Hip Flask #1: Unnatural Selection (Ladronn cover)

By Starkings, Casey & Ladronn

Hip Flask: Unnatural Selection is the Origin of Hip Flask, Comicraft's grim yet affable hippopotamime hero, and serves as prologue to the forthcoming mini-series HIP FLASK: THE BIG HERE & THE LONG NOW premiering spring, 2003!

Somewhere in the African desert, thousands of miles from civilization, a group of geneticists led by Kazushi Nikken, has conducted unholy experiments involving both human and animal DNA. This is the story of the birth of Hieronymous Flask and his eventual liberation from the torturous world of MAPPO.

cover by Ladronn
July 2002 | $2.99

Diamond #MAY021745

"The art of Ladronn steals the show on Comicraft's debut series. It's been far too long since we last saw Ladronn on a monthly title, but after checking out HIP FLASK: UNNATURAL SELECTION - chock fulla dynamic splash pages and some of the baddest half-human, half-animal characters we've ever seen - it was definitely worth the wait."

— , WIZARD, THE COMIC MAGAZINE

"Ladronn's most recent work, HIP FLASK: UNNATURAL SELECTION, is a new milestone in comics...a science fiction masterpiece!"

— George Khoury COMIC BOOK ARTIST

"This book is the best thing I have read in a long time. Fabulous art and great story make me want more. Very rarely do I read a comic book twice, let alone on new comics day, then ring Diamond up and order 50 more! Every customer has it, and I gave my money back guarantee that, if they didn't enjoy it, they could swap it for another, and I rarely do that. Top marks to Rich and the gang. I can't wait for more."

— Matt Booker AUTOMATIC COMICS, Wiltshire, UK

"Working at Marvel and DC. Mexican artist Ladronn lent his hefty skillls to otherwise lacklustre projects, set free here, he co-creates a universe with spectacular results... a terrifying but seductive vision of the mindset necessary to survive totalitarianism."

— Fred Baer , THE FACE

"Hip Flask is an outstanding example of unbridled creativity, professionalism and a real love of the medium. From the deftly-handled script and truly stunning art to Comicraft's high-quality lettering and design, the whole package simply oozes talent. It's rare that such diverse talent manages to gel into one cohesive and entertaining form, but dammit if Starkings, Casey and Ladronn don't make it look oh-so-easy! (Rating: 10/10)"

— Matt Yeo , Bullet Proof Comics

"The coloring is beautiful, with most panels awash in cold, clinical greens and blues,highlighting the mechanical, impartial, confining world in which Nikken's genetic experiments are raised. Overall, the art and the story was great, and really left me wanting to see more and find out just where this story is going. (Rating: A)"

— , Kwanzaa

"The art: Wow... You just can't help but be amazed when looking at this stuff. It's a like a European mating of Kirby and Moebius, and the art alone is worth the book's $2.99 cover price."

— Brett Montgomery , SeanMcKeever.com

"Casey has been bragging to anyone that will listen that this book will show mainstream comic companies how their products are supposed to look. Flip through this pulp sci-fi epic and attempt to disagree with him. While his deliberate and sharp dialogue keeps the ball bouncing from page to page, Ladronn ensures that this story of human technology and ingenuity gone mad is firmly rooted in reality and a future that is more likely than we should be comfortable with. Mad ideas and wild visuals make this a comic containing a flair that nothing else on the stands can match."

— Brandon Thomas , Silver Bullet Comic Books

"Let me put it this way: you may want to buy two copies of this. One to read, and one to roll into a tube and have sex with. It's that beautiful. Seriously, for a mere three bucks, you will find no more attractive comic this year. A Tim Sale may make it look effortless, but Ladronn...he makes you feel the ungodly man-hours of effort, and it's astounding. So track it down, read it, then look at that art, again and again and again."

— Chris Allen , Movie Poop Shoot

"This is a gorgeous book full of weird elements that really work well. It's a standalone story that introduces a new universe that I really want to explore. A new race of beings that humanity, as we see in the epilogue, must be beginning to learn to adjust to in some fascinating ways. That epilogue, just a couple pages, is full of portent for possible future stories. The inside cover says we'll see more in March of 2003. Well, great!. I don't wanna wait that long! (Rating: 5/5)"

— Alan David Doane , Comic Book Galaxy

"If you loved Ladronn's amazing artwork on the opening of Marvel's four-part Inhumans limited series, forget about it. It's nothing compared to this achievement. ... Ultimately, this one-shot is about the tragedy that arises when one forgets and rejects one's inherent responsibility to other life... never in my wildest dreams did I think a book called Hip Flask would direct me to such interesting and challenging trains of thought. (Best of the Week! Highly Recommended (10/10))"

— Don MacPherson , The Fourth Rail

"The most fully-realized sci-fi reality this side of nightmares since H.R. Giger! In an industry still resistant to innovation, Starkings, Ladronn and Casey have really put themselves out there with something that showcases their talents while forging a new path in the hybridized realm of science fiction-based comic books. Pass up that new X-book and make Hip Flask's origin your unnatural selection. (Rating: A-)"

— Arnold T. Blumberg , Cinescape

"Anyone who reads UNNATURAL SELECTION will have no doubt that it contains the best art of any book released this summer, and quite possibly the whole year... A bizarre, brutal, and stunning piece of work."

— Andrew Duncan , Four Color Review

"Starkings and Casey bring up images of Tuskegee, AIDS, and weapons experiments that have all been launched on unwilling third world peoples... Ladronn's painted artwork is predictably gorgeous - so detailed that it hurts the eyes."

— M. Mayuran Tiruchelvam , Z Entertainment

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