Reviewer: Tim Stevens
Story Title: True Believers
Written by: Brian K. Vaughan
Pencilled by: Adrian Alphona
Inked by: Craig Yeung
Colored by: Udon’s Christina Strain
Lettered by: Virtual Calligraphy’s Randy Gentile
Editor: C.B. Cebulski
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Let’s just get this out of the way right now: I know a lot of you did not buy this book during the first volume. It’s okay…everyone makes mistakes. The key is to not make them again. Here’s Volume 2…show me how much you’ve grown.
Runaways is a smorgasbord of comic minutiae that is sure to charm anyone who gives it half a chance. From this issue’s title (True Believer) to the name checking of Wonder Man (even if he doesn’t count) this is a book that should prove a salve to anyone who thinks that Marvel has no interest in its history or its longtime fans.
Don’t believe me? Check this out. In one issue, we have a debate about Spider-Man’s heroics v. lawlessness, a reference to Mister Fantastic’s ability to play basketball, a past battle with Flag Smasher, a teen superhero support group (that includes Darkhawk, Chamber, Turbo, Ricochet, Julie Power (?!), and the Phil Urich Green Goblin (?!?!!!!!)), and the Wrecking Crew. How’s that for being immersed in the “world” of Marvel Comics.
And yet, despite this, Vaughan has also managed to craft an entirely approachable story that does not require to reader to have read a copious amount of Marvel Comics (or even all of the issues of Runaways Vol. 1). Sure, it deepens the read, but it is like a Pixar film, it works on two levels. One for the newbies, and one for us veterans. The dialogue is quick, intelligent, and smart. Excelsior sounds like a true support group without devolving into parody, the Runaways sound like teenagers. Heck, even the Wrecking Crew’s dialogue is good (without reading like it was written for someone else).
The art is nothing to sneeze at either. Alphona and Yeung have not missed a beat despite this book’s hiatus. This is not manga-lite or anything of the sort. This duo is the real deal and their work compliments Vaughan’s script very well.
I like the few Marvel books that are beginning to list the colorist on the cover credits. I think it is a smart idea and one a long time coming. Strain has certainly earned it. Of all the books to make use of this particular color palette, (Guardians, Invaders), described as “easter egg” by one reviewer, Runaways does it the best. The colors are rich and capable of doing both the dark and light tones with muddying the art or make it day-glo.
