ASTER The Last Celestial Knight

As October also happens to be Filipino American History Month, here's a Philippine-made comic book character that actually managed to penetrate the American market during the mid-1990's.

Art by Oliver Isabedra

 

Aster: The Last Celestial Knight was created by writers Ronaldo and Narciso Roxas and artist Oliver Isabedra for C.A.T.S. Studios. Originally intended to be released locally, it was eventually published under American comic book company Entity Comics in 1994. 

 

 

COSMIC EPIC

 

Art by Mark Vuycankiat

 

For untold millennia, peace in the universe was maintained by an ancient order of cosmic beings known as the Celestial Guardians, and their agents, the mighty Celestial Knights. Among the most powerful of the Knights was Aster, tasked with the duty of destroying worlds that the Guardians judge too corrupt to live. 

 

 

However, Aster was later manipulated by the renegade Guardian Dessa, who sought to wrest control of the Gem of Saghal, the very source of the Guardians and Knights' power. 

 

 

It took the combined forces of the Guardians and Knights to defeat Dessa, a battle that wiped out virtually all of the Celestial Knights. The Guardians entombed Dessa within layers of space debris, forming a planet that would come to be known as Prison World.

 

 

As for Aster, despite his part in Dessa's defeat, he was sentenced to exile in the Empyrean Void, cast adrift into the farthest ends of the universe.

 

 

He would emerge from the void thousands of years later. By this time, Prison World had become inhabited by the survivors of the planets that he had once destroyed. Now the last Celestial Knight, Aster seeks to atone for his past indiscretion by defending his new adopted world from the evils that beset it.

 

 

 

COSMIC POWERS

 

 

Aside from the usual superhuman strength, speed, endurance and flight, Aster commands vast cosmic energies that he can harness in the form of blasts and shields. At his most powerful, he is even capable of obliterating entire planets! 

 

 

He also has the ability to strip naked at a whim.

 

 

 

ALLIES

 

 

THE MOUNTSMEN

 A tribe of mountain-dwelling warriors.

 

KHALED BRAHMA

The chieftain of the Mountsmen.

 

SHAIANA

Khaled Brahma's daughter, she befriends Aster and accompanies him on his quest.

Shaiana appears to die at the end of the first Aster mini-series, but she is immediately resurrected into her own spin-off series in 1995, which was drawn by a rather unlikely yet talented artist. Who was he? Find out here.

 

GHAYAB

Shaiana's young companion.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DHUMAT

A proud Mountsman warrior, he grows suspicious of Aster's presence in their midst.

 

OGHUR

An enigmatic old man who possesses mysterious powers and keeps a sinister secret.

 

THE DISCIPLES

The rulers of the various kingdoms on Prison World.

 

REISHA OF SHARNUK

Queen of Aldebaire, the richest kingdom in the galaxy.

 

PALADIN AERIOS

Winged monarch of the sky city of Vultura.

 

SHARKEEM MANTREY

Leader of the underwater colony of Clastigor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE HARRIERS

A team of intergalactic mercenaries who encounter Aster shortly after his release from the void. (Pictured here with Entity Comics heroine Nira-X.)

 

 

ENEMIES

 

DESSA 

Although his body is buried deep within Prison World, Dessa's spirit lives on, plotting to regain corporeal form and reclaim the Gem of Saghal.

 

TOLMEK

A former disciple of Dessa who now seeks power for himself.

 

THE GROGGS

A savage race of half-men half beasts who serve Dessa.

 

BANDAR

Tolmek's brutish minion and commander of the Groggs.

 

 KALLAURIA

 A shape-shifting, fire-breathing sea dragon, Kallauria's eye is sought for its magical properties.

 

 

STAR POWER

 

 Other notable Filipino artists have also worked on Aster, such as Jay Anacleto...

 

 

... and Gerry Alanguilan.

 

 

Aster had even attracted the talents of major western comics professionals, such as George Perez...

 

 

... Jae Lee...

 

 

... and Joe Quesada.

 

 

 

AND A FEW COVERS MORE

 

And now, let's close with some covers from co-creator Oliver Isabedra. 

 

The Secrets of SHAIANA

I was at Komikon 2010 last week, and as I was looking through the 20 peso bargain bins, I came across something that piqued my interest... 

 

Shaiana first appeared in 1995 as a supporting character in Entity Comics' 4-part cosmic epic Aster. Originally slated to be killed off, the heroine proved popular enough that she was given a stay of execution and eventually spun-off into her own 4-issue mini-series that same year.

 

Art by-- I'll tell you later.

 

But wait, wasn't Entity Comics an American publisher? Why is this being covered here? That's because the comics themselves were created right here in the Philippines. Both Aster and Shaiana were produced by the Philippine-based C.A.T.S. Studios.

 

 

Shaiana was co-written by Eric Duen with C.A.T.S. publisher and comic store proprietor Billy Lim-It. The first issue was illustrated by 2 artists, including Efren "Jay" Anacleto, who inked the book and pencilled 6 pages.

 

Art by Jay Anacleto

 

But most of issue no.1 was drawn by an artist who is actually very famous in the Philippines, albeit in another field of entertainment outside of comics.

 

 

Shaiana #1 was this artist's only professional comic book work, although he did recently contribute a piece to the Typhoon Ondoy benefit book Renaissance: Ang Muling Pagsilang, which was covered here a couple of months ago.

 

 

So just who is this mystery artist? Well, he's a man of many names as he is of many talents. His real name is Beethoven Bunagan. The comic credits him as Toybits. But he is best known to many Filipinos as Bitoy...

 

 

Yes! It's singer/actor-comedian

MICHAEL V.

YARI KA!!!