anyone pick up Air???

[drinkblatzbeer]

how was it?

i've seen a couple good advanced reviews, but not sure if i want to pick it up...

[NathanBethell]

I thought it was a strong first issue. Unlike many first issues, Air's debut, in addition to setting up an intriguing story, also reads like a good short story in its own right.

[Aaron King]

The art was really solid. The story was well-told. The characters were all interesting. The future hooks are set in my skin.

I hope it lasts more than two years.

[Cayman]

I did as well. Great first issue. Very intriguing.

[morganagrom]

Nope, tradewaiting it. Amazon says the first volume, Air Vol. 1: Letters from Lost Countries, is scheduled for March 10, 2009, about 3 months after #5 is published, and at about $5 less than it would cost to buy the pamphlets (assuming it reprints 1-5).

[ComicBreak]

It was a very good debut issue but I expected it to be after reading the Cairo GN by the same creative team.

[Infra-Man]

Picked it up and really enjoyed it. Solid first issue with a self-contained story, and, like any good #1, at the end I wanted to see what happens next and where they'll go with what was set up. Lots of things that can be explored.

I'm on for the ride.

[FanboyStranger]

Air was the new Vertigo book I had the least expectations for, and it shocked me by being the best of the new releases by far! (For the record, I was expecting Madame Xanadu to the best because of Matt Wagner's involvement.) I think Air will turn out to be an excellent series, and I hope people will take a chance and pick it up.

[Skytheen]

Loved the first issue. I'm digging the espionage angle. Not sure how that will mix with the possible fantasy thing that might be coming based on the viral marketing...

Letter from Narimar viral marketing (http://myriadissues.blogspot.com/2008/05/letter-from-narimar-viral-marketing-for.html)

[The Beast Of Yucca Flats]

Hmm, maybe checking this one out couldn't hurt...

[matt levin]

Just adding my comments to those who've also enjoyed this first issue. Smooth, clean-lined art, fairly natural dialogue, two intriguing characters, enough completed to feel satisfied, not hanging on, and just nough left hanging to want to see What's Next.

Matt

[ComicBreak]

if anyone else would like to try Air #1, we are offering it as our Pick of the Week. If you don't like it, we will refund your money.

[Lance]

Nevermind.

[alveraz]

Couple minor spoilers ahead I suppose...

Anyone pick this up today? I did. One word, ouch. That was a rough ride, full of implausibilities and mediocre writing. I thought the art was pretty exciting though, the only redeeming factor of a story that was completely unbelievable, rushed and frankly boring. I felt like the writer was forcing action on me, from an unlikely hero, a stewardess that was kind of a bitch to begin with. I couldn't get into this trite stewardess's plight while making really stupid decisions.

Not to give it away, but some weird guy in a plane asks her to "hold onto this briefcase for me" and the idiot does, and of course, trouble ensues, like we didn't see that a mile away. I felt like that guy in the audience of a B horror who screams, "don't go back in the house!". The documents inside contain plans to blow up a plane. I mean, seriously?! I'm supposed to find this intriguing how? The unoriginality and forced plot was killin' me. I get why Vertigo might have picked this up, it's an intriguing premise, but the execution was terrible.

What did you guys think? Am I way off here? I really did want to like this.

[jesse_custer]

I just read this yesterday, and I have similar feelings to alveraz. The art was well done, and I think the comic was easy to follow. However, there were little things throughout the comic that didn't make any fucking sense. Like when the two protagonists have their hands tied. They magically know one of the bad guys has a knife under his coat. Even dumber, the knife is secured in the guy's belt with no fucking sheath!

Or when our lovely protagonist opens the suitcase. The papers say something obvious like "Hijacking Plans."

It was almost like reading The Adventures of TinTin, only with overtly serious dialogue and story.

[carabas]

They magically know one of the bad guys has a knife under his coat. Even dumber, the knife is secured in the guy's belt with no fucking sheath!Well, if you look closely, you'll see the knife clearly visible a few panels earlier, and he was also waving it about on the previous page. Do pay attention before attacking plot holes, mr. Custer.

It was almost like reading The Adventures of TinTin, only with overtly serious dialogue and story.Not a bad comparison, Air does seem to be going for a more detached from reality kind of world. And just exactly what is wrong with TinTin? Not everything has to be Preacher-serious.

[jesse_custer]

Well, if you look closely, you'll see the knife clearly visible a few panels earlier, and he was also waving it about on the previous page. Do pay attention before attacking plot holes, mr. Custer.

Not a bad comparison, Air does seem to be going for a more detached from reality kind of world. And just exactly what is wrong with TinTin? Not everything has to be Preacher-serious.

My mistake on the oversight. Still, I don't understand why the villain in question would be that stupid with the weapon.

There is nothing wrong with TinTin, which I find funny. Air isn't funny.

And please don't assume I think everything has to be like Preacher.

[jesse_custer]

Maybe I could like it more if I was familiar with Salman Rushdie. After all, they reference him on the first panel, so there might be something I'm missing.

[Agent_Torpor]

Couple minor spoilers ahead I suppose...

Anyone pick this up today? I did. One word, ouch. That was a rough ride, full of implausibilities and mediocre writing. I thought the art was pretty exciting though, the only redeeming factor of a story that was completely unbelievable, rushed and frankly boring. I felt like the writer was forcing action on me, from an unlikely hero, a stewardess that was kind of a bitch to begin with. I couldn't get into this trite stewardess's plight while making really stupid decisions.

Not to give it away, but some weird guy in a plane asks her to "hold onto this briefcase for me" and the idiot does, and of course, trouble ensues, like we didn't see that a mile away. I felt like that guy in the audience of a B horror who screams, "don't go back in the house!". The documents inside contain plans to blow up a plane. I mean, seriously?! I'm supposed to find this intriguing how? The unoriginality and forced plot was killin' me. I get why Vertigo might have picked this up, it's an intriguing premise, but the execution was terrible.

What did you guys think? Am I way off here? I really did want to like this.

Honestly, I saw nothing in the free previews from a couple of Vertigo titles that made me want to buy it.

[alveraz]

It was the cover that initially intrigued me, and the title was cool and simple. But man, what a crapper.

[jesse_custer]

One other thing I did not appreciate: the incredibly stereotypical male flight attendant.

[ultramandingo]

...........yeah, i was expecting more what with the gamian rave on the cover - think ill wait a wile and read a review of the trade or somthin before i pick it up again

[mgs]

sry, didn't like it in any way.

story was thin and kinda bland. and the art was, confusing. Storytelling was a bit off and characters' looks were not 'strong' throughout the issue.

Edit: all that stuff (front and back covers) on her thoughts and all should not've been included in the book. all it does is distract the reader from what is actually happening in the comic, as it made her come off as, flaky.

[mgs]

I mean, I wish G. Wilson all the best on her comic book endeavours, but maybe she's got to get more 'control' over her stuff if she wants to come across as a competent comic book writer and not be so predictable.

[atomicturtle]

I bought it. One of three who had it on his pull at my LCS, after reading the preview of it in Previews.

It was OK. Not superb - but I really enjoyed reading the bit from the author about the intent of the book. Kind of made me understand the idea of it all after reading it a second time. "[A] skewed world on a time table. The orderly unreal."

I'll stick it out through the end of this arc, at the very least. I don't think Air is going for "funny" or "high action" or "overly dramatic." As Wilson put it, she's an extremist on the other side of the archetypical Quaalude-inspired extremism.

I mean, for pete's sake - look at the plot. Some shadowy group wants to hijack commerical jets and build a fleet so they can fight international terrorism in the air - and the two heroes are an acrophobic flight attendant and a guy with a dozen identities who are doin' it by the end of the first issue. Maybe I'm a minority in this kind of thing - but I like comics that are weird and just a little bit "out there" that seemingly make no sense, but end up really surprising you a couple issues later.

I usually try to give new stuff at least 3-6 issues before I drop them. Air wasn't by any means spectacular (see: Madame Xanadu, Glamourpuss, A Dummy's Guide to Danger) - but it's worth a few more reads, I think.

[FanboyStranger]

Maybe I could like it more if I was familiar with Salman Rushdie. After all, they reference him on the first panel, so there might be something I'm missing.

Falling out of the aircraft echoes the beginning of The Satanic Verses, but that's about it as far as the Rushdie parallels. It has gotten off to a somewhat Pynchon-esque start, though, with the conspiracies and the post from a nation that doesn't exist. I think that's why I liked it so much.

[Mojorisin]

I think too much happened in the first issue, which made everything seem rushed and made the story seem like it didn't make any sense.

I'll give it an arc or two, see what happens.

[sgt pepper]

Terrible. Badly written dialogue. Hugely unbelievable events.

Most annoyingly, I don't believe the trope of man and woman falling in love and kissing during traumatic event. Sure, its the worst kind of crowd pleasing moment tacked on to hundreds of action movie plots, but I hope for more from my comics. They barely know each other. The guy's a total creep and lies to her over and over/effs with her head, but then all of a sudden she's kissing him and uttering the groan inducing "you taste like the sky." Where did this sudden interest come from? Is she really that desperate and unstable? And then after he gets her involved in this nonsense and nearly gets her killed, without having been given any reason to like each other, they screw? I guarantee that when you put real people in traumatic events and push their panic buttons, the last thing they think about is kissing, uttering ninth grade poetry, and then screwing.

And there is not one reason given to care about a single character.

[Peter Griffin]

spoilers



I was really confused at the end of #1. How exactly did she get from porking the secret agent guy to getting a letter explaining he was in prison? i know the chronological order of things was mixed up a little but i was still confused. there are good and bad things in this comic, and my feeling is that it is going to get alot better, or its going to get alot worse.

[diablo7]

i think it might be 12 and done for this series...the artwork did not look good at all...and the story was flimsy at best...

[mgs]

ugh...issue 2 was possibly worse than the first issue. :(

[JoshuaCee]

So, I think I went into this with a different expectation than what Wilson intended. And actually, because this book has such a different feel to it, I imagine that a lot people were in the same boat as I.

When I picked up #2, I went back and reread #1 first, reading it for what it was instead of what I thought it was going to be, or even wanted it be. I enjoyed it a lot more the second time around. Instead of a modern thriller, which is how it was marketed, and thus, how I presumed this would be like, it definitely reads as a modern day fairy tale (which makes a lot more sense, it being a Vertigo book).

Good fairy tales are both whimsical and dangerous, and I think Willow does a good job playing off the two. When I finished #2, I decided that I'll stick with it, at least until the first arc has concluded. Also, the cover to #2 was gorgeous.

[Ben Akers]

I got around to reading Issue #1.

I liked it. It wasn't the best #1 I've ever read, but it served its purpose, getting me to buy the next issue.