RASL Pocket Book 1/RASL #8 Review: I'd put something witty here, but I'm too busy being blown away!

Jeff Smith is easily one of my favorite comic book writers/artists ever. His Bone series is one of the titles that got me to fall in love with the medium and it's probably the series that I will introduce my non-existent children to whenever I inevitably try to push the hobby onto them. So needless to say, I'm reading his current work, RASL and doing so with a huge appetite for Jeff Smith-y goodness. Today, I'm going to tell you why YOU should be reading this book.

First off, the first pocket book (a smaller collection of the first seven issues, not to be confused with the women's accessory) is out, and it's one hell of a deal. For a mere one-time payment of just $18, you can have the first seven issues, each sold individually for $3.50 (or $24.50 all together). That's right, you save a whole $6.50!

But let's face it, why not just save all your money and NOT buy this book, right? Well stop right there buddy, because this is a tale of espionage, betrayal, love, and SCIENCE! Oh, and a brief, interesting look at the late great Nikola Tesla (sadly, Atomic Robo NOT included.) The Story of Robert, former scientist turned into reality hopping art thief named RASL, is truly a riveting tale that will draw you in, get you excited, and leave you wanting more immediately after finishing that last page. If you're looking for great science fiction, you will not find yourself dissatisfied here.

And Smith isn't just a gifted writer; he's easily one of the best cartoonists ever to work in American comics. While your mind is busy spinning in circles over this awesome tale, your eyes will find themselves in love with Smith's visual work; be it beautiful women or creepy moments of science fiction goodness, there isn't a single page of bad visuals anywhere near this book.


But what happens when you're done and you've read it enough times that you can recite it all from memory? Well, then either learn to have some patience, or get yourself issue #8, picking up exactly where we left off and starting up the next chapter of the story. It probably won't do much to feed your hunger, but it should wet the appetite a little until issue #9 comes out in October. Here, more of the pieces of the puzzle come together and we meet some familiar faces. And there's also a neat little bibliography at the back of the pocket book with a list of works that Mr. Smith used as inspiration for this, which coupled with his awesome Bone series, should keep you plenty occupied until the next batch off issues come out (sadly he's only putting out three issues a year, which means this will be going for a good bit of time to come.)

Whatever you do, though, make sure you don't miss out on this series; it's a slow burn, but it's well worth it!