Love and Rockets V2, #20 Cover

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A lot can be said about Love and Rockets - and a lot has already been said by people smarter than me. It was even featured on PBS's Emmy award winning Artbound series (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTYzqHRqRQU&t=11s) I'm not sure what I could add but I would say it's the great American comic book. It's not about super-heroes (usually) and there aren't people in tights punching each other. Instead, it's a series about mostly ordinary people and their mostly ordinary lives.

A brief summary for those who don't know: Love and Rockets is mainly the work of two brothers - Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez. Though originally published together monthly under the banner Love and Rockets, it is really two separate works by two separate creators. Gilbert's work originally focused on a Latin American town called Palomar. Jaime's work was written with characters living in place called Hoppers.  Although the contents of these worlds differ greatly, the commonality is great writing and art. The Hernandez brothers are master storytellers.

I missed the boat on Love and Rockets when it first began in the 1980's (I was too busy reading about people in tights punching each other). But years later, I did begin to pick up collected editions, and finally had to have and read it all. I believe it's the best ongoing comic series of all time. Aside from the great writing and art, one of the things I find so compelling about the series is that, unlike superhero comics, the characters actually age. We meet them as young people and we watch them age over time - as they grow up, so do we; and that makes it all the more relatable. If you haven't read Love and Rockets, I can't recommend it highly enough. It's an American masterpiece.

I was really thrilled to be able to add this cover of Love and Rockets Volume 2, issue 20 to my collection. First, because it's Love and Rockets! But secondly, because it was drawn by both Gilbert and Jaime. Great to have them both on one piece of art! As published: