Description

Rising Stars                                     Deluxe Edition Hardcover w/ Slipcase    
Writer: Michael Straczynski
Artists: Keu Cha, Brent Anderson & Various.
Book Design: Jason Medley

Top Cow Proudly Presents comics’ finest series masterpiece in one great volume! Writer J. Michael Straczynski’s superhero tour-de-force is collected, beginning to end, in one massive bookshelf volume. Follow the 113 superpowered “Pederson Specials” as they grow up, live, love, die, and ultimately try to save the world.

Also included in this Deluxe edition:
Foreword by Neil Gaiman
Cover Gallery
Sketches, Designs and Script sample
Exclusive Slipcover only availabe with this edition
Red cloth bookmark inset in binding

Rising Stars (Acts 1-3)

In Act 1, “Born in Fire”, Introduces the first story arc and tells the tale of the beginnings of the Specials. The story begins in the small town of Pederson, Illinois ,where the residents are struck by a mass of energy from an unknown, but non-terrestrial source. Everyone who was in utero at the time of the flash is affected, resulting in 113 individuals who develop abilities of a most unusual and highly individual form. (The power is to some degree shaped by who they are, just as they are shaped to some degree by the power.)

Next in Act 2, “Power”, continues the story as it expands on the tale of The Specials, 113 humans born with extraordinary powers. The Specials wage war, not only on each other, but on the rest of the world as well in this epic story of the struggles of the real world against extra-ordinary power. Some Specials will die, others will grow stronger and the quest for ultimate power among those that are still alive leave the city of Chicago in a precarious position as the Specials rage in battle over the city. All the while, there remains a Special seemingly bent on causing all out war.

Next in Act 3, “Fire and Ash”, presents the stunning conclusion as the final fate of the 113 “Pederson Specials” is revealed. The final chapter of one of the greatest comic series EVER!  As the epic comes to a close the saga of the super-powered characters known as the Specials heads toward its climatic conclusion.  The government has developed a weapon capable of destroying the Specials, causing them to go into hiding. Will the government be able to systematically hunt them down and destroy them as it did to Pyre? And with the Specials hidden, what will happen to the order they put in place?  Find out as J. Michael Straczynski’s epic masterpiece is brought to a close!

Visitations (Issues #0, 1/2, Prelude, Initiations)

Rising Stars is the story of the Pederson Specials, a group of 113 people empowered by a single event. In the late Sixties a fireball struck the town of Pederson, Illinois granting fantastic powers to the 113 children who were in utero at the time of impact. They grew up as the world watched. Labeled the “Specials” by the Media, their powers were monitored and cataloged by the United States Government. Public perception of them changed often. Were they the future of mankind? A scourge? A random occurrence? Heroes? Villains? Role models or simply caricatures? What would be their impact on culture and society? They were as varied as kids and adults ever are; some were more powerful, some less. As adults they became many things: a policeman, a corporate symbol, a singer, an assassin, a writer, a painter, a thief, a preacher. Some found celebrity, some notoriety, while others simply went to work and raised families like everyone else. But they all carried inside them a seed of something great. Something special. Something that made them stars. As their epic stories unfolded, there were other stories as well…of their lives and the lives of those around them. This book is about those stories. Collected here are the short stories about the Specials, a bit about their beginnings, a bit about their middles and just a little bit about their end.

These short stories are set at various points during the regular series of Rising Stars. Giving further insights into the lives of the Specials. The first Story contains some musings of Daniel (“Poet”); a piece out of the journal of the Special’s psychiatrist; and a Supreme Court decision basically denying one of the Specials the right to remain with his parents, and the right to not be restrained while being physically examined by the Government. The second story shows a government-hired “clown” introducing the child Specials to their new living quarters, a compound which includes schoolrooms, living quarters and frightening medical examination rooms. Although the “clown” is obviously intended to lull the children into a false sense of security, they quickly see the truth of the matter. The third story is about an ordinary child who tries to pass himself off as “Special,” because he feels ignored at home and abused in public school. The Specials quickly realize he’s not one of them, but the story takes a surprising turn. The fourth story has Jerry, the pyrokinetic “Pyre,” who has played super-villain to Jason’s “Flagg” superhero for years, return home to the Special’s psychiatrist, to discuss why he has played the reluctant villain all these years.

Hardcover reprints/collects: Rising Stars (1999-2005) Issues #1-24 & the miniseries “Visitations”.  Top Cow Productions, Inc. / Image Comics

Hardcover w/ Slipcase is bagged and will be carefully / securely packaged then shipped via USPS Priority Mail to ensure that it arrives to you perfectly and quickly.

First Printing
Publisher: Top Cow Productions, Inc. / Image Comics
Publication Date: 2005
Format: FC, 624 pages HC, 10.75″ x 7″
ISBN-10: 1582404895
ISBN-13: 9781582404899

Collectible Entertainment note: Hardcover w/ Slipcase is in Fine + condition.  Nice!  Please See Scans!!   A must have for any serious Rising Stars collector / enthusiast.  A fun & entertaining read.  Highly Recommended.

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