Astro City
Kurt Busiek's Astro City is a comic book series centered around a fictional American city of that name. Created and written by Kurt Busiek, the series is illustrated by Brent Anderson with covers painted by Alex Ross. The series debuted in August 1995 published by Image Comics, and has been published sporadically since by Homage Comics.
Astro City exists in a world where superheroes have existed since at least the 19th century, the first public hero, Air Ace, appearing during World War I. Busiek has crafted a complex world with a huge cast of characters, many of whom have extensive backstories sketched out which are revealed as the series progresses. Some characters somewhat resemble characters from DC Comics or Marvel Comics universes, though the link tends to be inspirational only.
Some issues of the series are one- or two-part stories, while others run as many as six issues in an extended arc.
The essential hook of Astro City is that it explores the reactions that people - both ordinary people and the heroes and villains themselves - have to living in their world. For example, in the first story, the character of The Samaritan (who resembles Superman) reflects on his life during a typical day, in which he spends almost all of his waking hours flying around the world to help people. Other stories involve a date between two high-profile heroes, the initiation of a "kid sidekick" hero, and the efforts of a reformed supervillain to find a life outside of prison.
The series has been collected into graphic novel collections: Life in the Big City, Family Album, Confession, and Tarnished Angel.
The Astro City webpage can be found at
