Written by David Hopkins, with art by Brent Schoonover, Astronaut Dad is a fascinating indie
graphic novel. The story follows a group
of astronauts who are running secret missions to space to spy on the Soviet
Union in the midst of the Cold War, and the families that they leave behind as
they spend more and more time training and in space.
The family drama is deftly handled. Rather than making it into a soap opera,
nothing is taking to the point of exaggeration, leaving the relationships,
friendships, and family bonds feeling that much more real. The kids exude the joys of childhood, the
families feel the strain of absent loved ones, and the hopes and dreams of the
astronauts are tempered by the cost.
Astronaut Dad is
not a long read, but it is one that will be remembered. It is an example of what historical comics
can do, and how deftly a story can be told in this medium.
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