Comic Info
Comic Name: Planetary
Publisher: Wildstorm/DC Comics
Writer: Warren Ellis
Artist: John Cassaday
# of Issues: 7
Release Date: 2000
Planetary #1
Reprints Planetary #1-6 and Planetary Preview (September 1998-November 1999). Elijah Snow is one hundred years old along with a number of other heroes of Earth. He is contacted by a woman named Jakita Wagner who works with a man named Drummer for a mysterious organization called Planetary. Being offered obscene amounts of money, Snow takes a job on the team and learns that Planetary is under the control of someone called the Fourth Man that neither Jakita or the Drummer has ever scene. As they crisscross the globe encountering giant monsters, phantom police officers, and men of brass, Planetary seeks answers…but who is the Fourth Man and what does he want with Snow?
Written by Warren Ellis, Planetary Volume 1: All Over the World and Other Stories was tied in with Ellis’ other project Stormwatch/The Authority. It was widely critically acclaimed for both in its writing and its art by John Cassaday. The series was sporatic and mostly on a bi-monthly status for a number of years with illnesses and delays holding it up on occasion. This first collection has also been collected as part of Absolute Planetary Volume 1 (which collects the first two trade paperbacks).
Planetary #5
The first collection of Planetary introduces the team and some major themes. Snow is one hundred years old and like Jenny Sparks in The Authority, part of some mysterious phenomena that has occurred. Jakita has superhuman strength and speed. The Drummer has a bit more undefined powers with an ability to communicate with machinery among other things. A major supporting character also like Jenny Sparks and Elijah Snow is Doc Brass who is introduced in the first issue also and holds keys to the bigger mysteries of Planetary.
Planetary has a lot of fun playing with genres. Here there are stories about classic super-hero teams, giant-Godzilla monsters, a ghost story of a slain detective, a space-fantasy, a ’30s pulp adventurer, and a Fantastic Four like space team. The stories are presented in a way that they feel like their basis. A good example is the pulp issue (Planetary #5) which has Doc Brass (a version of Doc Savage) with a lot of prose and serialized storytelling, but a more modern genre issue is the ghost detective issue (Planetary #3) which is written and drawn like a John Woo action film.
The wide range of stories added to the fantastic art makes Planetary a great, fun comic. Ellis and Cassaday work well together to tell a great story. Planetary is one of those comics you just want more of when you start reading them, and you wish that Ellis could pump out more without risking the comic’s integrity. Planetary 1: All Over the World and Other Stories was followed by Planetary 2: The Fourth Man.
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