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The Red Star
The Red Star: Deluxe Edition Volume 1
Christian Gossett's landmark series, "Red Star," redefined what a comic book could look like, while the story's rich history and brutal world brought motion picture scope to the comics page. Now the massive tale is presented in deluxe form, starting with this volume including issues #1-4 and 6-9.
328 pages, Hardcover
First published June 3, 2014
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
September 15, 2017
An alternative, magitech-based USSR and a disastrous battle. . .
Maya travels by railcars, with roses and a letter she's writing, to her husband's -- well, memorial marker. A soldier also visiting graves asks her ("Comrade Sorceress") to light his cigarette, since soldiers thought it was good luck. She tells him of the battle of Kar Dartha's gate, nine years ago, and the disaster -- she was saved only by a friend who knocked her out so she could not look for her beloved husband, Markus. We also get scenes she did not know of, where mysterious and powerful figures appear.
Her husband's brother Urik also visits. He has their orders, and suggests she could make her farewells to the grave -- or perhaps tell his brother they are about to join him.
This involves a rebel girl named Marika who digs two graves; mutiny; a dream of a dead woman with a message and red roses; Urik drinking and remembering how he talked with Markus about joining the sky service; a letter oddly delivered, and another letter that first persuaded Maya to meet with Marcus; looters; a protocol (spell) that brings back the past; and more.
Maya travels by railcars, with roses and a letter she's writing, to her husband's -- well, memorial marker. A soldier also visiting graves asks her ("Comrade Sorceress") to light his cigarette, since soldiers thought it was good luck. She tells him of the battle of Kar Dartha's gate, nine years ago, and the disaster -- she was saved only by a friend who knocked her out so she could not look for her beloved husband, Markus. We also get scenes she did not know of, where mysterious and powerful figures appear.
Her husband's brother Urik also visits. He has their orders, and suggests she could make her farewells to the grave -- or perhaps tell his brother they are about to join him.
This involves a rebel girl named Marika who digs two graves; mutiny; a dream of a dead woman with a message and red roses; Urik drinking and remembering how he talked with Markus about joining the sky service; a letter oddly delivered, and another letter that first persuaded Maya to meet with Marcus; looters; a protocol (spell) that brings back the past; and more.
April 7, 2021
The Red Star presents a very interesting mix of technology and magic in its world. Set against a backdrop of seemingly endless war waged by an authoritarian regime, it calls to mind shades of Warhammer 40k or The Saga of Tanya the Evil, with its gritty, bleak setting and high-stakes combat. But it's more character-driven than the former, and more compassionate than the latter. The characters are sympathetic, the art is generally pretty good, and the plot--barring a few hiccups--is really intriguing. It's those hiccups that give me pause, though.
The last chapter/issue of this volume is an enormous infodump that explains a lot about the U.R.R.S. that we really should've been privy to before that point--and that the characters definitely should've been aware of. At least to some extent. Particularly with regards to the Big Bad who was only ever alluded to in passing in one other section, as far as I recall. Even then, I don't think he was called by name. If he's such an important figure in the nation's history, and capable of the things he is, you'd think there would've been more mention of him, earlier on. The story up until this point is still great as it is, but this sudden (and exhaustive) revelation is like a whale shark leaping up onto a boat: it would've been better to have caught the same weight of fish in numerous smaller catches over time, than to have this sudden jolt all at once. It feels lopsided. It's still a great catch, but it could've been handled better.
The only other complaints I have are some design choices on the font (flat, colored text against similarly-colored backgrounds pops up more often than it should, making it hard to read), and the foreword.
The tone of the foreword (written by someone who, as far as I can tell, has nothing to do with the work) is so condescending and dogmatic that I could easily see it turning people off to the book before they've even started really reading it. Someone named Ashley Miller spends paragraph after paragraph making sure that we know without a doubt that The Red Star is a love story. Emphatically not "a science fiction epic...contemporary high fantasy...a war story or an allegory about the Russian Revolution..." etc. and so on. She (he? Ashley could be a guy's name too) even pauses in the middle to say, and I quote, "Okay, nerds and tough guys...come back," as if comic readers are incapable of appreciating a story with heart. Maybe if Ashley had spent less time belaboring the obvious fact that The Red Star is a love story (the series literally begins with a love letter), he/she'd have realized that insulting your audience right out of the gate might not be the best way to keep them reading.
Skip the foreword; it adds nothing. The rest of the book is really quite good, barring a few rough edges.
The last chapter/issue of this volume is an enormous infodump that explains a lot about the U.R.R.S. that we really should've been privy to before that point--and that the characters definitely should've been aware of. At least to some extent. Particularly with regards to the Big Bad who was only ever alluded to in passing in one other section, as far as I recall. Even then, I don't think he was called by name. If he's such an important figure in the nation's history, and capable of the things he is, you'd think there would've been more mention of him, earlier on. The story up until this point is still great as it is, but this sudden (and exhaustive) revelation is like a whale shark leaping up onto a boat: it would've been better to have caught the same weight of fish in numerous smaller catches over time, than to have this sudden jolt all at once. It feels lopsided. It's still a great catch, but it could've been handled better.
The only other complaints I have are some design choices on the font (flat, colored text against similarly-colored backgrounds pops up more often than it should, making it hard to read), and the foreword.
The tone of the foreword (written by someone who, as far as I can tell, has nothing to do with the work) is so condescending and dogmatic that I could easily see it turning people off to the book before they've even started really reading it. Someone named Ashley Miller spends paragraph after paragraph making sure that we know without a doubt that The Red Star is a love story. Emphatically not "a science fiction epic...contemporary high fantasy...a war story or an allegory about the Russian Revolution..." etc. and so on. She (he? Ashley could be a guy's name too) even pauses in the middle to say, and I quote, "Okay, nerds and tough guys...come back," as if comic readers are incapable of appreciating a story with heart. Maybe if Ashley had spent less time belaboring the obvious fact that The Red Star is a love story (the series literally begins with a love letter), he/she'd have realized that insulting your audience right out of the gate might not be the best way to keep them reading.
Skip the foreword; it adds nothing. The rest of the book is really quite good, barring a few rough edges.
November 20, 2024
On the say to visit her husband's grave, Maya Antares relates the story of his death in battle to an elderly veteran. This story sets the scene for the epic adventure tale and love story that is The red Star, which takes place in a blended sci-fi/fantasy mirror of the Soviet Union.
In this first of two hardcover volumes, we see the battle that leads to Marcus Antares death; see the decline of a once mighty technocratic empire; and watch as, guided by spirits from realms beyond, Maya, her brother-in-law Urik and crewmates experience a revelation that changes their lives for ever.
The world that Christian Gossett has created is a fascinating blend of high tech science-fiction set in an alternate past and otherworldly fantasy. I've not read anything quite like it before. While this could have been a little forced, it's actually done quite well. The art is also fantastic. The machinery, for example, looks like the product a technologically advanced regime with a brutalist, modernist aesthetic and readily evokes the tremendous scale at which the events occur.
The plot is okay. I like the idea of a story about lovers and family torn apart by futile war that plays out against a backdrop of a world in flux and state in decline, but I found there was a bit too much heroic, noble self-sacrifice in this one, punctuated by a little bit too much heroic, noble staring off into the middle distance during moments of self-reflection.
I do hope that in volume two Makita will reveal how her father received a letter from Marcus. That's an open question.
In this first of two hardcover volumes, we see the battle that leads to Marcus Antares death; see the decline of a once mighty technocratic empire; and watch as, guided by spirits from realms beyond, Maya, her brother-in-law Urik and crewmates experience a revelation that changes their lives for ever.
The world that Christian Gossett has created is a fascinating blend of high tech science-fiction set in an alternate past and otherworldly fantasy. I've not read anything quite like it before. While this could have been a little forced, it's actually done quite well. The art is also fantastic. The machinery, for example, looks like the product a technologically advanced regime with a brutalist, modernist aesthetic and readily evokes the tremendous scale at which the events occur.
The plot is okay. I like the idea of a story about lovers and family torn apart by futile war that plays out against a backdrop of a world in flux and state in decline, but I found there was a bit too much heroic, noble self-sacrifice in this one, punctuated by a little bit too much heroic, noble staring off into the middle distance during moments of self-reflection.
I do hope that in volume two Makita will reveal how her father received a letter from Marcus. That's an open question.
August 23, 2017
Love this book. The art is amazing and the story is fun. The fusion of magic and tech is perfect.
March 13, 2019
The most amazing comic series that might never be finished and one of the most epic, sweeping comic stories I have ever read. It's said to be interwoven with the video game of the same name, which I have never seen, but the comics stand alone just fine.
The Red Star is set in an alternate science fiction and magical universe, where the Soviet Union, a.k.a. the United Republics of The Red Star, has magic, and they're still losing in a war with Afghanistan-alike. The central characters are Maya Antares, one of the United Republics Warcasters (sorcerers), and her husband Marcus Antares, a United Republics Captain. Their life is the terrible feeling of being part of something larger than you, that you cannot stop, that's only going to end in tragedy. And as the series goes on, they find out more about how the war came to be. Then they have to make choices.
The Red Star has now been re-issued in two hardcover collections, after being printed in... four paperbacks, and some extra issues? If you're confused tracking it down or get into it and want help untangling what other content is available, let me know and I'll help out. We've bought this in at least those two versions and I haven't yet sat down to map out how they match up.
The Red Star is set in an alternate science fiction and magical universe, where the Soviet Union, a.k.a. the United Republics of The Red Star, has magic, and they're still losing in a war with Afghanistan-alike. The central characters are Maya Antares, one of the United Republics Warcasters (sorcerers), and her husband Marcus Antares, a United Republics Captain. Their life is the terrible feeling of being part of something larger than you, that you cannot stop, that's only going to end in tragedy. And as the series goes on, they find out more about how the war came to be. Then they have to make choices.
The Red Star has now been re-issued in two hardcover collections, after being printed in... four paperbacks, and some extra issues? If you're confused tracking it down or get into it and want help untangling what other content is available, let me know and I'll help out. We've bought this in at least those two versions and I haven't yet sat down to map out how they match up.
Read
July 19, 2016If you go with the theory that beneath most of our myths lie some sordid Bronze or Iron Age scuffle, given import and grandeur by generations of retelling and artistry, then imagine the legends that might one day come from the fall of the USSR, you have something like The Red Star. The wars in Afghanistan and Chechnya are turned up to 11 and recast as epic, without ever losing sight of the sheer awfulness of battle. I read the first half of this 15 years ago, and was haunted by it. Continuing now...not quite so much. It was grander, more mystical in memory (and in a sense that volume really was grander, being printed outsize). The somewhat CGI, anime-tinged art hasn't aged so well, and nor has the implicit direction of Russian history. But beyond that, in some respects this supposedly deluxe edition seems oddly lacking. The indicia and back cover believe that it omits the fifth issue, which would be senseless but is in any case untrue. And while there are loads of sketches &c in the back, missing are the quotes on art and the future from real-world revolutionary thinkers which added crucial framing, weight and resonance in the earlier collection.
March 21, 2016
Totally gorgeous book in every respect. The art features pioneering work blending hand drawn pencils of foreground characters with CG backgrounds of vehicles and settings; I haven't really seen anything like it, and the character expressions are so good they're heart breaking.
All in service of an epic story - a mashup of LOTR and "War and Peace" maybe? In a futuristic alternate version of the USSR, sorcery exists and has been militarized. But enemies of the state possess arcane power as well, and battles rage to keep rebellious republics from seceding from the grip of the motherland. Against this backdrop, a shell shocked sorceress begins to question the tyranny of the government she serves, whose wars cost her husband his life. But also, there is a kickass ninja ghost lady swordfighting with a soul-stealing cyborg ringwraith dude. I KNOW, RIGHT?
All in service of an epic story - a mashup of LOTR and "War and Peace" maybe? In a futuristic alternate version of the USSR, sorcery exists and has been militarized. But enemies of the state possess arcane power as well, and battles rage to keep rebellious republics from seceding from the grip of the motherland. Against this backdrop, a shell shocked sorceress begins to question the tyranny of the government she serves, whose wars cost her husband his life. But also, there is a kickass ninja ghost lady swordfighting with a soul-stealing cyborg ringwraith dude. I KNOW, RIGHT?
July 28, 2016
Future Mythic take with a Russian analog providing the background for the characters. The art is nice but not sure it's redefining as it's cinematic look is not unusual now. Perhaps it was when this was originally released? I'm probably in for the second book to see if the main character can complete her mission to find (spoiler omitted).
September 22, 2015
The art is absolutely glorious, the design, the graphics. Amazing.
The story however left me completely cold.
The story however left me completely cold.
April 30, 2017
* * * * ½ - almost amazing comic book series with lots of atmosphere & action.
This is a joint review of the (currently) latest reprint of Christian Gossetts comic book series The Red Star, a hardcover deluxe edition printed in 2016.
To begin with - I am in general not a fan of comic book series. And I am definitely not a fan of manga (although I presume true connoisseur would barely call this comic manga-esque?). To quantify my statement: to date, I have only found two other adult (this is not to be read as pornographic) comic series interesting (both by author/artist Ben Templesmith).
The Red Star is set in Russia within an alternate historical timeline, where spirits and esoteric power is an undisputed fact. The Reds might be referring to Communists, but it might just as well be a reference to the star as something else. Although the feeling is of deep Communist Russia. I fell in love with the atmosphere of this novel and the superb imaginative new concepts that are introduced. Just enough is left for the reader's imagination to make it all the more plausible. The pictures themselves are wonderful, almost movie-like in intensity and communicate all the more feeling and urgency by their almost sensual choreography. The story's background is the only half-negative aspect - a love story which is slightly juvenile. But not so much that it put me off.
When it comes to the material quality - I am not familiar with any of the other printed versions of this series, so I cannot compare the material quality. But this edition looks and feels great.
So, if you can stomach occult space opera-style communism in comic book form - don't look any further, you've found what you are looking for!
This is a joint review of the (currently) latest reprint of Christian Gossetts comic book series The Red Star, a hardcover deluxe edition printed in 2016.
To begin with - I am in general not a fan of comic book series. And I am definitely not a fan of manga (although I presume true connoisseur would barely call this comic manga-esque?). To quantify my statement: to date, I have only found two other adult (this is not to be read as pornographic) comic series interesting (both by author/artist Ben Templesmith).
The Red Star is set in Russia within an alternate historical timeline, where spirits and esoteric power is an undisputed fact. The Reds might be referring to Communists, but it might just as well be a reference to the star as something else. Although the feeling is of deep Communist Russia. I fell in love with the atmosphere of this novel and the superb imaginative new concepts that are introduced. Just enough is left for the reader's imagination to make it all the more plausible. The pictures themselves are wonderful, almost movie-like in intensity and communicate all the more feeling and urgency by their almost sensual choreography. The story's background is the only half-negative aspect - a love story which is slightly juvenile. But not so much that it put me off.
When it comes to the material quality - I am not familiar with any of the other printed versions of this series, so I cannot compare the material quality. But this edition looks and feels great.
So, if you can stomach occult space opera-style communism in comic book form - don't look any further, you've found what you are looking for!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews