Bettie Page Returns for New Dynamite Adventures!

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Bettie Page 1

Adventure in the fashionable fifties continue as Bettie Page finally gets her own ongoing series, after a few minis and a Halloween One-Shot. The pin-up queen, who came to comic book prominence largely thanks to the tireless efforts of the late Dave Stevens, now leads her own series as a special agent, working a division that deals with U.F.O.s and extra-dimensional threats.

"The Princess & The Pinup" sends a call-back to the Halloween special where Bettie fought off one of the Lovecraftian elder gods, foreshadowing that he may not be done with Bettie just yet, But before Bettie can dwell on that further, she is called on a special mission by Agent McKnight to Britain, where no less than Winston Churchill needs their expertise with aliens to unravel the mystery of the missing monarch. Queen Elizabeth II has been kidnapped, and the eyewitness account by British agent Thomas Byrne points the finger of blame squarely at outer space aliens.

As Byrne and Bettie leave the scene, they are chased by a flying saucer, which ends up with a revelation Bettie wasn't expecting.

This is some serious high-octane action featuring an American icon reimagined in a whole new life. Julius Ohta deftly captures the allure and mystique of Bettie's signature look and keeps her looking sexy without looking sexual. The aura of the pinup model never leaves our heroine, yet she doesn't get rendered in any gratuitous pinup poses as might easily have been done under any writer lesser than David Avallone.

BETTIE PAGE #1 is pure fun and fantasy from cover to cover, with a fast-paced story that doesn't waste a single panel. It's the kind of book that all comics should aspire to be.

Grade: 
5.0 / 5.0