Plastic Man: On the Lam

This book is insanely fun -- the old, original Plastic Man series by Jack Cole had its ups and downs, but at its best, the wacky visual and creative genius was absolutely unique. Kyle Baker, whose own style tends towards the exaggerated and elastic to begin with, is a perfect artist to take this character on, and this first set of stories is a real doozy. Each panel bursts with kooky ideas and great visual gags; the book is filled with sly pop culture references, and hilarious inside jokes about the comic book subculture. It's a lot of fun. Plus, that new FBI agent is a total babe. (Joe Sixpack, ReadThatAgain books reviews)

When I saw "Plastic Man: On the Lam" I originally passed it over because the cover is absolutely horrible. The cover is supposed to look as if it's composed of Plastic Man's stretched body. It's even literally made of plastic but it looks really bad which is a shame because the contents are terrific. The reason I purchased the book was because the series won the Eisner award for best new series and I've tended to do well with Eisner award winners. On the Lam is a compilation of the first six issues of the recent Plastic Man series, written and drawn by Kyle Baker. My first and only experience with Kyle Baker's talent was a pair of short pieces done for the Bizarro books. Kyle has a very clean, bright artistic style that more resembles animation cells than comic panels. His only weakness is when he tries to draw realistic looking characters like in the brief appearance of the JLA. One of the problems with writing Plastic Man is trying to keep Plas sufficiently goofy without turning him into a goofball. Some of the Justice League writers allowed him to descend deep into ridiculousness. Plastic Man, like Captain Marvel, really needs to be placed into his own separate world. Kyle does a great job of establishing the classic Plastic Man universe, balancing cartooniness with a bit of an edge. Poor Plas ends up taking quite a beating in this adventure. He's stretched with hooks, frozen, nearly suffocated, eaten by an alligator and has his rear end melted with acetate. There was always a certain darkness behind the colorful plastic wrapping, after all Plastic Man is one of the few heroes who started his career as a criminal. Seeing a dead man's head flattened or Woozy Winky bleeding after a severe beating is jarring but that's the way Plastic Man comics are and why he's such a unique character. Kyle Baker's interpretation is one of the best I've seen. It's filled with legitimate humor and terrific art. I may be dense but somehow I didn't see the twist ending coming. Kudos to Kyle Baker for reinvigorating my interest in Plastic Man and kudos to DC Comics for releasing a truly unique and creative series.

Comic aficionados have a surprise in store with Eisner Award winner Kyle Baker's take on who else but PLASTIC MAN! (In a plastic cover). Originally created in 1941 by Jack Cole Plastic Man was a flexible super hero, to say the least. He could bend, twist like a pretzel, contort his very pliable body into all kinds of shapes to make sure that good conquered evil. Plas, as he was known to friends was often found in the company of his pudgy buddy, Woozy Winks. Popular for perhaps 16 years, Plas is a cult favorite today. With his reintroduction by Baker (who also copped the Harvey Award) Plas may gain a new following among both children and adults. Plastic Man holds the first six issue of this rubbery crusader's exploits. Plas is in a jam as he's framed for a crime he didn't commit. Even his pals are convinced he's the guilty party with Superman exclaiming, "Plastic Man a criminal! By the moons of Krypton! How could we have been so blind?" It's easy to believe Plas has done wrong as he has a shady past - he was once known as no-gooder, Eel O'Brien. With only Woozy to assist Plas has to find the real culprit. Plastic Man as seen through the eyes of Kyle Baker is pure parody delivered in eye-popping color. - Gail Cooke

At first the Cartoony art might throw you, but it has a real heart, lot of laughs for sure, but a few real touching moments, i always loved plastic man but this trade showed me another side to him. it's a great comic for kids as well as adults, the kids will love the humor, the art and the strange thinsg plastic man does, adults will love all that plus the jokes that may go over most kids heads, the mystery story, the few but well written sad moments, plastic man really is deep, he was a crook before he become a hero, all of that comes back to haunt him, and we find out why he acts liek he does. and the cover to it is stunning, it's plastic, unlike all the other trades thta are paper covers, this is really plastic, it's kind of a gimmick, but it's liek the book, light hearted, fun and funny all in one. I only hope we get a second trade collecting 7-12.

I just got this for christmas and it is great! Baker does a great job in writing and illustrating this wonderful book.