Rocket Raccoon #1 Review
Published by Marvel Comics
‘A Chasing Tale: Part One’ review
Writers: Skottie Young
Artist: Skottie Young
Colourist: Jean-Francois Beaulieu
Letterer: Jeff Eckleberry
Cover Art: Skottie Young
A review by Jake Morris.
Marvel Comics are making their final big push in the run up to the release of the Guardians of the Galaxy movie, and with it comes a wider foray into the adventures of the galactic team of outlaws. One of the newer titles that Marvel has unleashed is Rocket Raccoon, a book focusing on the anthropomorphic hero written and drawn by Skottie Young.
Marvel’s cosmic line has not been at its strongest in recent years, and the Guardians have been towing the line for the majority of Marvel Now’s launch, albeit events aside. However questions could be raised as to whether a Rocket focused book can provide entertainment outside of the confines of the chemistry bouncing team book. Suffice to say, at points the book does suffer from the odd thought as to why Rocket isn’t with Quill, Gamora or Drax. The story relies heavily on Rocket’s borderline crude demeanour mixed with the charm that he brings to Guardians.
Skottie Young handles it particularly well, understanding the need to highlight character in a way that progresses the story. Never dallying on the comedic aspects of the character in a completely static sense. For example, the book is forever moving forward. The issue doesn’t allow the self congratulatory dialogue from Rocket to bog the pacing down. The sparse inclusion of fellow Guardians is a nice touch, allowing Rocket to play off his humour with Starlord and of course, Groot. Nevertheless, the issue is a beat for beat on the run type of story, with a minor twist at the end. It is a strong base to start on but nothing that will capture the imagination of those wanting a deep cosmic tale.
The distinguishable side to the work of Skottie Young is in his art. While the level of his writing in this first issue is very good, it becomes hard not to place everything on a pedestal next to the artwork. Quite frankly, it is superb. In every pose and expression is a scream of effervescence, and that does not come without further excellence and compliments from the colour work of Jean-Francois Beaulieu. Marvel’s willingness to break out of a house style allows Rocket to break free of an art style set in the reality of the 616 universe, in turn challenging the story to show readers the world from Rocket’s perspective. The true challenge though is trying not to miss a single detail without having to trawl back as Skottie Young packs each page chock full of eye catching character.
Some may claim that this book only exists in order to covert the upcoming cast of Marvel’s latest cinematic release, but while that might be partly the case, a Rocket Raccoon book both written and drawn by Skottie Young might just be the biggest blessing readers will be given this year.
Writing: 4.5/5
Art: 5/5
Overall: 4.5/5
Jake is a contributing writer for Drunk On Comics. You can follow him on Twitter at @JakeUtd.