Cosmo #1 Is A Saturday Morning Cartoon In Comic Book Form

Move over, Marvin. There’s a new Martian in town. Cosmo and his band of alien adventurers are flying through space helping people and getting into some mild mischief. After the crew picks up a panicked human astronaut during a routine scouting mission, they find themselves in over their heads.

Cosmo is an infectiously fun all-ages comic. Although he’s twenty years old, the title character looks and acts like a wise-cracking kid. He’s like an alien version of Dennis the Menace, but less likely to give a neighbor a heart attack. Cosmo is someone that absolutely loves his job. You can imagine a child’s excitement at the idea of manning your very own spaceship and cruising through the stars on adventures. He’s the proxy for us.
Editor Vincent Lovallo and artist Tracy Yardley’s designs for Cosmo and the other characters matching up to this feeling perfectly. There’s a cartoony look and feel to the book and that is exactly what I want from it. Cosmo looks a bit like Megaman in space with big boots and gloves. His helmet looks like a baseball hat with Batman-like ears. He may not have a blaster cannon for an arm, but he does sport a ray gun when he goes into the field.

The human they pick up is a nice juxtaposition compared to Cosmo. Whereas our Martian adventurer is genuine and innocent, Max Strongjaw (yes, that’s his actual name) is big and gruff, but full of bravado. He reminds me a bit of Zapp Brannigan from Futurama with pants and less womanizing. He puts on a strong facade, but he’s a complete moron. This leads to some fun interactions as he tries to hide from Cosmo and the crew on their ship, mistaking them for alien warriors ready to eat him.
There’s a lot of humor in Cosmo. As it’s an all-ages title, the jokes are great for kids. Not all of the gags will initiate a laugh, but they should all at least make you smile. There aren’t any jokes that fall flat. It’s just that as an adult, you might roll your eyes at one or two. Writer Ian Flynn keeps the book moving at a quick pace, so even if there’s a line that didn’t work for you, it’s quickly forgotten thanks to a dozen other fun quips on the page.

Cosmo is like a Saturday morning cartoon in comic book form. It’s fun, humorous, and full of adventure. This is tailor-made for kids, but adults who are still kids at heart will find a lot to enjoy. This is the perfect comic to introduce your children to the medium.
Cosmo #1 is currently available at your local comic shop and digitally through ComiXology and Amazon Kindle.