Zorro: Flights #1

Zorro: Flights #1

American Mythology Productions 2021

Written by Don McGregor

Illustrated by Vincenzo Carratu

Coloured by Jeremy Kahn

Lettered by Natalie Jane

Legendary scribe Don McGregor returns to Zorro for the first time in over 15 years! His stories have defined comics for decades. From Black Panther to Sabre to the very pages of Zorro, he has delivered groundbreaking tales of adventure, passion, and the human condition. In "Flights," Zorro finds himself face to face with a fire breathing dragon. But something is not quite right, for though this huge creature soars into the air breathing fire, it also seems to be controlled by man! Come with us on a wild ride as we deliver one of the most anticipated Zorro stories of the new century!

Zorro is another character that I have a complicated history with. From old pulp radio show tapes, we’d listen to them on long family trips, and comics to the films. I've been an on again off again fan of the character. Since American Mythology started putting out his adventures I have been a stalwart fan of the character and it makes me so happy to see this issue and the story at hand come out. There is something about Don Diego and what he does that helps the everyman in ways that we forget a single person is capable of doing.

I am a huge fan of the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter brings their personalities to the forefront. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages introducing us to the story, the characters and the world they live in we are drawn into this with such ease.

I am enjoying how we see this being structured and how the layers within the story begin to emerge and grow. The layers do open up some avenues that may or may not be explored and regardless they all add depth, dimension and complexity to the story. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is expertly achieved.

The interior artwork here is really rather nice to see. The linework is amazing and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create this level of detail within the work we see is astounding. I love seeing the Buttes and the landscape for the backgrounds as they enhance and expand the moments while also working within the composition of the panels to bring out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. How we see the utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkably talented eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work show a really strong eye for how colour works and how to maximise their effects.

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What a fun start to a new story this is. I also love the fact that we hear Don Diego talk of being at school in Europe, Spain, and hearing about what they are seeing. It just fleshes out Don Diego in some great subtle ways that really make him seem so much more worldly. Also it is rather befitting of his station in life, coming from a wealthy family and all that. With some super strong writing and great characterisation with these spectacular interiors bring us a new Zorro tale that’ll fit right into his history.