by Kurt Busiek (Writer) & Brent Anderson (Illustrator)Publisher: Vertigo Comics (May 14, 2019)
Hardcover, 160 pages
Say
it ain’t so. This is the final volume of one of my favorite comics of all time.
The authors claim that Astro City is
not finished with the completion of its Vertigo series. Instead, they plan to revert
the comic back to its earliest formula of graphic novels and short series. Here’s
hoping, but I’m afraid I will never again see into a world I’ve grown to love.
Most
of the stories collected here deal with the pain of loss, amid the sacrifice of
a person who died for the greater good. They are incredibly well drawn and
plotted and, at times, heartbreaking in effect. Exactly what we expect from
Astro City.
The
first story deals with a thief who steals a magic amulet that accidently bonds
him with his pet corgi to become G-Dog (as in “good dog”). This bonding between
adds an extra weight on the criminal’s conscience and forces him to give up his
crooked ways. All is well until the dog begins to feel ill and the owner
realizes just how long dogs live. We also see the return of the pet patrol,
unseen for fifty issues, with Rocket Dog, Kittyhawk, Dr. Monkey, and Ghost
Ferret.
The
second story, and the worst of the bunch, is a short one about a journalist
trying to track down her activist scientist father. She is convinced that his
disappearance is connected to a new force called Resistor, who manifests in
protests when things are about to become violent. Random people are transformed
and keep the peace. She eventually discovers the connection and the price to be
paid for peace.
The
third story returns to one of the most tragic figures ever shown in Astro City. He last appeared in issue
#6. After a Chrono-Crisis with the heroes fighting across time and space,
certain events are altered and a man begins having dreams of woman he believes
is his wife, but whom he has never met. It turns out she was erased from
history, and he now memories of living two lives. He now works at a survivors
group for those who have lost people during supervillain attacks. But once his
story comes out, then the others in his group begin to doubt him.
For more readings, try books by Rex Hurst. 
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