Starman Vol. 10 - Sons of the Father

This volume is mostly wrapping up loose ends. Jack's had a new addition to his life, and it forces him to make a choice about whether to keep being Starman or not. He spends some time in 1951, meets Superman (in the present, not in 1951), maybe helps his dad out, gets a last chance with his brother. We get some new status quo for the supporting cast and the city, and Courtney Whitmore gets to start her career as Stargirl.

The pace is deliberate, a lot of time spent on quiet conversations between one pair of characters or another. The big fight was in the prior volume, this is the aftermath. It has the feel of Jack taking his time, soaking it all in before the end. Or James Robinson trying to make a complete ending he's happy with. I wonder how well he succeeded on that front. At times it does feel like a history lecture at times, when they're recapping the history of the Starman legacy. I've read the issues guys, I don't need a 10-page Who's Who entry. But for the most part, it sticks to advancing or concluding characters' stories, and Robinson had developed them enough I wanted to know how things worked out.

At this point, I have 6 of the 10 volumes, mostly missing the middle third. I'd read enough reviews to know Robinson has a, let's say interesting, ear for dialogue. Jack especially speaks in phrases I wouldn't expect anyone to actually say. I mostly chalk that up to an affectation on Jack's part, like his taste in clothes or pop culture references. I'm actually more bothered by all the caption boxes filled with cursive handwriting from the Shade's journal. I can read cursive, but it's not fun trying to read it in these small boxes. It's actually a lot worse in Volume 9, where there's a lot more of the Shade's journal carrying the exposition load. I don't envy the letterer, Bill Oakley, having to deal with all that.

I prefer Peter Snejbjerg's art to Tony Harris'. Snejbjerg's is a little smoother, Harris' work seemed a bit scratchy, which maybe fit better for a rookie Jack Knight, struggling to get by. Snejbjerg seems to favor heavier inks, deep shadows for high contrast with Gregory Wright's colors. And there's a lot of variety in the colors, from the black-and-white spirit realm David inhabits, to the bright blue skies over Opal, to the deep reds near twilight in Ted Knight's 1951 home. It's all very good at creating a mood. Mostly calm in this volume, but with the occasional frantic moment.

As far as I know, no one has messed with Jack Knight since the end of this series. Which is surprising, given how Geoff Johns and DC can't resist dragging out every other retired or dead character, even if their creator had made it clear he'd prefer they not do that. Even Jack's brother David was hauled out for that Blackest Night tie-in, where the book was "resurrected" for one issue. Jack oughta bottle whatever he's got and sell it to the others. "Step right up, get your Stay Retired Elixir! Guaranteed to spare you a gory death in some Event book!"