NOT FLY BY NIGHT: KAZU KIBUISHI ON FLIGHT VOL. 3

[MattBrady]

by Benjamin Ong Pang Kean

Kazu Kibuishi is a creator who believes that a man can reach for the heavens above.

Originally published through Image Comics, comic book fans instantly fell in love with the wonderful stories within the two Flight compilations that’d been made available thus far.

Critics praised the efforts of both his and fellow creators who’re made up of rising stars as well as the comic, film and animation industries’ pros.

Last year, an established book trade publisher took notice.

It’s about to take flight again end of this month when Kibuishi and Ballantine Books present the third Flight anthology to an even wider audience.

The creator has made it known on his blog and related websites that he’s seen and read the published version of the new Flight. According to Kibuishi, it’s been an interesting journey. “I'm just glad that the dust is all settled so that we can focus on creating good content for the readers,” he told Newsarama. “With this book, I finally feel like we're making major strides towards being a more professional outfit, since I was able pay advances against royalties to the artists, get proper contracts made out, and the book wasn't rushed through the printing process. I remember thinking that the scheduling for Flight at Ballantine seemed so far ahead of what was necessary. It turned out that we would use nearly every day of that extra time, and we were able to produce the book at a comfortable pace so that we could get everything just right.”

Click here for the full story.

[BillReed]

Oooooo.

Pretty.

[CitC]

I only had time to skim the article (doing report cards - yech), and I read last years FCBD Flight bok and I have looked at all the images here - so my question is - Is Flight an all ages book (or close to it, like Mouse Guard - 10 and up, or so)?

Sorry if I missed something obvious.
Thanks

[FIG]

Inspirational work, I can't wait to buy this! I highly recommend for those of you that have not tried Flight to do so with this volume. Its has great stories and beautiful artwork.

[Derrick Fish]

Flight, to me, is a collection of what comics truely can and should be. Stunning and wildly diverse stories and artwork collected with class, respect and joy.

It's the watermark all of us who aspire to make it in comics should reach for.

[martinp]

Flight 1 and 2 are on my top shelf (books that I can read over and over again). If this new collection has half the power that the first two had, it will be stellar. A book for comic and non-comic fans.


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[Not From Around]

Originally Posted by CitC

I only had time to skim the article (doing report cards - yech), and I read last years FCBD Flight bok and I have looked at all the images here - so my question is - Is Flight an all ages book (or close to it, like Mouse Guard - 10 and up, or so)?

Sorry if I missed something obvious.
Thanks

I was led by comments I saw online to believe when the first volume of "Flight" came out that it was an all-ages book. Not long after I became library director here I ordered it. Fortunately I took the time to read through it before putting it on the shelves.

Only some of the stories are really for children. Some of these are quite charming. Others have nothing parents would find objectionable, but would probably bore young readers and/or go over their heads.

The book also contains at least two or three instances of profanity (including the s-word), some violence (including at least one scene of bloodshed), and a quite graphic scene of childbirth. Now this might go over just fine in the schools where, say, Art Spiegelman or Scott McCloud send their children, but around here and in most other places I can think of "Flight" would most definitely NOT be considered all-ages. It's a real shame, since parts of it would work quite well for young readers.

[CitC]

"Flight" would most definitely NOT be considered all-ages. It's a real shame, since parts of it would work quite well for young readers.

That is a shame. I wonder wy the FCBD issue was so all ages? From what you said this would be a good book for a parent and child to curl up with - skipping the kid-boring and inapropiate parts and then putting it back on the shelf until the child is old enough for the rest.

[BClayMoore]

I think the "all ages" barometer on FLIGHT probably varies from region to region, person to person, parent to parent.

-BCM

[CitC]

I agree Mr. Moore, but, in your opinion, how does it rate using Newsarama writer Tracy Edmond's criteria for all ages books?

The Big Three:

Language: Anything they can repeat in the classroom without getting a note sent home is fine, and the occasional “crap” might slip through, but George Carlin’s seven words do not appear in all ages books. As for kids’ favorite words, like fart, poop, and barf – well, there would be a lot less laughter in the world without those.

Violence: If there is violence, it is of the slapstick or plastic light saber variety and does not involve gushing entrails. Superhero “biff-bam-pow” is okay, but shooting someone in the face and watching brains splatter on the wall is not.

Sex: No one has sex, discusses sex, or makes jokes about sex. As far as my kids know, “sex” is whether you are a boy or a girl. Flirting and kissing are fine unless there are large quantities of saliva involved. In all ages books, the female characters’ breasts should generally be no larger than their heads.

Or is it apropriate for the upper elementary and beyond crowd (10-11 yrs or so) that are exposed to a lot more than that?

[BClayMoore]

I'm probably the wrong person to discuss this with.

I certainly don't think there's anything that should keep it out of the hands of ten or eleven year-olds.

-BCM

[Hobowatcher]

If you give a kid to look at Mouse Guard, then the Flight books are a must read. They kill and they hurt animals and creatures, just like in Mouse Guard. There should be no problem.

Everyone needs to own the series.

[genetic freak]

I sooo love this!!! ...and the first two volumes