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Review: The Jetsons 1-6

By Philip Schweier
April 12, 2018 - 13:11

George Jetson has issues; over-worked and under-paid, he’s been tapped for a mission to investigate an undersea disturbance – a sea that now covers about 90% of the planet, thanks to meteor striking the Pacific and wiping out a good portion of humanity. The continents flooded, and more than a century later, the descendants of the survivors live in a high-tech antiseptic world.

 

But now a second meteor threatens to finish what the first one started. Only a handful of strategists – including Jane Jetson – are privy to this knowledge, for fear of inciting panic. But Jane has other concerns, not the least of which is what to get George for his birthday (assuming he lives that long).

 

Within the world of the Jetsons are secrets and clues that may or may not contribute to the solution of the meteor dilemma. His boy, Elroy, has a plan for his dad’s birthday that intrigued me at first, but ultimately failed to pay off. Daughter Judy seemed to be the least developed member of the Jetson family – yes, even less so than Rosie the robot – but there’s room for exploration later (I hope).

This was an enjoyable series, but even if I had read in monthly installments rather than a single sitting, I still believe I would have enjoyed it. It's a fresh take on an old idea, and shares the kind of optimism for the future usually reserved for Star Trek.

 

The Jetsons was only a six-issue series, but that’s not to say there won’t be more. True, die-hard fans may not fully appreciate this reinterpretation/re-imagining/remake of the animated TV series. But the truth is, the show is more than 50 years old, and some evolution of the franchise is inevitable. The difference reminds me of the creative chasm between the original Lost in Space and its more modern version.

 

Pier Brito’s artwork is simple but not cartoony. His rendering of the Jetsons’ world is clean and streamlined, with some obvious inspiration from Hanna-Barbera. It takes the polish of Star Trek and raises to a new level, a new world.

 

Jimmy Palmiotti has done a remarkable job of taking the characters created by Hanna-Barbera and creating a world for them to inhabit. Not just merely a vision of the future, but an environment with a backstory, and many corners to explore. And that’s the great appeal of science fiction tales of the future: anyone’s version of the future is as legitimate as the next

 

Rating: 8/10

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12