Flight Volume Three

By Rebecca Buchanan
August 1, 2006

Title: Flight Volume Three
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Editor: Kazu Kibuishi
ISBN: 0-345-49039-8
Price: $24.95 US

An alien fox on a strange world. Fairies in the back woods of England. Two young men find the edge of the world. Three adventurers crash land near a city of lemmings. Feline (mis)adventures in ancient Egypt. A monstrous tea party. A frantic rescue mission. A stinky monster. A fire-breathing monster. A non-conformist cloud. Espresso police! A girl who can float. The search for self. Children playing war. Having a bad day. Flirting on the bus. A whale in need. Nine lives. Valhalla. A warlock and a fox in a battle of wits. Tragedy on a far distant future Earth. A dragon warrior. A seal makes an unexpected ally. The great bunny migration through space. An egg and its surprise. A beanstalk.

Flight is a treat. Since the first volume was released three years ago, I have looked forward to each new edition. Editor Kibuishi has a real eye for ferreting out talent; I am familiar with only a few of the creators in this volume, most are completely unknown to me. Among my new discoveries: Ben Hatke, Rad Sechrist, Phil Craven, Azad Injejikian, Rodolphe Guenoden and Paul Harmon. If they don't already, somebody offer these talented folks a publishing deal! At the very least, Mr. Kibuishi, get them back for Flight Four.

And some of my favorites have returned. A new Johane Matte story! Wheee! And a new Michel Gagne story; I hope we see more of that cure little alien fox in future volumes. Even Kibuishi offers a tragic tale about children and war and the legacy of violence.

If you haven't already, go out and grab volume three — and grab volumes one and two while you're t it!