If you’re not familiar with Flash Gordon in his various incarnations (be it the comic strip, the adventure serials, or the 1980 film), this may or may not be a good place to start. On the one hand, it’s a series of standalone adventures, so you can follow them without knowing the lore (though a passing familiarity doesn’t hurt). On the other hand, the stories included in this issue seem to have very little to do with Flash Gordon.

This first issue contains three stories. In the first, “The Fall of King Vultan,” Flash and his companions don’t appear at all. Rather it centers on the Hawk people, as their king grooms his son, Talon, to take over when he’s gone. King Vultan is reticent to give his son too much responsibility too soon, but Talon believes himself up for the challenge and wishes his father would stop treating him like a child. Both their resolves will be tested when their army suffers a surprise attack by Ming the Merciless.

The second story, “Battle of Little Mingo,” has a very different twist. It does feature Flash Gordon, but instead of taking place on the planet Mongo, it’s set in the tiny Old West town of Little Mingo, which Sheriff Gordon and his deputy Dale Arden are forced to defend against the greedy clutches of Governor Ming T. Marcellus.

In the third story, we shift genres again, this time to a noir setting, where Flash Gordon is a hard-boiled private detective in a town full of violence and corruption. One of the last honest politicians, Barin Prince, has gone missing, and it’s up to Flash to find him—before both he AND Barin wind up dead. Not an easy task, but with the help of Doc Zarkov and his wacky inventions, along with Dale Arden – his friend (and old flame) on the police force – hopefully, Flash can stay alive long enough to get to the bottom of things.

All three stories are a lot of fun. With different writers and artists for each, it’s interesting to see how different people approach the character and the lore and use it to explore possibilities that they couldn’t otherwise. In that regard, it reminds me a lot of Star Trek: Waypoint, a similar “anything goes”-type anthology which I reviewed a few years ago.

Of course, I’ve been a Star Trek fan my whole life, so that one was tailor-made for me. When it comes to Flash Gordon, I’ve seen the movie once (and I can sing the theme song by Queen), but otherwise, I’m not particularly well-versed. That being the case, I’m sure there were a number of references I missed that the avid fans will appreciate. Regardless, though, I enjoyed all three stories very much and am looking forward to reading more (presumably in the next quarter).

So, is this a good introduction to the world of Flash Gordon? Well, after reading these first three stories, you won’t come away knowing a whole lot about the characters or the lore. But if you’re anything like me, you will come away wanting to know more.

Creative Team: Dennis Culver (writer, The Fall of King Vultan), Louis Southard (writer, Battle of Little Mingo), Jordan Thomas (writer, Flash Detective Services), Pasquale Qualano (artist, The Fall of King Vultan), Nuno Plati (artist, Battle of Little Mingo), Russell Olson (artist, Flash Detective Services), Mark Englert (colorist, The Fall of King Vultan), João M. P. Lemos (colorist, Battle of Little Mingo), Charles Pritchett (letterer, The Fall of King Vultan), Buddy Beaudoin (letterer, Battle of Little Mingo), Lucas Gattoni (letterer, Flash Detective Services), Chas! Pangburn (editor)
Publisher: Mad Cave Studios
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