I have been a big Planet of the Apes fan for years now, and my fandom started as a kid watching the original movies with my father. When the recent Apes movies came out my fandom was reignited as I thought they were a great way to bring back the franchise while making it feel new. As an adult I’ve gone back and tried to fill the wholes of my Apes knowledge by finding the tv series they did in the 70s, and still hunting for the animated series. Then Marvel got back the rights, through Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox, and announced not only new Apes comics but a reprint of the original Marvel series. This made me so happy that I pre-ordered everything without regard and have been enjoying more and more Apes content. I got my Adventures on the Planet of the Apes Omnibus, brought it home, and there it say in shrink rap for months before finally opening it. When coming up with the idea for Retro Re-Read it was on my short list to do and so here we are.
Issue #1 of Adventures of the Planet of the Apes was like returning to an old friend. If you don’t know this series is a retelling of the movies around the same time the Saturday Morning Cartoon series was hitting television in 1975. That is to say way before I was born, or my parents had even met. So it’s weird to say it’s like returning to an old friends but since it is re-telling a story I’ve watched many times in my life there was just no other way to explain it. In this issue we get to see the beginning portion of the Planet of the Apes movie, from 1968. We see our main character, George Taylor, as he and his crew travel through space to test a theory of how time works in space. When they crash land on a strange planet that resembles Earth they think they have traveled more that 2,000 years into the future, proving the theory of time and space. Not everyone is convinced as they walk through a desert and try to ration what little supplies they have after their spacecraft crashes into a large body of water. From there they discover life, in the form of a small plant, and eventually something human like yet mute. As it goes the humans are rounded up by large ape-like creatures on horseback and George is stunned.
The art throughout the issue is some amazing classic Marvel artwork. All the characters are unique and memorable, while the locations throughout pop with vibrant colors. I’ve always been a fan of classic comic book art. While I believe comic book art has evolved into a wonderful, crazy, and diverse range of styles, there is just something about that old look that Marvel and DC had that calls to me as a fan of the medium. The art in this issue showcases that style tremendously. The cover feels worth mentioning as well. Everything about the cover screams 70’s Marvel. The logo is bold and in your face, and the art hits you like a ton of bricks. See it for the first time got me excited to see what was inside this issue.
One of the things I’ve always been critical of in older comics is the writing. A lot of the time, while creating amazing characters and story beats that withstand the test of time, the dialogue can be rough. This issue didn’t have that problem. Now to be fair we are reading a re-telling of a movie that is a classic, but that doesn’t take away from Doug’s ability to bring it to comics in a way that reads well, and keeps true to the film. While at times I can feels like the dialogue in some older comics can drag the book, and make it feel longer than it is, this issue read quickly. It could be my love for the franchise but if I was reading this without doing this SubStack series I probably would have continued on without hesitation.
Adventures on the Planet of the Apes #1 was so much fun to read. While juggling review books I’m reading for the podcast, collected editions or manga that I’m enjoying on the side, and my personal pull-list I pick up every week, it could have been a drag on my busy reading schedule. Spoiler alert, it wasn’t! I don’t think this would appeal to people that aren’t Ape fans, like myself, but for those that are it will be a blast to jump back into that world. If you’re like me you’ll want to jump back into a re-watch of the movies, which I will be doing right after writing this, immediately. I cannot wait to jump into the next issue next week and continue to discuss this series with you.
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Retro Re-Read: Adventures on the Planet of the Apes #1
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Writer: Doug Moench
Penciler: George Tuska
Inker: George Tuska
Cover: John Buscema
Letterer: Irv Watanabe
I have been a big Planet of the Apes fan for years now, and my fandom started as a kid watching the original movies with my father. When the recent Apes movies came out my fandom was reignited as I thought they were a great way to bring back the franchise while making it feel new. As an adult I’ve gone back and tried to fill the wholes of my Apes knowledge by finding the tv series they did in the 70s, and still hunting for the animated series. Then Marvel got back the rights, through Disney’s acquisition of 20th Century Fox, and announced not only new Apes comics but a reprint of the original Marvel series. This made me so happy that I pre-ordered everything without regard and have been enjoying more and more Apes content. I got my Adventures on the Planet of the Apes Omnibus, brought it home, and there it say in shrink rap for months before finally opening it. When coming up with the idea for Retro Re-Read it was on my short list to do and so here we are.
Issue #1 of Adventures of the Planet of the Apes was like returning to an old friend. If you don’t know this series is a retelling of the movies around the same time the Saturday Morning Cartoon series was hitting television in 1975. That is to say way before I was born, or my parents had even met. So it’s weird to say it’s like returning to an old friends but since it is re-telling a story I’ve watched many times in my life there was just no other way to explain it. In this issue we get to see the beginning portion of the Planet of the Apes movie, from 1968. We see our main character, George Taylor, as he and his crew travel through space to test a theory of how time works in space. When they crash land on a strange planet that resembles Earth they think they have traveled more that 2,000 years into the future, proving the theory of time and space. Not everyone is convinced as they walk through a desert and try to ration what little supplies they have after their spacecraft crashes into a large body of water. From there they discover life, in the form of a small plant, and eventually something human like yet mute. As it goes the humans are rounded up by large ape-like creatures on horseback and George is stunned.
The art throughout the issue is some amazing classic Marvel artwork. All the characters are unique and memorable, while the locations throughout pop with vibrant colors. I’ve always been a fan of classic comic book art. While I believe comic book art has evolved into a wonderful, crazy, and diverse range of styles, there is just something about that old look that Marvel and DC had that calls to me as a fan of the medium. The art in this issue showcases that style tremendously. The cover feels worth mentioning as well. Everything about the cover screams 70’s Marvel. The logo is bold and in your face, and the art hits you like a ton of bricks. See it for the first time got me excited to see what was inside this issue.
One of the things I’ve always been critical of in older comics is the writing. A lot of the time, while creating amazing characters and story beats that withstand the test of time, the dialogue can be rough. This issue didn’t have that problem. Now to be fair we are reading a re-telling of a movie that is a classic, but that doesn’t take away from Doug’s ability to bring it to comics in a way that reads well, and keeps true to the film. While at times I can feels like the dialogue in some older comics can drag the book, and make it feel longer than it is, this issue read quickly. It could be my love for the franchise but if I was reading this without doing this SubStack series I probably would have continued on without hesitation.
Adventures on the Planet of the Apes #1 was so much fun to read. While juggling review books I’m reading for the podcast, collected editions or manga that I’m enjoying on the side, and my personal pull-list I pick up every week, it could have been a drag on my busy reading schedule. Spoiler alert, it wasn’t! I don’t think this would appeal to people that aren’t Ape fans, like myself, but for those that are it will be a blast to jump back into that world. If you’re like me you’ll want to jump back into a re-watch of the movies, which I will be doing right after writing this, immediately. I cannot wait to jump into the next issue next week and continue to discuss this series with you.
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