Runaways #3

Man, Runaways just isn't the same. This title, relaunched with a new #1 a couple months ago, was a favorite of mine last year. It was the story of a bunch of teenagers who find out their parents are supervillains. That all ended badly, with one of their number revealed as a traitor (he died, along with their parents), and them being sent to foster care.

The new status quo is that the Runaways have run away from their foster care, and are helping other kids with their problems. It's a good setup, and this issue has some good stuff in it, but it's also mired in stale Marvel continuity. A group of former teen heroes, mostly retired, has formed, and their first mission is to find the Runaways and bring them in. These former teen heroes are B-, C-, and D-list heroes from the bowels of Marvel's creative dungeons. As much fun as Vaughan has with making fun of them, it's never quite enough to get past the fact that they're lame. Calling Darkhawk lame has more of a 'no duh' effect than the more ironic spin Vaughan wants.

The big mission the Runaways are currently on is that they're trying to find a kid who is going to turn into a mass murderer in the future and kill the Avengers (of which Gert, one of the Runaways, is a member, in the future). They've found the guy, but other than complain, and blow some stuff up, he has the character of a cardboard box. So there's another dead end. Plus the plot has a million tangled threads. The first run got complicated because there were decisions to make, mysteries to solve, but the throughline of the plot was always very clear. Here its become muddled under the weight of the cast.

I still like the core cast of characters, but so much time is spent with the G-list Dungeon Team that the actual Runaways (you know, the title characters?) get very little time to shine. I want my Runaways back, because this is only okay, whereas vol. 1 was almost always great.

A word on the art: At least it's still really, really good. Alphona has an incredibly tight line, and I love his loose, wiry figures. His facial expressions get a little samey, but he has a dynamic sense of camera, and he draws teens like young people, not just smaller adults. It's sort of manga-meets-Todd-Mcfarlane, and I'm totally cool with that. The colors are bright and responsive. The fight in the studio with the Green Screen background was really eye-strainey in that way good four-color superhero fights should be.

I didn't mean to be so down on the book. When I read it, I enjoyed it, but in looking back, the book has lost a lot of simplicity that allowed the more complex character interactions to shine through, and I felt that was the strongest part, so seeing it lost under the weight of the Dungeon Z Backup Crew is disappointing.

Rage-o-Meter The lower the score, the less angry the comic made me. Anger is bad.
Runaways vol.2 #3: 4 (Nagging Annoyance)
-The writing has lost the easy simplicity of plot and character depth that made the original so charming. Still solid, but not great. Saved by excellent art.

	Runaways #3 Marvel Comics Writer: Brian K. Vaughan Penciller: Adrian Alphona Inker: Craig Yeung Colorist: Christian Strain "True Believers: Chapter 3"
	Man, Runaways just isn't the same. This title, relaunched with a new #1 a couple months ago, was a favorite of mine last year. It was the story of a bunch of teenagers who find out their parents are supervillains. That all ended badly, with one of their number revealed as a traitor (he died, along with their parents), and them being sent to foster care. The new status quo is that the Runaways have run away from their foster care, and are helping other kids with their problems. It's a good setup, and this issue has some good stuff in it, but it's also mired in stale Marvel continuity. A group of former teen heroes, mostly retired, has formed, and their first mission is to find the Runaways and bring them in. These former teen heroes are B-, C-, and D-list heroes from the bowels of Marvel's creative dungeons. As much fun as Vaughan has with making fun of them, it's never quite enough to get past the fact that they're lame. Calling Darkhawk lame has more of a 'no duh' effect than the more ironic spin Vaughan wants. The big mission the Runaways are currently on is that they're trying to find a kid who is going to turn into a mass murderer in the future and kill the Avengers (of which Gert, one of the Runaways, is a member, in the future). They've found the guy, but other than complain, and blow some stuff up, he has the character of a cardboard box. So there's another dead end. Plus the plot has a million tangled threads. The first run got complicated because there were decisions to make, mysteries to solve, but the throughline of the plot was always very clear. Here its become muddled under the weight of the cast. I still like the core cast of characters, but so much time is spent with the G-list Dungeon Team that the actual Runaways (you know, the title characters?) get very little time to shine. I want my Runaways back, because this is only okay, whereas vol. 1 was almost always great. A word on the art: At least it's still really, really good. Alphona has an incredibly tight line, and I love his loose, wiry figures. His facial expressions get a little samey, but he has a dynamic sense of camera, and he draws teens like young people, not just smaller adults. It's sort of manga-meets-Todd-Mcfarlane, and I'm totally cool with that. The colors are bright and responsive. The fight in the studio with the Green Screen background was really eye-strainey in that way good four-color superhero fights should be. I didn't mean to be so down on the book. When I read it, I enjoyed it, but in looking back, the book has lost a lot of simplicity that allowed the more complex character interactions to shine through, and I felt that was the strongest part, so seeing it lost under the weight of the Dungeon Z Backup Crew is disappointing. Rage-o-Meter The lower the score, the less angry the comic made me. Anger is bad. Runaways vol.2 #3: 4 (Nagging Annoyance) -The writing has lost the easy simplicity of plot and character depth that made the original so charming. Still solid, but not great. Saved by excellent art.
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