Starstruck # 1-6 & “The Luckless, the Abandoned and Forsaked”
Published by: Marvel/Epic – 1984-1986
Written by: Elaine Lee
Illustrated by: Michael Kaluta
At the time of its initial release, Starstruck may have been groundbreaking yet overlooked while, to a modern audience, it remains unknown and is not recognized as being as unique, or as impressive, as it truly was. Though it remains a fascinating read that leaves one wanting more, it is rendered run-of-the-mill precisely because others have trod so heavily upon the ground it broke. Some, trying to improve upon Starstruck’s legacy in hindsight, compare it favorably to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ Watchmen for sharing certain innovative-for-the-time storytelling techniques and point out that Starstruck actually predated Moore and Gibbons’ opus: the Starstruck graphic novel debuted two years prior to the first issue of Watchmen. Some of the key innovations found in Starstruck include the ending of each issue with supplemental textual features—much like in Watchmen—which expand upon the world of the narrative and its inhabitants; parallel narratives and nonlinear storytelling where multiple plots and events play out over top of one another, or in direct opposition, rather than in succession; and female leads inhabiting traditionally male roles.
Starstruck—a 1984 Marvel/Epic graphic novel and subsequent miniseries by Elaine Lee (writer) and Michael Kaluta (artist)—began life as an off-off-Broadway play, written by and starred-in by Lee with costumes and sets designed by Kaluta. It then appeared in comic form as a Marvel graphic novel sub-titled, “The Luckless, The Abandoned and Forsaked,” followed by a six-issue Marvel/Epic miniseries—neither of which recreate the play, but, rather, expand upon the foundation it laid. These were eventually recollected and republished by IDW in 2009 with a significant amount of new material.
Both the art and the writing are high points, but, neither is higher than the other. Lee’s scripts are clever, intricate, and irreverent. Starstruck’s sense of humor helps it to stand out from other more mirthless “ground-breaking” comics, which may cause one to overlook or underestimate its significant artistic merit. Kaluta’s art invokes memories of, and warrants comparisons to, French comics legend Moebius, British artist Barry Windsor-Smith (whom Kaluta worked with at one time), and American artist Arthur Adams—but is still unique and never devolves into mimicry, belonging among them as peers. The characters’ appearances in the comics actually harken back to the actors whom performed in the original play and there are many unique faces and body types throughout the main and supporting casts. Kaluta also created unique and interesting—and a little bizarre—settings, costumes, technology, and aliens, building a world that is both alien and surreal while remaining familiar and at times whimsical—though Lee’s imagination is undoubtedly owed some credit.
Any fan of Kaluta’s art style will appreciate works by Moebius (Silver Surfer: Parable, The Airtight Garage), Barry Windsor-Smith (Uncanny X-Men, Marvel Comics Presents: Weapon X, Machine Man, Archer and Armstrong), and Arthur Adams (Longshot, Uncanny X-men, Fantastic Four, Monkeyman and O‘Brien)—though that says nothing of the writing featured in these various projects; only the art can be uniformly vouched for. Standout stories include Windsor-Smith’s work on issues 186, 198, and 205 of Uncanny X-Men featuring the “LifeDeath” storyline and Marvel Comics Presents issues 72 through 84—known commonly as “Weapon X,” which was one of the first attempts to explicate Wolverine’s origins—and the two-issue Silver Surfer miniseries illustrated by Moebius and written by American comics legend Stan “The Man” Lee is another to be aware of—in part since it was written in English, and thus one need not hunt down a hard-to-find translated version—but visually, while still quite good, it falls behind the graceful heights of some of Moebius’s French work.
One of Starstruck’s innovations that now seems quaint—for men, at least, perhaps in the way racism is professed to be inconsequential by everyone except people of color—is the fact that the two main protagonists, and much of the supporting cast, are women—strong, powerful, humorous, intelligent women. The traditional archetypes are still present—Bruscilla “the Muscle” is the hard-drinking boisterous blowhard fighter-pilot, Galatia-9 is the “never say ‘die’” ship captain—and this change in gender does nothing to undermine the plausibility or impact of these archetypes, the plot, the characters, or their relationships. The mere fact Starstruck was written—and written well—by a woman is another point of distinction and more ground broken, though—sadly—still a departure from most mainstream comics even today.
Anyone interested in other strong female protagonists in typically male comics genres—ones that aren’t made more palatable to a young male audience through objectification and impossible physical dimensions—might want to check out David Mack’s ever-evolving and amazing Kabuki, Scott McCloud’s upbeat science fiction adventure series Zot!, and Daniel Clowes’ critically acclaimed slice-of-life comic Ghost World.
Starstruck, unfortunately, is suitable mostly only for “mature audiences.” The reason this is unfortunate is that the comic as a whole would appeal to a wide range of teenagers, but these readers may be deprived of a good read because American notions on sexuality preclude the existence of “non-sexual” nudity, thus all nudity is objectionable and unsuitable for a non-adult audience. Starstruck, by American standards, has a significant amount of casual female nudity and a single not-particularly-graphic sex scene—none of which would faze a French or Japanese audience. The nudity is neither sexual nor is the sex gratuitous, and each is treated so matter-of-factly and without salaciousness that it is hard to raise any moral objection to it, though I’m sure many would try.
Recommendations:
Fans of Starstruck will likely find much to like in the original Eagle Comics issues of Judge Dredd written and illustrated by various contributors, Howard Chaykin’s American Flagg, and McCloud’s Zot! All three of which construct vivid alternative presents or futures without falling into genre clichés.
Judge Dredd is far more violent and prototypically masculine than the others, but shares with them a similar appeal. Its stories are simpler, more straightforward, and more action-packed, but it shares with Starstruck vivid “world-building”—in this case a semi-dystopian future overrun by criminals dealt with swiftly by the “judges”—and archetypal characters—especially Dredd himself, the infallible hand of god meting out justice, acting as judge, jury, and executioner. Related titles, also published by Eagle, such as Strontium Dog, likewise might appeal to the same or similar audiences.
Chaykin’s American Flagg is more understated, following protagonist Reuben Flagg as he navigates his new job trying to impose order on a chaotic semi-dystopian society, and is perhaps the closest of the three to the style and tone of Starstruck. Both share atypical page layouts and multiple coexisting strands of information fighting for the reader’s attention, creating a complex contextual interweaving superimposed over the art.
Zot! is an upbeat, clever, and irreverent family-friendly science-fiction adventure with an emotional core and sense of humor. It lacks anything to be offended by and is not dystopian, nor does it break significant ground. It is, however, a very good piece of fiction that many readers can relate to—either through their current situation or past experiences dealing with the trials, tribulations, and fantasies that are part and parcel with the act of growing up. What Judge Dredd lacks, Zot! has in abundance, and vice versa. American Flagg is somewhere just past center between them.
Brian Bigelow
January 10, 2017
