Orbiter (comics)
2003 graphic novel
title: "Orbiter (comics)" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["2003-american-novels", "2003-comics-debuts", "2003-comics-endings", "2003-graphic-novels", "fiction-about-nasa", "vertigo-comics-graphic-novels"] description: "2003 graphic novel" topic_path: "geography/united-states" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbiter_(comics)" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary 2003 graphic novel ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox graphic novel "]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| title | Orbiter |
| image | Orbiter tpb cover.jpg |
| imagesize | |
| caption | Cover to Orbiter, art by Colleen Doran. |
| publisher | Vertigo |
| date | April 2003 |
| origisbn | 1-4012-0056-7 |
| writers | Warren Ellis |
| artists | Colleen Doran |
| colourists | Dave Stewart |
| letterers | Clem Robins |
| editors | Art Young |
| pages | 104 |
| :: |
|title = Orbiter |foreigntitle = |image = Orbiter tpb cover.jpg |imagesize = |caption = Cover to Orbiter, art by Colleen Doran. |publisher = Vertigo |date = April 2003 |issues = |series = |main_char_team = |origpublication = |origissues = |origdate = |origlanguage = |origisbn = 1-4012-0056-7 |writers = Warren Ellis |artists = Colleen Doran |pencillers = |inkers = |colourists = Dave Stewart |letterers = Clem Robins |editors = Art Young |creators = |transpublisher = |transdate = |transisbn = |pages = 104 |translator = |previssue = |nextissue =
Orbiter is a graphic novel by Warren Ellis and Colleen Doran, published in 2003 by DC Comics under their Vertigo imprint.
Ellis and Doran, both spaceflight enthusiasts, dedicated Orbiter to the "lives, memories and legacies" of the astronauts who died in the 2003 Columbia disaster.
Synopsis
Ten years after the Space Shuttle Venture mysteriously disappeared, it returns. Of its original crew of seven, only one remains — and he is catatonic; also, there is sand from Mars in the shuttle's landing gear and the vessel itself appears to now have skin. Three specialists are brought in to investigate the Venture and its occupant, to find out what happened.
Reception
Publishers Weekly compared *Orbiter'''s narrative structure to Ellis's earlier work Planetary, and commended Ellis for giving the story "emotional depth". Claude Lalumiere praised Orbiter for its "sincerity, its passionate engagement, and the bold inventiveness of its ideas", but overall considered that the plot moved too smoothly, with insufficient conflict; he also criticized Doran's portrayal of emotion. *IGN''s Hilary Goldstein concluded that the book "isn't for everyone", but emphasized its appeal to "dreamers and space cadets".
Publication history
The graphic novel was first published as a hardcover by Vertigo in April 2003 () and as a softcover by Little Brown in May 2004 (). Titan Books published a British softcover in June 2004 ().
References
References
- [http://www.publishersweekly.com/1-4012-0056-7 ORBITER], reviewed at [[Publishers Weekly]]; published 15 September 2003; retrieved 14 March 2017
- [http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/fantasticfiction/orbiter.htm Orbiter, by Warren Ellis and Colleen Doran], reviewed by [[Claude Lalumiere]], originally published in the ''[[Montreal Gazette]]'', 2 August 2003; archived at [[Infinity Plus]] 5 October 2003; retrieved 14 March 2017
- [http://ca.ign.com/articles/2005/09/27/orbiter-review Orbiter Review], by Hilary Goldstein, at [[IGN]]; published 27 September 2005; retrieved 1 March 2017
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