After being completely swept up in the Rok of the Reds series, I was more than hyped to hear that a follow-up is on the way soon through Kickstarter and lucky enough to get glimpse of the first chapter to see what’s on the way for Rok.
“The second ‘season’ of John Wagner, Alan Grant and Dan Cornwell’s surprisingly
popular Alien footie saga will be launching on Kickstarter on October 2. The story, to
be published as a complete graphic novel and titled Rok the God, tells the tale of the
death of Rok’s mother, the redoubtable Lady Vorga, and Rok’s elevation to Godhood.
Sounds great – who wouldn’t want to be a god? Well, Rok for one. And with good
reason. For accepting Godhood earns him the enmity of the cunning and murderous
Skrel. Can the Skrel extinguish a God? They’re certainly going to try.
None of this is conducive to Radford Reds’ promotion hopes – nor indeed is the
takeover of the club by the vile and rapacious Malcolm Griedy.
Meanwhile, up in Higher Wood, there’s a hilarious pint-sized buddy movie kicking off!
Rok the God is every bit as funny and exciting as its predecessor Rok of the Reds,
the story of the world’s first alien footballer. It’s beautifully drawn and coloured again by Dan Cornwell and Abby Bulmer. US comic size, 120 pages plus with a possible hard cover option. New publisher RedRok Comics is hoping to launch in summer, 2020.”
The fact that the band is back together with John, Alan, Dan, Abby & Jim all on-board, has to be a big plus and especially given that the first series managed to make both the sci-fi AND sport elements enthralling. While those two components were an interesting double-whammy there was the added bonus of some of the most enjoyable character building I remember reading and that highlighted just how strong the already well-known writing team of John & Alan are.
The same buzz from this opening chapter is there and with enough surprises to keep it as fresh as possible leaving it feeling like they’re working together to raise the bar even more. The story threads on Earth and in space are there with a change in the dynamic around Rok & Kyle setting it up to be just as enjoyable & page-turning as the first series is.
This is one book that’s firmly on my radar both for a re-read of the first series and a countdown to the next series becoming available……and I’m pretty sure there are others waiting for this too.
Keep an eye over on the Rok of the Reds Facebook & Twitter pages and the website for more info on the first series as well as details of that Kickstarter campaign that kicks off on the 2nd of October.
G-Man
COMICS ANONYMOUS 