This article needs additional citations for
verification. (May 2014) |
Rising Stars | |
---|---|
Publication information | |
Publisher | Joe's Comics ( Top Cow) |
Schedule | Monthly |
Format | Limited series |
Genre | |
Publication date | August 1999 – March 2005 |
No. of issues | 24 |
Main character(s) | Characters |
Creative team | |
Created by | J. Michael Straczynski |
Written by | J. Michael Straczynski |
Penciller(s) |
Keu Cha Ken Lashley Christian Zanier Brent Anderson |
Inker(s) |
Jason Gorder John Livesay Edwin Rosell Marlo Alquiza Brent Anderson |
Letterer(s) |
David Wohl Dennis Heisler Dreamer Design Robin Spehar |
Colorist(s) |
Liquid! Matt Nelson John Starr Tyson Wengler |
Editor(s) |
Dennis Heisler Renae Geerlings |
Collected editions | |
Compendium | ISBN 1-60706-032-9 |
Rising Stars is a 24-issue comic book limited series written by J. Michael Straczynski about 113 people (called "Specials") born with special abilities following the appearance of a mysterious light in the sky above Pederson, Illinois. The series explores how society may react to the advent of superpowers, and how those who are Specials may react towards society and each other. Rising Stars was one of the first comics produced under Straczynski's own Joe's Comics imprint for Top Cow Productions.
The comic was published in August 1999, monthly at first by Top Cow/ Image Comics, and then under the Joe's Comics imprint. Within a few months, however, there were unscheduled artist changes and unexplained delays by Top Cow in shipping the comics, sometimes lasting months.
The comic itself came to an unexpected halt after issue 21 due to internal arguments between Straczynski and Top Cow. Straczynski claimed he was cut out of the loop on the potential Rising Stars movie. After communication broke down between them, he held back the scripts for the last three issues, and the entire comic was put on hold. In addition to an apology for the way Straczynski was treated in regard to the possible film, Top Cow relented by giving him the full rights to an anthology comic he had written for them, Dream Police (later published by Marvel Comics), as well as the rights to the name and logo for the Joe's Comics imprint.
The last issue of Rising Stars was published in March 2005. During the intervening time, Straczynski had gone on to write a revamp of Marvel's Squadron Supreme, Supreme Power.
The story is narrated from the future by the last living Special, John Simon, nicknamed "Poet". The genesis of the Specials is shown to be the unforgettable descent of a fierce comet from the heavens. The story starts when the Specials are all grown up, but it constantly flashes back to when they were children. Through these flashbacks, the development of these 113 Specials is shown, starting with the government's monitoring and handling of the events, to the manifestation of their powers, to the impact of these abilities on the afflicted children and the world around them. Some of the Specials use their powers for the good of the world, others for personal benefit and fame, while others simply wish to forget about them and live a normal life.
A series of murders of the Specials spurs John to investigate. He learns that when a Special dies, their "energy" transfers to the remaining Specials, making each more powerful. This fact had become known to a Special with multiple personality disorder, who calls herself Critical Maas. It emerges that Maas has been manipulating "Patriot" (the alter ego of Jason Miller) to kill other Specials so her own power would be increased. At the instigation of Maas, the U.S. government also attacks the Specials, killing more. With her newly increased powers, Maas and a handful of Specials under her telepathic control are able to conquer Chicago, claiming it for themselves. [1]
Ten years pass and John, his half-brother Randy Fisk (alter ego: Ravenshadow), Elizabeth Chandra, and Joshua Kane (alter ego: Sanctuary) lead the rest of the Specials in an attempt to liberate Chicago after the U.S. government promises that all charges against them will be dropped. Maas is defeated, but at a price: Matthew Bright, who had been sent by the government to assist in her defeat, is beaten into a coma by Patriot, while the latter was still under Maas' control.
Seeing that internecine conflict was not what they were empowered for, John proclaims that he wants them all to act as a unit so they can help humanity. The violence in Chicago affected the rest of the Specials as well and they all agree to assist John in his mission. [2]
Another ten years pass, and their mission is almost complete. Humanity has been helped by the Specials, and more importantly, has been given the confidence and resources to further help themselves. But after Randy Fisk wins the Presidency, elements in the U.S. government, seeing the Specials as a threat to their power, plot to assassinate the remaining few.
A bomb, specifically designed to destroy even the most powerful Special, is set off during a gathering of almost all the Specials, excepting John who is busy working on a secret project. All present are killed, including Randy and John's lover, Elizabeth Chandra.
The released power is initially distributed amongst all the people of the world, instantly curing all forms of illness and injury. It also grants everyone limited telepathy, bringing an end to all wars, violence, and strife as people become aware of the thoughts and feelings of those they had previously viewed as their enemies. Those involved in the mass assassination voluntarily come forward and confess. For 24 hours, not a single human being dies.
After that blessed 24 hours, the power soars into the sky and seeks out John, giving him all its power and knocking him out for seven days. He uses that power to provide energy for the project he had been working on: a space ship that travels near the speed of light.
The immense power within John directs the ship to yet another world, an alien planet much like Earth. John's ship erupts into a fireball, strikingly similar to the one that had empowered the Specials, as it comes crashing down onto the planet's surface. It can be assumed that a process similar to what happened with the Specials would happen to this planet's populace. The circle has been completed. [3] The meaning is that all life is special, and though they may have lost all heroes in a sad circumstance, something good has resulted from the struggle. As the cycle repeats, perhaps a new generation will learn the same lessons.
There are 113 Specials, with the story focusing on a select few and often featuring appearances by others.
At first, the Specials possessed varying levels of power, ranging from the clearly superhuman, such as Matthew Bright and Jason Miller, to almost negligible abilities like being invisible when not in direct sunlight. However, when a Special died, the energy they possessed was evenly distributed among the rest, making them stronger. In an incident similar to the Waco Siege, a number of Specials were killed. The resultant transfer of energy, later known as the Surge, was enough to turn all specials regardless of their standing into high powered individuals.
The first Rising Stars spin-off, a three-issue miniseries, written by Fiona Avery, penciled by Dan Jurgens and published in Feb–Apr 2003, is about Matthew Bright's rookie years as a police officer in the NYPD under the name Brendan Miller, after he left Pederson.
The six-issue miniseries Rising Stars: Voices of the Dead features Lionel Zerb, a Special who can see dead people, and was published in Apr–Dec 2005. It was again written by Fiona Avery, with pencils by Staz Johnson and Al Rio. The story concentrates on various mysteries Lionel uncovers because of his ability.
The five-issue miniseries Rising Stars: Untouchable features Laurel Darkhaven, a Special who worked for the CIA as an assassin. Written by Fiona Avery with pencils by Brent Anderson, it was published in February–June 2006.
Typical of Straczynski, the beginning and end of the story were planned before he wrote the first issue. It was set to span 24 issues, and neatly divide up into three acts. Each trade paperback collects one of those acts.
All the publications are collected in one volume:
In 2016, MGM optioned Rising Stars, with Straczynski slated to write the script and Alex Gartner and Richard Suckle to produce for Atlas Entertainment. [4]
Between 2002 and 2005, a novelization of Rising Stars by Arthur Byron Cover was published in a three-volume series.
This article needs additional citations for
verification. (May 2014) |
Rising Stars | |
---|---|
Publication information | |
Publisher | Joe's Comics ( Top Cow) |
Schedule | Monthly |
Format | Limited series |
Genre | |
Publication date | August 1999 – March 2005 |
No. of issues | 24 |
Main character(s) | Characters |
Creative team | |
Created by | J. Michael Straczynski |
Written by | J. Michael Straczynski |
Penciller(s) |
Keu Cha Ken Lashley Christian Zanier Brent Anderson |
Inker(s) |
Jason Gorder John Livesay Edwin Rosell Marlo Alquiza Brent Anderson |
Letterer(s) |
David Wohl Dennis Heisler Dreamer Design Robin Spehar |
Colorist(s) |
Liquid! Matt Nelson John Starr Tyson Wengler |
Editor(s) |
Dennis Heisler Renae Geerlings |
Collected editions | |
Compendium | ISBN 1-60706-032-9 |
Rising Stars is a 24-issue comic book limited series written by J. Michael Straczynski about 113 people (called "Specials") born with special abilities following the appearance of a mysterious light in the sky above Pederson, Illinois. The series explores how society may react to the advent of superpowers, and how those who are Specials may react towards society and each other. Rising Stars was one of the first comics produced under Straczynski's own Joe's Comics imprint for Top Cow Productions.
The comic was published in August 1999, monthly at first by Top Cow/ Image Comics, and then under the Joe's Comics imprint. Within a few months, however, there were unscheduled artist changes and unexplained delays by Top Cow in shipping the comics, sometimes lasting months.
The comic itself came to an unexpected halt after issue 21 due to internal arguments between Straczynski and Top Cow. Straczynski claimed he was cut out of the loop on the potential Rising Stars movie. After communication broke down between them, he held back the scripts for the last three issues, and the entire comic was put on hold. In addition to an apology for the way Straczynski was treated in regard to the possible film, Top Cow relented by giving him the full rights to an anthology comic he had written for them, Dream Police (later published by Marvel Comics), as well as the rights to the name and logo for the Joe's Comics imprint.
The last issue of Rising Stars was published in March 2005. During the intervening time, Straczynski had gone on to write a revamp of Marvel's Squadron Supreme, Supreme Power.
The story is narrated from the future by the last living Special, John Simon, nicknamed "Poet". The genesis of the Specials is shown to be the unforgettable descent of a fierce comet from the heavens. The story starts when the Specials are all grown up, but it constantly flashes back to when they were children. Through these flashbacks, the development of these 113 Specials is shown, starting with the government's monitoring and handling of the events, to the manifestation of their powers, to the impact of these abilities on the afflicted children and the world around them. Some of the Specials use their powers for the good of the world, others for personal benefit and fame, while others simply wish to forget about them and live a normal life.
A series of murders of the Specials spurs John to investigate. He learns that when a Special dies, their "energy" transfers to the remaining Specials, making each more powerful. This fact had become known to a Special with multiple personality disorder, who calls herself Critical Maas. It emerges that Maas has been manipulating "Patriot" (the alter ego of Jason Miller) to kill other Specials so her own power would be increased. At the instigation of Maas, the U.S. government also attacks the Specials, killing more. With her newly increased powers, Maas and a handful of Specials under her telepathic control are able to conquer Chicago, claiming it for themselves. [1]
Ten years pass and John, his half-brother Randy Fisk (alter ego: Ravenshadow), Elizabeth Chandra, and Joshua Kane (alter ego: Sanctuary) lead the rest of the Specials in an attempt to liberate Chicago after the U.S. government promises that all charges against them will be dropped. Maas is defeated, but at a price: Matthew Bright, who had been sent by the government to assist in her defeat, is beaten into a coma by Patriot, while the latter was still under Maas' control.
Seeing that internecine conflict was not what they were empowered for, John proclaims that he wants them all to act as a unit so they can help humanity. The violence in Chicago affected the rest of the Specials as well and they all agree to assist John in his mission. [2]
Another ten years pass, and their mission is almost complete. Humanity has been helped by the Specials, and more importantly, has been given the confidence and resources to further help themselves. But after Randy Fisk wins the Presidency, elements in the U.S. government, seeing the Specials as a threat to their power, plot to assassinate the remaining few.
A bomb, specifically designed to destroy even the most powerful Special, is set off during a gathering of almost all the Specials, excepting John who is busy working on a secret project. All present are killed, including Randy and John's lover, Elizabeth Chandra.
The released power is initially distributed amongst all the people of the world, instantly curing all forms of illness and injury. It also grants everyone limited telepathy, bringing an end to all wars, violence, and strife as people become aware of the thoughts and feelings of those they had previously viewed as their enemies. Those involved in the mass assassination voluntarily come forward and confess. For 24 hours, not a single human being dies.
After that blessed 24 hours, the power soars into the sky and seeks out John, giving him all its power and knocking him out for seven days. He uses that power to provide energy for the project he had been working on: a space ship that travels near the speed of light.
The immense power within John directs the ship to yet another world, an alien planet much like Earth. John's ship erupts into a fireball, strikingly similar to the one that had empowered the Specials, as it comes crashing down onto the planet's surface. It can be assumed that a process similar to what happened with the Specials would happen to this planet's populace. The circle has been completed. [3] The meaning is that all life is special, and though they may have lost all heroes in a sad circumstance, something good has resulted from the struggle. As the cycle repeats, perhaps a new generation will learn the same lessons.
There are 113 Specials, with the story focusing on a select few and often featuring appearances by others.
At first, the Specials possessed varying levels of power, ranging from the clearly superhuman, such as Matthew Bright and Jason Miller, to almost negligible abilities like being invisible when not in direct sunlight. However, when a Special died, the energy they possessed was evenly distributed among the rest, making them stronger. In an incident similar to the Waco Siege, a number of Specials were killed. The resultant transfer of energy, later known as the Surge, was enough to turn all specials regardless of their standing into high powered individuals.
The first Rising Stars spin-off, a three-issue miniseries, written by Fiona Avery, penciled by Dan Jurgens and published in Feb–Apr 2003, is about Matthew Bright's rookie years as a police officer in the NYPD under the name Brendan Miller, after he left Pederson.
The six-issue miniseries Rising Stars: Voices of the Dead features Lionel Zerb, a Special who can see dead people, and was published in Apr–Dec 2005. It was again written by Fiona Avery, with pencils by Staz Johnson and Al Rio. The story concentrates on various mysteries Lionel uncovers because of his ability.
The five-issue miniseries Rising Stars: Untouchable features Laurel Darkhaven, a Special who worked for the CIA as an assassin. Written by Fiona Avery with pencils by Brent Anderson, it was published in February–June 2006.
Typical of Straczynski, the beginning and end of the story were planned before he wrote the first issue. It was set to span 24 issues, and neatly divide up into three acts. Each trade paperback collects one of those acts.
All the publications are collected in one volume:
In 2016, MGM optioned Rising Stars, with Straczynski slated to write the script and Alex Gartner and Richard Suckle to produce for Atlas Entertainment. [4]
Between 2002 and 2005, a novelization of Rising Stars by Arthur Byron Cover was published in a three-volume series.