Rating: 
Summary: The Best of Astro City and one of the best of all-time!
Review: Astro City Confession is an interesting look with Kurt Busiek giving the entire superhero genre a fresh look with riveting action and superb storytelling. Much of the story is told through a young man who comes to be known as Altar Boy, a sidekick to the mysterious Confessor. These two are obvious counterparts of Batman and Robin only a lot more interesting because unlike those franchise characters. Confessor is a menacing avenger in the night and the criminal element fears him. He seems to appear as if out of nowhere and moves with blinding speed. Altar Boy is his chosen junior partner and they make a good pair, but things aren't what they seem. Busiek is great with story layering. The Confessor tells Altar Boy to look at things as if they were puzzles and figure out the patterns. Altar Boy wants to know more about the Confessor only to be told to look at the patterns. This applies to the reader as well. We also get an alien invasion, anti-hero unrest (very similar to the anti-Mutant sentiment found in X-Men), an examination of what a hero is, the quest for respect and a place in this world, and we the next step after Watchmen. This graphic novel is that good. Busiek has, of course, revived what once seemed like a book destined for perpetual mediocrity, the Avengers. Yet in Astro City, we see Busiek push the "realism" envelope in ways that he can't do in the Avengers. It makes sense that in Astro City, an analogue to Metropolis or Gotham City, there are Christian fundamentalist heroes who believe that their powers are a gift from God. People respond to things in different ways and it's refreshing to see the flawed characters in this graphic novel. This is pure entertainment that will definitely please folks who have enjoyed Watchmen, Top Ten, and the Avengers.
Rating:
Summary: The Best of Astro City and one of the best of all-time!
Review: Astro City Confession is an interesting look with Kurt Busiek giving the entire superhero genre a fresh look with riveting action and superb storytelling. Much of the story is told through a young man who comes to be known as Altar Boy, a sidekick to the mysterious Confessor. These two are obvious counterparts of Batman and Robin only a lot more interesting because unlike those franchise characters. Confessor is a menacing avenger in the night and the criminal element fears him. He seems to appear as if out of nowhere and moves with blinding speed. Altar Boy is his chosen junior partner and they make a good pair, but things aren't what they seem. Busiek is great with story layering. The Confessor tells Altar Boy to look at things as if they were puzzles and figure out the patterns. Altar Boy wants to know more about the Confessor only to be told to look at the patterns. This applies to the reader as well. We also get an alien invasion, anti-hero unrest (very similar to the anti-Mutant sentiment found in X-Men), an examination of what a hero is, the quest for respect and a place in this world, and we the next step after Watchmen. This graphic novel is that good. Busiek has, of course, revived what once seemed like a book destined for perpetual mediocrity, the Avengers. Yet in Astro City, we see Busiek push the "realism" envelope in ways that he can't do in the Avengers. It makes sense that in Astro City, an analogue to Metropolis or Gotham City, there are Christian fundamentalist heroes who believe that their powers are a gift from God. People respond to things in different ways and it's refreshing to see the flawed characters in this graphic novel. This is pure entertainment that will definitely please folks who have enjoyed Watchmen, Top Ten, and the Avengers.
Rating:
Summary: The cream of the crop
Review: Astro City continues to be the best superhero book being published, and with quality storylines like Confession, it's a sure bet to be listed as one of the top comic series of all time once the dust settles. Busiek combines excellent technical skills - he's a master of pacing, great with dialogue, and unmatched at finding new and interesting perspectives on a story - with a sense of wonder that most of the talented writers in the superhero business have long since abandoned. Absolutely peerless.
Rating:
Summary: Darkness and light
Review: Busiek has an amazing way of taking familar superhero comic themes and using them in new ways. Unlike some modern comic writers, he respects the genre and knows how to tell great stories within it, rather than cynically discarding the very things that make heroes so inspiring. The Confessor is clearly inspired by Batman, and Altar Boy is his Robin. But the basic similarity of the characters is used as a way of introducing a completely different kind of story. Even what appear to be relatively minor supporting characters are used to good effect, while also remaining surprisingly respectful to their own particular beliefs. Astro City is a great series, and a sure fire favorite for anyone who enjoys comics.
Rating: 
Summary: Good, but not the best Astro City
Review: I had all three other TPB's of Astro City and loved them all. "Confession" was the last one I read and I have to say it was a little bit dissapointing. Not that it wasn't a good read, but the hype from all the other reviews was very misleading. Perhaps it is the parallels between the Confessor/Altar Boy and Batman/Robin of DC. There were some twists and turns, but at times the story was a bit redundant and not as interesting as I would have believed by the hype.
Astro City is a great comic, no doubt, but if you are looking for the best issues, these aren't them. If you are a fan of the series, buy this, you won't be dissapointed, it is still Astro City and fun. Just don't get ahead of yourself.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome storytelling by an underrated writer
Review: I remember when this series first came out. I was allready an Astro City fan and I was just reading the books as they came out. When I finished with the story, I remember saying to myelf that this is one hell of a story and this was before Wizard magazine mentioned anything about the series! I recommend reading some earlier astro city books to get a feel for Kurt Busiek. The man is a woderful writer. He tells all his stories from a first person perspective. He puts you in the story as if you were seeing everything unfold right before your eyes. Like you were floating above the scene watching everything happen. This particular story is a vampire story. Definetly the best astro City story out there. Highly recommended!
Rating:
Summary: A shining example of comic book writing
Review: I'm not a comic book fan; they're much too convulted for my own tastes. But even the first time I read Astro City: Confessions I knew it was something else, something different. Confessions is more literature than it is comic book; it transcends the genre and becomes something new altogether.
Rating:
Summary: A shining example of comic book writing
Review: I'm not a comic book fan; they're much too convulted for my own tastes. But even the first time I read Astro City: Confessions I knew it was something else, something different. Confessions is more literature than it is comic book; it transcends the genre and becomes something new altogether.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding!!
Review: In the follow up to "Life in the Big City", Kurt Busiek hits the mark once again in the fictional world of Astro City, where he brings the "costumes" to a place every bit the equal to Metropolis or Gotham City. The story revolves around a Batman and Robin-type team of the Confessor(to whom Busiek gives both Rorshach-like angst and a new twist on the "Dark Knight" mold) and his new side-kick, Altar Boy. The same sense of wonder at these costumed super-beings that permeated "Marvels" is in full effect here. There are bible-thumping heroes, an X-men-like supergroup, a superhero-phobic Mayor hell bent on registering all costumed crusaders(a la the X-men again) and requisite Alien Invaders (summoned in the previous graphic novel). There's a nice balance between continuity (the unsolved Hill murders, Altar Boy's revealing apprenticeship with the Confessor, the Aliens) and stand-alone randomness here(the final, doesn't-quite-fit-here Hangman time story). You don't have to read the first one to follow along, but if you have, its all the richer. I love this series. The first two have been flawless. I also love the Inhumans, Planetary and the Watchmen as other examples of excellent, character-driven graphic novels.
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding!!
Review: In the follow up to "Life in the Big City", Kurt Busiek hits the mark once again in the fictional world of Astro City, where he brings the "costumes" to a place every bit the equal to Metropolis or Gotham City. The story revolves around a Batman and Robin-type team of the Confessor(to whom Busiek gives both Rorshach-like angst and a new twist on the "Dark Knight" mold) and his new side-kick, Altar Boy. The same sense of wonder at these costumed super-beings that permeated "Marvels" is in full effect here. There are bible-thumping heroes, an X-men-like supergroup, a superhero-phobic Mayor hell bent on registering all costumed crusaders(a la the X-men again) and requisite Alien Invaders (summoned in the previous graphic novel). There's a nice balance between continuity (the unsolved Hill murders, Altar Boy's revealing apprenticeship with the Confessor, the Aliens) and stand-alone randomness here(the final, doesn't-quite-fit-here Hangman time story). You don't have to read the first one to follow along, but if you have, its all the richer. I love this series. The first two have been flawless. I also love the Inhumans, Planetary and the Watchmen as other examples of excellent, character-driven graphic novels.
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