[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writer: Jeff Parker
Artists: Steve Rude Part 1: Birdman; Aaron Lopresti Part 2 The Herculoids
Colorists: Steve Buccellato Part 1: Birdman; Karl Kesel Part 2 The Herculoids
Summary
The third issue of Hanna-Barbera’s universe-bending series Future Quest is actually two issues with two different sets of artists and inkers. Writer Jeff Parker rewinds the dial on Birdman and the Herculoids. Up until now, the readers were in the dark. Now, as Birdman might say, the power of Ra gives illumination.
The Positives
Backstory is almost always a good thing. In both stories, the readers get to know the personalities and the back stories of some major players from issues 1 and 2 of the series.
Deva Sumadi and Ray Randall are an unlikely pairing and it good to see how they ended up together. Since the audience for all of these HB reboot comics is much older, Parker added some sexual tension. Granted in a book full of 30-plus characters, a romantic B-story will go unnoticed, but it works here.
Rude’s artwork is classic 60s cartoon and that is a nice touch. Buccellato’s colors soften the edges of everything. The team really wanted to remind the readers of their childhoods or send the millennials rushing to watch old Birdman videos online.
In the Herculoids story, Aaron Lopresti and inker (comic legend) Karl Kesel take a different turn. Nothing about this story seems soft. Even the gelatinous morphoids Gleek and Gloop seem hard and dangerous. The world of the Herculoids, planet Amzot, is hard and dangerous and there is no two ways about it.
The Negatives
Since backstory is almost always a good thing, the negative is that there is backstory within a backstory which does not get told all the way. Sure, it is good to keep the reader wanting more, but the reader wants more already considering we are waiting to find out what is going on after the events in issue two. There may be too much going on here, but since this is still early in the run; that remains to be seen.
The Verdict
If this were the first issue of the series one were to read, it would work perfectly as the reader could go back and pick up issues 1 and 2 and be totally up to speed. It is recommended that the reader do just that.
