Starlight: The Return of Duke McQueen (Volume 1)

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Starlight:  The Return of Duke McQueen (Volume 1)

Mark Millar

Goran Parlov

2015

The Summary

"Forty years ago, Duke McQueen was a space hero who rescued a world from tyranny.  But then he came home, got married, had kids and grew into an old man with nothing but his memories...until one night when an old, sparkly rocket ship descended from the heavens and called him back for one final adventure."

The Good

I really liked reading Starlight:  The Return of Duke McQueen.  I loved the entire book:  art, plot, characters--everything.  I especially liked Duke McQueen.  As the main character, he's looking to reconnect with his kids after the death of his wife and he's desperate to live down his reputation as a "space hero."  He's an older protagonist who has lived a full, happy life, which is refreshing to see, but he's still able to have one more fantastical adventure.

It's a fun, action-packed space epic that draws heavily from previous science-fiction adventures, like Star Wars, Buck Rogers, Adam Strange, and John Carter of Mars, among others.  As another reviewer from Kirkus put it, "I feel like this is a love letter of sorts from Millar to all those classic pulp stories."  And, yes, it does reminisce of those intergalactic adventures that defined a generation of entertainment, but I think it also manages to forge its own unique identity.

Starlight is a simple, but enjoyable graphic novel.  It has a dose of humor, heaps of action and adventure, a pinch of political intrigue, and a little bit of self-reflection on behalf of a retired military hero.  Since the story starts in the second half of Duke's life, after defeating a vicious dictator and saving a distant world from utter annihilation, it's interesting to see how Mark Millar depicts a character who has surpassed his golden years and has already solidified his identity.

Additionally, I liked the artistic style of Starlight.  Goran Parlov does a beautiful job of rendering Millar's story.  It has color and depth, a vibrancy that breathes life into the characters and gives them a physical form.  Moreover, I loved the illustrations of the strange world of Tantalus, of it's people (heroes and villains alike) and its strange technology.  It's the perfect marriage of narrative and art.

The Bad
Starlight, unfortunately, does succumb to a few all-too-familiar sci-fi tropes and clichés.  More importantly, it doesn't handle pacing very well.  First and foremost, readers don't really have the opportunity to explore much of Duke McQueen's past.  As I said, Starlight begins in the latter years of McQueen's life when he's no longer a spry young hero, but a wizened old man.  It stands to reason that readers are only given a brief and abbreviated history of his life.

However, not much is added in the way of explanation with the Brotean invasion or Kingfisher's rise to power or, more importantly, how the "rebel alliance" came to being.  The conclusion feels rushed and, honestly, doesn't really give any resolution.  Sure, it's a happy ending, but I feel like something is missing, like I haven't quite gotten the whole story--or, moreover, like I haven't quite had the chance to fully understand the consequences.

The impending sense of doom doesn't really dissipate.

The Ugly

Violence.

Quite a lot of violence, actually.  The Kingfisher is a vicious, ruthless ruler who will stop at nothing to obliterate--and I do me obliterate--his enemies, so Starlight can border on being a bit gory.  Otherwise, it's pretty mild.  I mean, I wouldn't recommend it for very young readers, but I think it's suitable enough for teenagers to read.