yet Mercy forms only one part of the plot against the vigilante. The beautiful psychopath is married to the elderly, wheelchair bound Mayrock Preston (the original Lamont Cranston), forming a weird sexual triangle with his genetically engineered heir. In fact, this energetic combo gives the series most of it's energy, and connects it perfectly with it's creator's satire of the 1980s. That the heads of the Mayrock corporation employ sadistic new romantic club goers as their assassins, gives the work it's most apparent topicality, with the impact culminating in an off handed mention by the elderly Mayrock.

Admitting that he has AIDS to his young wife, now an HIV victim herself, draws a wedge between them needed for Shadow to step in. This is a much more potent symbol than the family's plan to activate the nuclear projectile aimed at New York, seeing as to how it relates to the thematic core of the project. In a very clear way, the original Lamont Cranston becomes not just a random gangster linked to the Shadow mythos by a clever application of trivia, but almost turns into Chaykin's own approximation of the ability of these pulpy concepts to survive in the cynical everyday of the new times. Preston's desire to extend his youth by taking over as his own son, an satirized version of the 1980s health and fitness devoted, feels much more sympathetic than the eternally young Shadow's motives for opposing him.

The knot of secret identities is for once very purposeful, and directly feeds into the story's themes. The Shadow is certainly charming, but he takes Shamballa for granted, having used it's science to continually prolong his youth. Lamont Cranston, the man whose identity he has usurped has lived to the old age in the world he's left behind and now wants nothing more than to change places once more, having been fatally ill with the latest disease. The metaphor is much more potent when taken into consideration that Chaykin connects the Shadow with Orient chiefly to serve as a perfunctory explanation for his continued vigor, considering that it has already long served the same purpose regarding his vigilante training.

Beyond this, the anti-hero has no motivation, and in choosing not to connect with Harry's daughter on any kind of deeper level, it's hard to see his mission continuing past the defeat of his "original" rival. The letterer, Ken Bruzenak employs a subtle effect indicating the Cranston's voice changing as he goes in character, which is perhaps the most notable addition in the depiction of the Shadow's attack on the "Mayrock casino hotel". Seeing the Master operate is almost like looking at him going through the motion, with even his signature laugh blending with the panel borders under Alex Wald's palette limited by then current coloring standards.

Because, no amount of action poses and ingenuity in the dynamic drawings can bring the Shadow, as written, to 1980s. And while it certainly makes sense that he would triumph in his memorable fight against the Preston family, there is no reason for him to stay away from Shamballa. In fact, Cranston leaving the mantle to his two sons would make much more sense story-wise. Still, leaving DC comics to continue publishing the Shadow with two half-Asian characters in the guise of their father would certainly have caused problems with both the audience and licencors.

Thus, no matter the Shadow's children already showing their preference for America, and the much reported crowds of Shadow fans dressing as their idol all over the country, the writer/artist ends his run on the expected point. With his leaving to continue work on other projects, it's clear that Chaykin understands that he's left behind a complete story without real need of a follow-up, but even then, "Blood and judgment" would have certainly benefited from an expended page count. Especially the concluding issue feels slight, when taken into account the numerous subplots that go unresolved considering the Shadow and his agents. Particularly Harry and Margo, whose resentment at being abandoned by Cranston seemingly plays no role in their getting to aid him with the attack on the Prestons.

Still, taking into account all that, with "the Shadow" Howard Chaykin has produced a very professional work that lives up to the complicated set of goals set for it and succeeds at every turn, while never forgetting to maintain a sense of fun with every step of the way. And while "Blood and judgment" never tries to equal "the Dark knight returns" in it's scope and ambitious, one must take note that Frank Miller's career path differed greatly from his former studio mate's. Namely, Howard was already an independent comics legend when he got to working for DC and Marvel, while the Batman scribe turned to creator owned comics only after he'd achieved mainstream success working in the superhero industry. Thus, it was only fitting that Chaykin approached his next assignment, revamping Blackhawk in the fittingly titled "Blood and iron" in much the same way he did with the Shadow, proceeding in the style that comes most naturally to him - his own.

War is hell - the First flight of the Phantom Eagle

Last year, Marvel published the "Phantom Eagle" mini-series as a part of it's "mature readers" Max imprint. Featuring covers by John Cassaday, the series united longtime war stories enthusiast Garth (Preacher) Ennis with industry veteran Howard (American Flagg) Chaykin. The result was a 5-issue mini-series with a set of very unique creative goals set for itself.

1. War is hell

As part of it's agenda, the editorial behind Marvel's Max imprint thought it wise to update the trademarks to a couple of decades old genre comics, such as "War is hell" and "Dead of night". The latter turned out to be a moniker for a series of mostly unconnected mini-series trying to re imagine Marvel's horror characters for today's audience, but the former didn't so far yield any follow-ups. For all intents and purposes, so far it remains but a subtitle for the Ennis and Chaykin series.

2. the First flight of Phantom Eagle

Yet, despite "the Hood" and "Alias" being among the first projects Marvel Max projects, the imprint has since mostly avoided being used as a platform for creator-owned characters. Thus, when writer Garth Ennis first proposed the idea for a story about Great war pilots, the editor Nick Lowe had to try and find a suitable company owned character.

Eventually, the little known war ace Phantom Eagle ended up being used as a vehicle for the story. The character's back story mostly consisted of his original appearance in 1968, which suited Ennis. Taking the basic ideas behind Phantom Eagle's origin, Ennis reportedly set out to do additional research for the project.

3. Garth Ennis, the writer

Reading Ennis' work, it's always been obvious that he is a history and military enthusiast. Even the series with heavy supernatural elements, like "Hellblazer" and "Preacher", featured whole issues that had little to do with their protagonists, instead spotlighting memorable war stories. On "Hitman" he even went so far as to mirror some of his favourite movies with an extended homage to "Kelly's heroes", recasting the famous film using DC's classically bizarre "Haunted tank" iconography.

DC was receptive to his way of doing things, giving the writer a chance to revisit the later career of the German Great War pilot "Enemy ace" in a prestige format series. Following this, the Vertigo imprint was open to allow the writer to write effectively a series of creator-owned one shots under the title "War stories".

Several years later, he was tying up his four year long tenure on Marvel Max's highest profile title, "the Punisher", with, appropriately, a story calling back to the Vietnam war conflict. This overlapped with his commitment to finally write the "Phantom eagle" mini-series, which was to be published following his departure from the ongoing title. Marvel counted on Ennis' familiarity with the historical events, but it's another source that seems to have left a much more direct influence on his script.

Nowhere in the promotional material was it mentioned that "Aces high", Jack Gold's 1976 film ended up being the biggest inspiration for the project. The mini-series mirrors most of the movie's plot point by point, with Phantom Eagle and his little known back story being the most notable addition to the Malcolm McDowell-starring feature. This should come as no surprise, remembering Garth Ennis' tendency to stick close to his inspirations, but it brings about comparisons that may well be to detriment to Marvel's series.

In retrospect, it's obvious that Ennis couldn't have drawn much inspiration from the 1968 mystery man aviator, but he still manages to elevate Phantom Eagle to the status of a fleshed-out character. To Ennis' fans this should come as no surprise, as the writer always excelled at realistic characterisation and natural dialogue. In fact, some of the comics' most memorable male bonding dynamics come from the relationships he set up and fully developed in "Hitman" and "Preacher", so that the camaraderie between the pilots comes off as very believable. Phantom Eagle's colleagues are all new multi-faceted characters, with the drama aided by the fact that the reader isn't at any point sure if they will survive the next aerial fight, such is the unique standpoint they find themselves in.

The series alternates between the dialogue-heavy scenes featuring the aforementioned base staff interacting with the unique lead character, and fast-paced action sequences filled with shock and suspense. This gives Ennis a unique chance to develop Phantom Eagle in the brief moments of his highly-dangerous flight experiences, while showing his continuing maturation through the eyes of his fellow officers as they struggle to make sense of their lives between missions.

The fast-pace of the story and it's relative brevity could make for some confusing moments by the reader not accustomed to Ennis' style of writing and the particular story setting. Ennis makes the most of the minimalistic format, but some of the characters still remain as little more than caricatures, which does not go far to making the reader care for their sudden deaths. Coupled with the period language, the lack of space leaves the book with some scenes that potentially make more sense upon rereading.

Still, the work does not suffer from the stylistic choices, as Phantom eagle's character arc works very successfully, leading up to the last chapter that reveals the mysteries of his past as the character comes full circle in his understanding of the horrors of the war. Similar to the approach taken by Jason Aaron on his "Other side" mini-series, Ennis paints yet more realistic portrayal of a war hero, learning to live with the seemingly endless war in ways both tragic, and times comical.

Faced with the limited space to present his impression of Great war aviators, Ennis had to leave out some of the background details that made up the experience. Still, the opening page sets up the experience so well, that the little particularities always keep amassing around the pilot's calling, but without calling too much attention to themselves. Naturally, there is a heavy focus on character and plot, but the script keeps asking the artist to present the experience from all points.

4. Howard Chaykin, the artist

Chaykin's art only recently started coming out on the regular bases again, after a long spell when he was focused on writing for television shows. During those years he continued working in comics almost exclusively in a co-writer capacity, with David Tischmann presumably scripting over his story concepts. The veteran writer-artist went back to pencilling on a regular basis with DC's short-lived "Hawkgirl" revamp, and quickly followed suit to work on Marvel's "Blade", "Wolverine" and "Punisher War Journal". 

Somewhere in his busy schedule, Chaykin found the time to collaborate with Garth Ennis. His involvement with the mini-series about aviator is again no surprise to his fans, due to his previous involvement in reestablishing DC's WW2 flying aces comic "Blackhawks" for the modern audience. The veteran artist had by 2008 went through several revisions of his signature style, but the Marvel Max series ended up being most similar to his then-current work for the publisher.

Tackling a period-piece mini-series comes with a heavy dose of research, and nowhere is it most apparent than in a work of the penciller. Despite having to draw a complete set of new character designs, Chaykin had to take care to paint every single detail by using whatever reference he had available, and integrate it all into his own style, while worrying about the storytelling choices inherent in bringing someone else's script to life. This kind of time-consuming commitment is rare for American comic book pencillers, who mostly stick to working in the superhero genre, thereby reusing the same iconography over and over.

Chaykin solves some of these problems with the action sequences, using high altitudes as an excuse to sometimes pencil simpler backgrounds, but even then he was left with a very particular storytelling challenge. Due to the static nature of images in a comic book, the car chace scenes usually end up being confusing and are very rarely depicted, which makes his task in drawing a story filled with aerial combat sequences seem almost insurmountable. Being a professional with decades of experience, the artist manages to guide the reader's eye in an expert manner through even the most complicated scenes, featuring multiple air crafts maneuvering all at the same time. Interestingly, Chaykin and Brian Reber, credited as color artist, decided to render some of the vehicles using computer graphics models, while being careful never to depict this way the main planes during the crucial sequences.

The particular special effects are most pronounced in the strange hue of the mechanics clothing, that distinguishes them from the pilots which the story's centered around. Despite the coloring, the special effects seemingly reappear mostly in the textures on the wallpapers and photos. The effects call to themselves when contrasted with Chaykin's appropriately gritty and thick-lined art. Thankfully the use of photos to replace backgrounds is very seldom used, and almost only when depicting the trees seen through the windows in the barracks.

As for the scenes featuring the pilots' witty conversations, Chaykin is careful to constantly change the angle, depicting them with diversity that would have made the dogfight sequences very chaotic. The long dialogues are thus brought to the reader in a very realistic way, as the characters emote all their rage and stress, under the formally reserved facade, leading more often then not to humorous situations. Chakyin renders all of these with the same skill, but his penchant for square-jawed men unfortunately calls too much of intention to itself during at some points. There is no real fear of confusing the main officers, as they are all distinguished by their hair-colour and facial hair stylings, but the artist remains true to his style even when some more diversity could have been potentially called for.

Nevertheless, tasked with drawing such a complicated and unique project, Chaykin succeeds at what's most important, bringing a cohesion to the mini-series' look, that sets it apart from similiar works. The reader is never lulled into a sense of comfort, as the down and dirty life in the base, as depicted by Chaykin, offers little chance of escape, with the bloody air fights being most often the source of quick death for both the allies and the enemy. It is thus, in bringing to page the most graphic elements of the conflict, that the brutality of war leaves it's mark on the reader. Even the silliest of the put-downs that the officers arrange for one another, doesn't work only to depict the inexperience of the young pilot, but as to show the continued gravity of the situation that surrounds his coming of age in the hostile environment.

Chaykin uses the space provided him to paint the portrait of the Phantom eagle's maturation from the over the top cocksure pilot that plays down his role in the conflict, to his eventual rise in the ranks, due to experience and, even more often, survivor's luck. The character's impulsive bursts and buffoonish manner give way to a much more pragmatic, war hardened pilot, without ever feeling too abrupt, despite the short time the story takes place in. Ironically, this also means dispensing with the character's original look, and most of the setup, to give way for the realistic portrayal of an allied pilot in the early days of war.

Surely, despite the many different goals the editorial set for the creators, the most important message comes through loud and clear, echoing the title, while providing the reader with the experience as entertaining as it is tragically realistic.