Back in the mid-‘00s, when I got back into comics after an almost 15-year hiatus and started checking out the various comic blogs and similar sites, it seemed like the then relatively-new series Rocketo by Frank Espinosa and co-writer Marie Taylor was all the rage. But after the initial 12-issue run ended, it seems like it was memory-holed. And few years after that, I easily picked up some dirt-cheap used copies of the two oddly-shaped tpbs collecting the series (volume 1 and volume 2) – and then only got around to reading them this last summer. And I liked it quite a bit…
For those who may not be familiar, Rocketo is a science fantasy story, set a few thousand years in the future after the Earth has been almost totally devastated by a powerful alien entity. The remnants of humanity again rose up, developed high technology and genetic modifications to survive in this ‘new world’ and rebuild civilization on the series archipelagos that are all that’s left of the destroyed continents.
The main character, Rocketo Garrison, is what is called a ‘mapper,’ who are all genetically modified so that they have a small compasses embedded in their hands. They are vitally important in this new world because the magnetic poles, as well as the Moon, were destroyed in the aforementioned cataclysm. The story gets rolling when, Rocketo, who’s kind of down and out and not working as a mapper anymore, gets coerced by an old colleague, a greedy, unscrupulous adventurer and smuggler named Spiro Turnstile, to travel to the Hidden Sea – from which nobody has ever returned – in search of a fabled treasure. However, another expedition, ostensibly led by a powerful criminal organization (but actually backed by the corrupt ruler of a northern kingdom) is also heading there and they try to stop Rocketo and his companions. 
The latter nonetheless eventually make it into the Hidden Sea, and find more than they expected, learning not only that mysterious region’s secrets – and making some new friends – but also many unpleasant truths about their world’s history. (And then the bad guys also make their way in, and eventually an all-out war breaks out.
Frank Espinosa came from the world of animation, and this story is very much done in a kind of storyboard style. I really loved his incredibly stylized art and use of splotchy colors – although I’ll readily acknowledge that there are a few places in which the storytelling isn’t entirely clear. One thing that really struck me is that everything has this really retro-future, old-timey look and feel, even though this is very much a forward-looking, unique vision on Espinosa’s part. I just found it all so visually rich.
Apparently “Journey to the Hidden Sea” was supposed to be the first of four books/journeys that would ultimately run for an additional 36 issues (so 48 in all). There’s even a ‘coming soon’ announcement for the next journey at the end of the second tpb – but nothing came of it. Which is too bad, as I wouldn’t mind spending more time in Rocketo’s world.
(Note: this post is a modified version of a review I posted at the Classic Comics Forum about a month or so ago)
I picked up that first book, at Barnes & Noble, when I still worked there. I’m a sucker for retro-futurism, and the actual forward looking futurism, and that was the thing that grabbed me about it, plus the art. I don’t think I ever did really sit down and read the story…it was more the images. I had a book with production art from The Incredibles and it reminded me a lot of that, as they were background paintings and conceptual designs, not clear line drawings or animation “cels” (since it was all digital). I have seen similar paintings for past Disney projects and liked the work.
Good stuff.