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Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Runaways Vol.1 Pride and Joy

Runaways Volume 1: Pride & Joy (Runaways Digest New Ed)

What would you do if you were a teen and found out your parents were evil? No not just assholes, but seriously evil. As in super- villains. That's the premise of Runaways by Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona. Readers probably know Vaughan best for Saga, which is all the rage right now, but Runaways is some of his older work for Marvel. And Hulu just announced a Runaways series is in production, so I wanted to grab the trade paperbacks and see what the deal is. This trade collects the first six issues of the series. Some spoilers follow.

This series shows its age a bit with some of the pop culture references being a bit dated- this came out in 2004-ish - but it mostly works. Turns out the parents of the six kids get together once a year to discuss their "charity work" (they're all rich), but when the kids spy on their meeting they see something they're not supposed to. Their parents are actually part of a group called The Pride, and when they kill a girl in some kind of ritual the teens are shocked. Going to the police doesn't work since the police apparently answer to The Pride, so the kids have to think fast and stay a step ahead.

I liked the characters mostly- Alex, Nico, Karolina, Chase, Gert and Molly- some more than others and after struggling a bit in the first issue keeping track of who was who, I got it down and started to see each one develop their own personality. I mean it's not the greatest thing ever, but for the most part it's a fun, breezy read. The art is okay but not great, but a lot of series have that problem now with the cartoony style that's in vogue. The dialogue between the kids is good and they sound like actual kids, for the most part. Throw in some fun stuff like a genetically engineered velociraptor and the kids manifesting strange powers at the right moments, and this series is off to a pretty fun start.

I'll definitely keep going with Runaways and I'm especially looking forward to seeing how Hulu adapts this project.

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28 comments:

  1. I hadn't even heard of this, but it sounds pretty fun! It's a cute idea. Glad you enjoyed it! I might see if Hoopla has it.

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    1. It's not excellent but I enjoyed it. The art is hit or miss for me, but I'll keep reading...

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  2. I like the idea of this one! I didn't know about it

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    1. It's fun and I'll keep checking them out. :)

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  3. I've never heard of this series but I really like the idea. Thanks for reviewing

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  4. Never heard of it, could be good

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  5. I love the title to start with! I don't know why I have a weakness for runaway tales. The... VILLAINS! I'm a villain person. Heroes can be boring :) So I love villains even if they are evil parents LOL [what is wrong with me? :) ]

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    1. Ha I know? The parents are prett villainous in this one...

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  6. I've been curious about this series; looks like I need to check it out. That's awesome that Hulu is adapting it.

    -Lauren

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    1. I think so too, can't WAIT to see what Hulu does with it! And I'm kinda anxious to get vols 3 and 4 so I must be enjoying it...

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  7. I've never heard of this one before! Sounds like it's worth checking out. :D

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    1. It's not bad. Like I said it's not excellent but it was a fun read.

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  8. That's a cool premise. I hope the parents really are evil. So many stories say characters are evil but they really aren't. lol

    For What It's Worth

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    1. The parents are pretty evil in this one. :)

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  9. Oh I have been curious about this one as well. Looks like I now want Hulu. :D

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    1. I've never had Hulu but would I get it to watch this? I might... :)

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  10. I love this concept! Even though it wasn't a complete homerun it sounds entertaining and that's so cool that Hulu is doing a show version of this!

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    1. I think so too. I'm really curious to see Hulu's take. And that's exactly right- it's not a home run but it's not bad either. :)

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  11. I loooove The Runaways! A friend of mine when we were in college thrust a copy into my hands one day, and I became a Brian K. Vaughan fan on the spot. It was my gateway into everything Marvel too :)

    ~Mogsy @ BiblioSanctum

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  12. I really love what I've read of Vaughan's work so far but still to read this one. I'm sticking to his Image Comic catalogue at the minute!

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  13. Whaaaaat? This series is being adapted for TV? I'm shook! Clearly I need to read it ASAP. I've wanted to dive into it for a while - it's BKV, after all - but I was worried it'd feel way too dated. I'm happy to hear that's not the case, apart from some pop culture references. Not a huge fan of this art style, but I can suck it up!

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    1. It is a bit dated, to be honest. I definitely felt like I was reading something older. Still if it appeals to you give it a shot! I suspect his newer stuff is edgier and more with the times, but when I saw they were making a Runaways show I had to try it.

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  14. I read the deluxe version with 1-18. Mostly felt the same way, nothing that overwhelmed but a fun read

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  15. I remember reading this series a long while back. I stopped at some point and I think it was because the artist changed and the art style was one I fully hated and couldn't keep reading. The storyline was solid, though. I vaguely remember hearing about a TV series but I didn't know it was a definite thing! I cannot wait, I'm sure it's going to be fantastic (or I hope it will be) because I did love the series.

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