Martian Comics Vol. 1: Moon To Moon

Title: Martian Comics Vol. 1: Moon To Moon
Publisher: Martian Comics
Stories Written by: Julian Darius
Cover Art: Janaina Medeiros
Martian Universe Created by: Julian Darius
Art: Jason Muhr, Mansyur Daman, Marlena Mozgawa Lenamo, David A. Frizell, Jason Muhr, Steven Legge, Cloves Rodrigues, Andi Supriyono, Sergio Tarquini, sara Nietto
Colors: R.L. Campos, Marlena Mozgawa Lenamo, David A. Frizell, Donovan Yaciuk, Diego Rodriguez, Fahriza Kamaputra, Andrei Tabacaru, Roni Setiawan
Letters: Julian Darius, Colin Bell, Steven Legge 
Price: $ 39.99 US
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Website: www.martianlit.com
Comments: These stories are collected from "Martian Comics" 1-15. The art is the first thing that catches your attention and holds it. The illustrations of this civilization are stunningly beautiful.
  "One Small Step" 
  Here you get a look at how the Martians viewed Earth. It is very like how humans viewed Mars. The art with the Martian astronaut is inspiring. 
  "The Canals of Earth"
  The art illustrating the Martians is gorgeous. The colors stand out, the shading is done just right. 
  The naration gets into the history and philosophy of Mars. There is also a romantic love story going on here. Love, violence, murder and mayham all abound here. 
  We see the Martians advancing and they go exploring as well. Yes they come to Earth and they are acting much as Earth would going to explore an alien planet. The Martians act so much like humans, yet they do have their wn ways and culture. 
  "Dinosaurs of Mars!"
  Martians were fascinated by Earth's dinosaurs and this leads to a discussion about the society on Mars. A teacher teaching her class explains this so well that anyone can follow it. The narration will hold your attention as you follow along. The dinosaurs are illustrated to pefection youto see these. 
  "Safari" 
  A young boy is going to through a right of passage. For an advanced civilization this one barbaric ritual continues on. It is one of murder. Yes it is passed from father to son and it does connect them and for Martians from this one city it is part of growing up. 
  "Letters from the Underworld" Here we see a religious ceremony for females only. Serda rules an underground city and this Goddess feels love. The story does get emotional. Serda does what she believes to be right. This religion also has a realistic side to it. It is good to see this part of it. 
  "Cargo Cult"
  This story has the Martians for some unknown reason starting a war on Earth. Was it to unit the two people? Was there some other reason? The story here does not explain itself well. The fact that there are no words does not help. 
  "Ezekiel"
  A man meets a Martian as he lands on Earth. This man Ezekiel is like the one from the bible and if you do not know about him from the bible you may or may not understand this story. The Martian space ship is awesome and it does leave one man in awe. 
  "The Galilean" 
  Jesus was a Martian? Well this one Martian does like to help humans by pretending to be one. This is a short story with great illustrations of Jesus. The Martian and his actions are not fully explained. 
  "I Dream of Hell!"
  A human is dreaming about Mars. Well its not raelly a dream Martians have a way of getting inside a human's head. It is sad though the way a human might look at Martians and their society and how he could interpret them. 
  "The Second Most Dangerous Game"
  This black and white illustrated story has a human hunter talking about how great hunting is. The hunter and his wife are taken to an island where they meet a young General. Things are not as they seem in some ways and in others they are exactly as they seem. The story flows smoothly and the art works so well with this period piece. 
  "Foo Fighters"
  We are shown how alike fighter pilots and their cockpit co-pilots are between humans and Martians. We get a look here at how these beings think both human and Martian. The space craft and air craft all look amazing. The artwork captures the true beauty of flight. 
  "December 1963"
  Here w see one Martian who is not out to help anyone he is out to do as he pleases. Even a Martian can be insane. The story does beautifully present this Martian and lets you in his head. 
  "Another Small Step"
  Are humans similar to Martians just maybe behind them by thousands of years? Neil Armstrong on the moon is a awe inpiring sight and the landing craft could have been illustrated better. 
  The pin-ups and art in the back of this book you will definitely want to see. 
  If you enjoy learning about a new culture and all their differences you will love this. It is the art that will really win you over though as it shows off this alien culture. 

Richard Vasseur