From Titan Books, Alex Raymond, Don Moore, restorations by Peter Maresca.

One of the most gorgeous books to ever come through the Team Hellions offices, this collection of Alex Raymond’s Flash Gordon Sunday strips from April 25, 1937 through January 12, 1941 will cause readers to time travel with enjoyment.

Flash Gordon is an all time great character who has not received love for decades.  Tomes like this should change all of that.  The Sunday comic format demands certain things, things that create greatness.  Every word must further the story and generate excitement.  The panels have to draw the eyes of any man woman or child reading the Sunday paper.  It is the best example of a serial on paper that I’ve ever seen.

Some may complain that Flash Gordon is too old.  Stories of adventures in space can never be old, because by their nature alone these tales will always be futuristic.  These strips start a full year before Superman debuted and the impact these strips have had on everything that came after is immeasurable.  The hero, the villain, the twist that can make either or both more “human”, the costume, the differences in the costume for adventures in another locale, the beautiful women that can be either in danger or the danger themselves, groundbreaking new panel constructions and artistic creations to convey action.  Even for someone who has been reading comic books for years, there is no shortage of things to discover here.

If your family is comic books, this collection is flipping through your grandparents photo album and marveling at how innovative and beautiful they were in their prime.

Doubt the influence Flash Gordon had?  Take a look at these pictures!

(Note.  These aren’t great pictures on purpose.  I didn’t ask for permission to scan, but I want you to get an idea of this.  For better pictures, buy the book!)

Tell me that doesn’t look like Robin!  Red, green and yellow.  The cape, the gloves.  All that’s missing is a domino mask.

Princess Leia anyone?  Its not secret that George Lucas was influenced by Flash Gordon while writing Star Wars, but images like this show us just how influenced he was.

If Titan Books, or any publisher, is collecting the rest of the series I cant recommend enough that you should complete the set.  It is truly one of the few books in any creation that is visibly a creation of love, and will be loved just as much by every reader.