Flight, Volume Two

Summary and Review: The Flight anthologies are collections of short comics by young artists, most about 10-20 pages long, and each telling a brief snippet of story (mostly fantasy, but with a wide variety of themes and tones.)

Volume 2 was an interesting mix of some really dark stories and some really sweet stories, and a few that seemed sweet but actually had something a little darker lurking underneath. My favorites spanned the gamut: Clio Chang's "This Time!" was one of the sweeter ones, almost hopelessly romantic, but had an ending realistic enough to keep it grounded. "Wilford's Stroll" by Justin Ridge was charming and magical, while "Sky Blue" by Kness was almost bittersweet. And Johane Matte's "Mouse Trap" and "Icarus" both made show more me laugh.

The artwork spans the gamut, of course, and these volumes include a variety of styles, and even a few mixed-media/papercraft stories. There were obviously some styles I preferred, and some that just did not work for me at all, but getting to sample so many artists' work in one volume is one of the best things about the Flight anthologies. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: I think the Flight anthologies will appeal to comics aficionados and newbies both, as a means of sampling a variety of artists and styles, and for the gorgeous production and lovely artwork, as well as the stories. show less

This is the second volume in Kibuishi’s Flight series. As with the first Flight volume this is a collection of graphic short stories. I thought this volume was much, much better than Flight Vol 1. The stories were just consistently more entertaining and better quality.

This volume contains short stories from a variety of genres and styles. Illustration style varies widely, as do the story types. Most of the stories were appropriate for all ages but there were a few that were best suited for older teen and up. I was reading this with my 9 year old son looking over my shoulder at times and there were some stories that I skipped and came back to when he wasn’t there.

Highlights of the book for me were:
Inner Sanctum by Michel Gagne: Very show more cute story with beautiful artwork.
Solomon Fix by Doug TeNapel: This was a hilarious story and I enjoyed it a lot.
The Orange Grove by Kazu Kibuishi: Another touching story about a boy and his childhood friend being separated.
Ghost Trolley by Rad Sechrist: About a young boy who runs away from home and boards a train that goes between realms.
A Test for Cenri by Amy Kim Grant: I loved the fantasy theme to this one and the beautiful illustration. Not to mention is was action packed!
La Sonadora: Another beautifully illustrated piece about a girl who is trying to retrieve a star.

Although the above were my favorite, there weren’t really any stories in here that I disliked...which given the variety is pretty amazing.

Overall this was a wonderful collection of graphic novel short stories; I definitely plan on checking out later Flight volumes. I would highly recommend this Flight volume to fans of graphic novels. There is just such a wonderful variety of art and story in this volume, it is all very high quality and just a pleasure to read. show less

A great range of story telling and art but the theme of "flight" that was present in the first volume seems to nearly have been abandoned. There is occasionally a small hint to the overall theme of this set of stories such as a butterfly in the background or a feather or an artistic emphasis on the sky. I really enjoyed the different artistic takes on the theme so to see less of that was disappointing. As with the first set, there were some stories and artistic styles that I enjoyed much more than others. I didn't like this set as much as the first so we'll see how the following volumes shape up.

I love this series. I started out with volume four and was blown away by how it exceeded its "literary" counterparts that desperately try to straddle the more conventional world and achieve a distinctive visual aesthetic. The result, from two I read (Blankets and Fun Home), is a so-so effort on both levels.

On the other hand, the artists in the Flight series simply work hard at creating compelling visual narratives. The result is a fantastic, happy, amusing, thoughtful reading experience. Love it, love it, love it.

Another visually stunning collection in this series. I was again impressed by how much weight is carried by the wordless submissions in this volume.

Flight Volume Two was originally published in 2004 as a way for Kazu Kibuishi to showcase the works of talented graphic artists such as Michel Gagne, Jake Parker and Phil Craven, just to name a few. The series has grown to include 8 volumes.

Opening with Michel Gagnes’ “The Saga of Rex – Inner Sanctum”, about two small fox like, alien, creatures who fall in love and follow each other on a bizarre journey through space, this book continues on to tell a multitude of different stories ranging from abstract and surreal to touching and realistic. It is an inspirational anthology that will take you on journeys you would never have imagined. Touching stories of friendship are told when a small robot befriends a bird in Jake Parkers show more “The Robot and the Sparrow” or when a man in prison solitude shares what little he has to eat with a rat in “Cellmates” by Phil Craven. A young girl refuses to get on the train to the next stage of her life because she has “learned some bad news (“Destiny Express, by Jen Wang) and a dog goes into outer space, discovering things about the universe that man has never seen before (Laika, by Doug Holgate).

The stories found in Flight Volume Two, many of which are continued from volume one, will inspire you, make you laugh, make you cry and sometime you will do experience all three at the same time. show less

A very imaginative and creatively drawn collection of short stories. Probably my favorite short story collection, although that isn't particularly hard since I find short stories strangely annoying. I will definitely be seeking out other volumes in this series and works by the authors/illustrators features in this one.