Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson and Alex Ross return in the third complete volume of Astro City, the legendary superhero series that Planeta Cómic publishes in deluxe volumes

Comic planet continues with the third volume (of six in total) of one of the most acclaimed superhero series published outside of the two great giants mainstream Americans. Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson Yes Alex Ross continue with their work in Astrocity moving away in this volume from the usual tone of the series to delve into the darker side of this shining city…

The dark ages

There are comics that you read for pure entertainment, and then there are others that seem to ask you for a little more involvement. What differentiates Astro City from other similar proposals is its ability to combine the epic of classic comics with a human, almost everyday portrait of what it means to live in a city where gods walk the streets. That mix of the mythical and the everyday is the essence of the project, and this volume takes that approach into its darkest territory.

The starting point of the main saga contained here is a powerful idea… what happens to a society that has become accustomed to heroes when they start to show cracks? The story covers the 1970s and 1980s, a time of moral and political crisis that is reflected in Astro City in a more violent and hopeless tone, where Silver Age innocence gives way to mistrust. Busiek articulates all of this through two brothers, Charles Williams Yes Royal Williamswho experience the evolution of the heroic world from very different positions. Their trajectories constantly intersect with those of superheroes and much of the interest of the story is built in that contrast between the human and the extraordinary.

What is fascinating is the way Busiek manages to make these two levels (that of the heroes and that of the common people) intertwine in a natural way, satisfying the premise of this series. Brent Anderson, with his classic but expressive lines, and Alex Ross, with those covers that seem torn from an art gallery, bring the city to life once again. Astro City is not a set, it is another character, a city that ages, becomes contaminated, reinvents itself and suffers just like its inhabitants. As the years pass and the heroes get their hands dirty or disappear, the atmosphere becomes denser and grayer, and the reader feels that change in temperature on every page.

Busiek doesn’t try to make a simple paraphrase of the dark years of comics, even if the parallels with the real evolution of the genre are evident. What he proposes is a reflection on how ideals degrade and how faith in heroes (and, by extension, in institutions or ethical models) can crack. He does it without cynicism, with the gaze of someone who loves the genre but is not satisfied with its surface. In this sense, this work functions as both a metatextual commentary and a story of redemption and loss.

The four books of The dark ages They work almost like chapters in a river novel. The first presents the fall of innocence, the second delves into corruption and violence, the third shows the consequences and the fourth, already close to the present, indicates the possibility of reconciliation. They are arcs that demand attention: there are many characters, several time jumps, and little connections that make sense later. It’s not a light read, but it rewards patience. It is, so to speak, the adult version of the previous stories in the series. The wonder is still there, but now it is filtered by experience, effort and memory.

The silver agent

And right there comes the Silver Agent. The two issues that close the volume after the large arc of The Dark Ages function as a mirror and catharsis of the entire scene. The protagonist is one of the great myths of the Astro City universe: a noble, almost archetypal hero, who in previous stories we knew had died tragically and who was venerated as a martyr. Here the authors decide to finally tell their complete story, revealing their sacrifice and giving it a closure that is as emotional as it is inevitable. In the context of the volume these episodes act as a luminous counterpoint to the previous darkness. If we were talking about the loss of faith, now it is about the persistence of the ideal, the possibility of maintaining integrity even when the world has become completely dirty.

Maybe that’s why this story arc has a cleaner, more serene tone. Anderson draws with an almost nostalgic elegance, and the color opens up to lighter ranges. We must not forget that the character was originally designed by Alex Ross, and that the hero’s classic aesthetic contrasts deliberately with the moral filth of the rest of the volume. Busiek uses this aesthetic difference as an argument, as the Silver Agent embodies lost purity, the memory of a time when heroes were not broken idols but possible examples.

Reading these two great stories together leaves you with the feeling of having traveled through the emotional biography of a city. There are times when the plot can be challenging, but that’s part of its charm. There’s nothing here that you read on autopilot. Every conversation and every cartoon contributes something to the great fresco that is being built. And the best thing is that, despite all the density, the sense of wonder never fades. Even though the city is covered in shadows, it is still a place of wonder.

Him third complete volume from this series published by Comic planet It is presented in hardback format without dust jackets. Contains 504 pageswith a page size of 16.8 x 25.7 centimetresand presents the translation of Javier Olivares from the American edition of the limited series Astro City: Dark Ages Yes Astro City: Silver Agentplus a few other supplemental issues and lots of interesting bonus material. The recommended retail price is €45 and was put up for sale in September 2025.

Astrocity 3

One of the best classic superhero comics.

DARK AGES, Astro City’s longest and most captivating epic, is collected for the first time in a single volume. During the 1970s and 1980s, two brothers, Charles and Royal Williams, faced tragedy and obsession. One a police officer, the other a criminal, both were irrevocably scarred by their city’s superheroes. And, in an age of violent new heroes and dark, stealthy threats, they will need everything they have to SURVIVE.

Creators KURT BUSIEK, BRENT ERIC ANDERSON and Alex ROSS take you through an era unlike any other. PLUS: The complete story of the death and life of Astro City’s greatest hero, Agent Silver.

“Kurt Busiek has an uncanny ability to take situations we think we’ve seen before and give them new life, emotion and heart” Max Barry, author of Jennifer Government

“An extraordinarily imaginative work” The AV Club

Authors: Kurt Busiek, Brent Anderson and Alex Ross