Book Of The Month – August
Marsh Rocket 
Written & Drawn by Jules Rivera
Little known fact; before I dived into the world of comic books, I was a huge fan of webcomics. I had at least twenty different sites bookmarked, and would visit them daily. They are free, come out on a regular basis, and there’s one for whatever might interest you (most of them were about real life or video games, but the cream always rises to the top). A fun thing to do is look at the first comic that was put up, then jump ahead to the current comic just to see how much the art or story has improved after all these years. Some change drastically (Questionable Content), while some stay the same because the art may be simplistic to begin with (Cyanide & Happiness). Bottom line is, webcomics shouldn’t be treated as the redheaded step-child of comic books, because the amount of work that goes into this medium can greatly surpass multiple titles being put out by the major comic publishers of today. As a matter of fact, many of your favorite webcomics have been published in collected editions by the same comic publishers in the past few years!
But alas, on to the Book Of The Month selection for August 2010.
Marsh Rocket is one of those webcomics-tuned-published works that I’ve been talking about, only the creator Jules Rivera had that whole plan in mind from the start. Could she be ahead of the bandwagon of others switching to the published graphic novel format? Perhaps. Will anyone else let her take credit for said-possible idea? Perhaps not. Do I know what I’m talking about? No.
Moving on, Marsh Rocket made its debut on the web back in 2006, and has been going strong ever since. The first storyline has been collected in three trade paperbacks, with the second story starting-up just a few weeks ago. It takes place in the future, and deals with corporate mercenaries trying to earn a buck in a still chaotic world. The main characters we focus on are Victor Black, experienced-ex-soldier-turned-merc, Marsh Rocket, the lovable hero who gets into trouble, and Ross Tiburon, their boss who writes the checks while trying to deal with his dysfunctional family. Ross Tiburon takes over the company when his father is placed in jail after it’s discovered that he has his own team of mercenaries taking out the competition / anyone on the board of directors who might be putting the company in jeopardy. When Ross inherits the mercenaries, he figures their skills could be useful to him in the future.
Victor Black is the leader of the company’s alpha squadron with Marsh, and whatever Ross says goes. Unfortunately for Marsh, he has a loan shark by the name of The Baron on his tail due to his insufficient funds. So while the corporate mercenaries aren’t supposed to take outside jobs, you do what you need to do in order to get some extra cash. The Baron is amused at the fact that Marsh is a corporate merc, so he sends him on a mission to retrieve a briefcase of his stolen by the Zodiac Mafia. This mission takes Marsh out in the middle of the desert at the luxurious Hotel Zinnia, and it all seems to be going well until the Zodiac Mafia enter the picture, then it appears to be too much for Marsh to handle alone.
Can Marsh get the persistent bodyguard Rose off his case? Will Victor arrive in time to help him escape? Will Ross get his family’s affairs in order? Well I don’t want to give it away to you, so if you’re interested go buy the trades or read it online for free!
I had immense amounts of fun while reading this story. The action and tone capture a magnificent blend of pulp and sci-fi, with a touch of Japanese animation thrown into the mix. Fans of Cowboy Bebop and The Fifth Element will find lots to enjoy, but just keep in mind it’s not an all ages title. While I enjoyed the story just fine, what really made me fall in love was the art, and more specifically the different colors Jules plays around with every page. Black & white, then primary and secondary colors exactly where they need to be. I can enjoy a page for what seems like hours because of the combinations she uses throughout. The cherry on top is the fact that she’s all self-taught. Whatta woman!
Like I pointed out before, the entire series is free to read and enjoy online at her website www.Marsh-Rocket.com or you could do yourself a favor and buy the box set collecting all three trades. With that box set, you get them all signed along with a sketch card. It’s the whole kit-n-caboodle for a very satisfy price of $36. Plus you’re helping out such a talented artist, you feel good supporting the little guy (err, girl).
With the start of the second story arc just happening, there’s no reason to not catch-up and have it on your bookmarks. Read, love, and spread the word.
Also, if you happen to find a suitcase with a severed hand inside, please return it to Albatross as soon as possible. He’d really appreciate it.
Book Of The Month – June – LOCAL
Book Of The Month – July – Sub-Mariner: The Depths
Book Of The Month – August – Superman: Secret Identity
Book Of The Month – October – Welcome To Hoxford
Book Of The Month – November – The Nightly News
Book Of The Month – December – CLA$$WAR
Book Of The Month – January – The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite
Book Of The Month – February – Locke & Key: Welcome To Lovecraft
Book Of The Month – March – Mini Marvels Ultimate Collection
Book Of The Month – April – Asterios Polyp
Book Of The Month – May – Green Lantern: Secret Origin
