In another example supporting my title of “the only comic journalist who doesn’t want to write comics”, longtime buddy Zack Smith (who writes for Newsarama, among other venues) has published his first comic. Congrats to him! The Stars Below, a one-shot illustrated by Rich Ellis (Memorial), is out through Monkeybrain, which means you get it digitally at comiXology.

It’s the story of a New York pigeon dreaming of seeing the stars, and in addition to being timely (given the city in the news), it’s well-done. I’m impressed with creators that can do wordless stories without confusing or boring the audience, and I’m particularly taken with the panels where the bird gets stars in its eyes. There’s even a chase scene!