Runaways - Volume 8: Dead End Kids [Paperback]

Joss Whedon is my favorite writer of all time. So when I say that I was wary about him taking over this series for an arc, understand that isn't because I was worried about where he'd take the story, because I know he'd do it justice. It was simply because the story came from Brian K. Vaughan's mind, and the mere fact of seeing anyone else carry it on was scary, because BKV did such a fantastic job. "Runaways" has always been one of my favorite comics, and I wanted to make sure it didn't just become one of those Marvel stories that they pass from writer to writer until it loses its feel. So basically, I was worried that my favorite writer wouldn't be a good fit for "Runaways."

THE STORY: Thankfully, I was wrong. The story itself is pretty perfect, in that it really picks up from the point where Brian K. Vaughan left them, while not just continuing the same story but giving us a new plot to get invested in. It also fits nicely into current Marvel continuity, which BKV tended to stray away from--however, Joss makes it work because you don't have to understand or know about what has been going on in the Marvel world to get it. Also, there are some nice call back to old events. The plot involves time-travel, though it ends up being more action-adventure than science fiction. I feel that Joss kind of lost the feel of the story in the middle by bloating it up, filling it with way too many new characters (the Adjudicator, a parallel to the Punisher who is also featured here, was beyond unnecessary), but he gets his footing back in the last issues. Most of the notable amount of plot threads Joss created get paid off nicely, and the arc and theme of the story come together in the end with high, very Whedonesque emotional payoff. I should have trusted Joss more, because he really gave us a great story.

THE CHARACTERS: More than once, Joss has said how much he loves these characters, and it really shows in his writing. The dialogue is great and quirky and true to BKV's characters, and for the most part I like where Joss took them. The only thing I hated was what he did with Nico. Making her gain so much power (Willow-izing her, really) was such a staggeringly huge mistake, because the most interesting thing about her is the limits of her power and how she manipulates her little power to do huge things. The rest of the story pretty much makes up for it, especially the new characters, which I thought I would dislike. But they were great and had some great emotional moments in the little page time they were given.

THE ART: Though I really mourned losing Adrian Alphona as the regular artist for this series, I did love Michael Ryan's take on the characters. His style is a bit different than Alphona's, but it's still supremely atmospheric and filled with detail. The only character I didn't think he handled that well was Chase, but the attention he gives to detail--especially during the climatic battle scene--makes up for it.

8/10

It seems each year the big superhero publishers throw out another group of 'cool' new teen heroes and each year they disappear from the shelves pretty fast. But not the Runaways. The book has been going strong for over 5 years now and remain interesting and innovative.

In this volume writer Joss Whedon sends them 100 years back in time to the New York of 1907. There they encounter sweatshops, union riots and several turn-of-the-century superheroes.

At first I worried Whedon had bitten off more than he could chew by creating 3 different factions of Steampunk Marvels but he manages to juggle the groups well and make an interesting point. After many intrigues and betrayals the Steampunk teams come together in a massive superhero battle. And the Runaways... walk away. One asks 'what about the war' the answer is 'it will still be there when we get back'. It makes for a nice statement about either violence in America, or at least the repetitive nature of superhero comics.

And I would totally read a Joss Whedon superhero book featuring his 1907 'wonders'.

So if you're looking for something different in your comic diet Runaways is definitely a good title to pick up.

what we have here is an OK installment in a series that, up to this point, has been fantastic. runaways is brian k. vaughan's baby, and he and artist adrian alphona made it one of my favorite comics ever; a series marked by strong characterization, sharp dilaogue, and some of my favorite comic art of all time. when vaughan decided to step away from the book, joss whedon seemed like a perfect replacement, and he does the job you should expect. the characterization is still there, along with some nice dialogue bits and a decent adventure to send these kids on. this story has the runaways going back in time, and that's just about it, a relatively standard adventure with some fun moments and not much else. michael ryan handles art chores, and he does a good job. adrian alphona (like vaughan) left some big shoes to fill, and i suppose michael ryan is about as good a replacement as you could want. but adrian alphona is in a class by himself, one of my top ten favorites, and one of the main reasons i loved the first 3 hardcovers in this series so much. he's sorely missed here, more so than vaughan. colorist christina strain is the only remaining member of the creative team, and her colors just don't look quite as good here. they're good, just not as eye-popping as i've grown accustomed to. perhaps she's just better suited to alphona's linework.

whedon does a few things here that leave me a bit torn. firstly, and more significantly, he's not content to write as good a chapter as he can in the saga of the runaways; he wants to leave his thumbprint on the series by adding a member to the cast. now i understand it's his prerogative to do so, and no editor is going to tell him otherwise, but i don't like the move. aside from being another female in an already female-dominated cast, the girl's got no discernible personality and an exceptionally creepy backstory to boot. whedon similarly shook up the cast of astonishing x-men at the end of his run, and i disliked it just as much. if he were sticking around to write the modified cast of characters it wouldn't bother me, but i never like it when a writer adds or subtracts a character just for the sake of saying, "i was here." it's unnecessary, bordering on selfish. if the new character (i have no idea what her name is, and i read the thing a few short days ago) had been developed at all i might feel differently, but she feels like tacked-on baggage for the next writer to inherit.

the other issue i had is that in this story chase makes no less than three references to smoking weed, one of which being an explicit endorsement. on one hand, if we're priding ourselves on writing realistic teenagers, this was certainly a realistic portrayal. and it's probably more realistic to have one character out of these six smoke weed than to have all these squeaky-clean teenagers. it's definitely realistic, and as an adult, i thought it was a surprising and almost funny touch. except for the fact that this book is ostensibly one of the more kid-friendly books marvel produces. it was originally released in digest format, aimed at a younger audience (before being collected in wonderful oversized hardcovers), and even though this volume is only out in standard-sized hardcover, i can't help but think some parents would be upset about this. especially considering the fact that marvel's current editor-in-chief (joe quesada) has a mandate that no marvel characters can be depicted smoking cigarettes for fear of influencing children, this was a surprising choice. also the writing gets a bit preachy when it comes to the book's lesbian content, but i've come to expect as much.

all-in-all it's an adequate installment in the story of the runaways, but for my tastes it's a significant step down. but vaughan and alphona made something so special, i suppose whoever followed them had no choice but to disappoint.