Review: Flight Volume 5

In case you are wondering why I'm reviewing the fifth volume of something without never having read the prior four volumes, no I'm not losing my mind. Flight is a comic anthology, so I figured order didn't really matter. The fifth volume happened to be the one I found on the shelf at my favorite used book store, so this is the volume I'm gonna review.

Flight Volume 5 contains twenty-one different comic shorts by a bunch of comic creators. Though the volume itself is pretty hefty, the comics tend to be rather short. There are only handful amongst the whole she-bang that come out to be the length of a regular single comic issue.

For the most part, the stories included were entertaining, though somewhat short on the depth that I am used to in my regular comic reading. This may seem like a very obvious point given that these are the comics equivalent of a short story but I find that the less time spent with the characters and situations, the less involved and engaged I am.

That's not to say that Flight is completely without engaging stories. The Dragon by Reagan Lodge was a bit of a sci-fi/fantasy mash up with a yam loving fox as the main character. The art in this story brought the setting to life, and gave me a sense of vast scope, despite the story narrative having a tight focus on one action packed night in a small town.

Beisbol 2 by Richard Pose was another favorite. This story had a timeless appeal, as it depicted a small boy trying to get the autograph of his favorite baseball player. Some of the ribbing the boy takes from his older brothers is quite hilarious, and "Bopper" the baseball hero is a hilarious egotistical prick.

My personal favorite, Igloo Head and Tree Head in Disguise, was written and drawn by Scott Campbell. In this, somewhat-human-shaped cartoon characters, with distinct inanimate objects growing on their heads, disguise themselves by mail ordering different objects to put on their heads. Once disguised, they go around tricking their friends, and eventually crash a party at the War Club. They then give the folks at the War Club party official war documents, which are really tacos. Needless to say, the sense of humor is pretty whimsical in this one, but I enjoyed it's lightheartedness.

There are other fun stories in Flight, from time traveling cats, to ninjas, dogs digging up dead bodies, to love stories, monster stories, and even a story about the chosen one(s).

There is something for everyone in Flight Volume 5. The art varies quite drastically as well, so it is hard to say too much about it, but I will say that for the most part, Flight is visually pleasing. If you are looking for a light, fast comics read, without a lot of depth, then Flight is probably a good place to go. Most people will find something they enjoy between the covers.

Grade: C