Runaways - Volume 1 [Hardcover]

 

 

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RUNAWAYS is a graphic novel published by Marvel Comics revolving around six teenagers with nothing in common except for the fact that their parents know each other. Once a year they are forced to spend an evening together while their parents have a secret meeting. Unable to stand the boredom during one of these nights, the kids decide to sneak in and see what really goes on behind the closed doors of these meetings. They learn that their parents are supervillains with powers that are maintained by sacrificing a human life on an annual basis. Witnessing the sacrifice shatters the kids' world and sends them running for their lives.

Nico, Gertrude, Chase, Karolina, Molly, and Alex learn their true heritage and each get a weapon or a power that they didn't know they had. Nico is the daughter of dark wizards and carries the "Staff of One," which allows her to cast spells. Gertrude is the daughter of time-traveling criminals and receives a genetically engineered deinonychus which she shares a telepathic bond with. Chase is the son of mad scientists and he uses high-tech gadgets he stole from his parents' lboratory to help them with their missions. Karolina is the daughter of alien invaders and can fly and manipulate solar energy. Molly is the daughter of evil mutants and has super strength, and Alex is the son of crime bosses and turns out to be a big surprise.

The kids run underground and hide in a place they call "The Hostel" and try to come up with ways to thwart their parents' evil plans and help the world -- while at the same time, stay alive.

Comic book fans will be glad to see some familiar superheroes make appearances throughout the book, such as Captain America and Cloak and Dagger. RUNAWAYS VOL. 1 is the collection of comic book issues #1 through #18 in hardback format. Volume 2 is already out and Volume 3 will be released in April 2007. Beginning with Issue #25, Volume 2, Joss Whedon, creator of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, will take over writing responsibilities. The graphic novel world is very excited about this development.

Reviewed by: Karin Perry

I picked up this collection of the original eighteen issues of "Runaways" because on a recent visit to my local comic book store I learned that Joss Whedon was now scripting the title. I had never read "Runaways," but since I was already reading "Astonishing X-Men" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Season Eight," the other two comics that Whedon was scripting for Marvel, I picked up issue #25 of the title. The problem, of course, is that I have never read "Runaways," even though it was the 2006 Harvey Award Winner for Best Continuing Series. Marvel published a one-shot comic "Runaways Saga," obviously intended for readers like me who have come late to the party, that recaps all of the 42-issues by Brian K. Vaughn and Adrian Alphona (Volumes 2 and 3 of "Runaways" has the next two dozen issues). But "Saga" is like a string of 42 "previous on 'Runaways'" segments and since it is relatively easy to get the entire run of pre-Whedon "Runaways" that was what I decided to do (Besides, I read "Saga" and apparently retained none of it by the time I got Volume 1 and read it).

The Runaways are six teenagers who meet each year at an annual gathering of their parents, only this time they manage to spy on what is happening and see the ritual sacrifice of a young girl. Figuring out that their parents must be super villains of some type, calling themselves the Pride, the teenagers run away, discovering in the process their unique abilities, which they then plan to use to bring their parents to justice. Finding out about the kids and their powers is half the fun, so there is no reason to give everything away. Suffice it to say that some of the powers are relatively basic, but a couple are quite interesting, especially the one with the mystical Staff of One. There is an interesting wrinkle is that the parents of each of the Runaways are unique, from time-travelers, aliens and criminal bosses to mutants, mad scientists, and dark wizards, which has significant implications for the Runaways.

Actually, it seems nobody calls them the Runaways; at this point they are simply the children of the Pride, and my biggest reservation about this story is when we find out what is up with Pride. That "deal" is strange enough, but then the Pride's twist on the original deal is where I started rolling my eyes and asking myself a lot of questions: Would the Gibborim allow this reinterpretation of the deal? Do humans, mutants, and aliens granted immortality age or do they stay the same age--adult or teenager--forever? Are they prohibited from being fruitful and multiplying? Do not ask me what this has to do with the Celestials, Galactus, the dread Dormammu and every other extraordinarily powerful creature in the Marvel Universe, because it would only make my head explode, and realize that these questions will not make sense until you read these stories.

Ultimately, the problems with the back story on the Pride does not matter because the big appeal with these comic books is that this is a group of teenage superheroes. This makes them distinct from both the pre-adolescents of Power Pack and because they are going after their "rents" they are devoid of a mentor like the X-Men had with Professor X. Being mentored matter because these kids are still a step away from being novices, as opposed to the Teen Titans, who at least in their original instantiation were all superhero sidekicks. The Runaways squabble a lot more than the Merry Mutants ever did (although I suppose a lot of what they do is better qualified as whining). When Stan Lee and Jack Kirby came up with the Fantastic Four the idea of a bickering group of superheroes was a radical notion, but Vaughn and Alphona get to deal with puberty, hormones, and a telepathic velociraptor. The genesis for the Runaways was the idea that while superheroes from Superman to Spider-Man had total respect for their (foster) parents, most teenagers are playing out some primordial death match with their parents (Pick your complex: Oedipus, Elektra, or mix and match as necessary). Besides, the Runaways have a pretty good excuse for disobeying their parents.

"Runaways" is also different in two other significant ways from your regular superhero comic books. The first is that it takes place in Malibu, which means this is off the beaten path when it comes to superheroes. Cloak and Dagger show up, not because this is their turf, but because being a runaway is something that they know about. So this comic takes place in the Marvel Universe in much the same way as "Tomb of Dracula" and "Man-Thing," where a superhero might show up from time to time, but that is the exception rather than the rule. The second difference is that the pacing of these comics is similar to the television show "24." Issue #1 starts at 6:01 p.m. on Day One and by issue #12 we are at 12:26 a.m. on Day Four; so that initial story takes place over the span of 54 hours. Issue #9 takes place over the span of 22 minutes. Issue #13 jumps ahead a week, and then #14-17 covers an evening and night of the same day, and then #18 is an epilogue that takes place later. I am not totally enamored with the results, but there is enough here that is intriguing enough to justify rounding up, and I think that with the different situation that will present the Runaways in Volume 2 things can only get better, which would explain the aforementioned Harvey Award. Plus, Joss Whedon likes it enough to do six issues.

I picked up runaways when it first started and dropped it at issue 4 not because it wasnt good because it was it was great. its just i started going to college. And i got to admit that was a mistake this is a fantastic book and extremely under rated... i mean by readers not critics the critics seem to drowl all over this book. The problem is this book doesnt have the letter x or the word bat, super or spider in it. Anyways on to the book its self this is great story the kids have just gotten away from theyre "super villian" parents and have picked up a new runaway by the name of topher. The dialogue is clever and witty the art is beautiful.. even though im not a huge fan of the art in the cloak and dagger story. Alex always seems a little off. I highly recommend this book

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5.0 out of 5 stars Fresh, fun series in the Buffy mold
What a fun book! 6 teenagers find out that their parents are really supervillains. The book just sets up the premise and shows some of the initial confrontations between the kids... Read more

Published on May 21 2004 by Peter Oksman

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