Runaways : Dead End Kids

This week marks one of the bigger transitions in recent comic book history. No, there’s not a new team for Uncanny X-Men. Wolverine Origins wasn’t cancelled. All-Star books are still chronically late. Who knows when Ultimates will ever finish (do you realize that we’ve only seen two issues in 17 months?).

No, I’m talking about Joss Whedon and Michael Ryan taking the creative mantle for Runaways from Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona. It’s significant for any number of reasons, one being that this book is easily one of Marvel’s most original properties, and another being that it’s one of their best books. When Whedon and Ryan were announced as the successors, I was thrilled. Surely if anyone could live up to the legacy built over the past 40 issues, it would be these two.

So how’d they do? I’m happy to report that while the new team manages to take our orphaned children to new and exciting places, it also has some learning to do. It’s not that I necessarily want Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona’s work to be untouched, but seeing this new approach reminded me just how good some of the past stories were. Whedon doesn’t have the same voice for these characters that Vaughan did, Molly Hayes being the one that stood out the most to me. To be fair, Whedon has an almost-impossible task of finding the perfect balance between innocence, naiveté, insightfulness and energy that Vaughan nailed from issue one. Molly’s dialogue was so wonderful that it’s immediately clear when someone other than Vaughan is writing her. Whedon does an admirable job, and comes very close, but it’s not quite the same. That’s not to say the characterization is bad. It’s not by any means. It’s just not quite the same. I suppose I’ll adjust over time, but knowing that Whedon is only on board for six issues is a little depressing as that means I’ll have to adapt to yet another variation of this team in less than a year. This book more than any other I can think of relies on a very, very precise range of emotions and dialogue. Not many can pull it off.

The other element here is Michael Ryan. I enjoy his work here a great deal. Outside of Alphona, Ryan is the best artist for Runaways that I have seen. His style is slightly reminiscent of Alphona’s without trying to directly imitate it. There’s a more animated tone to this work, both in pencils and coloring. I actually think I like his portrayal of expressions more than his predecessor, but it will take some time before I’m really ready to make that judgment. I really hope Marvel asks him to stay on after Whedon departs. Ryan really works well here.

I have two slight problems with this story. Both involve something I can’t talk about because it would spoil the plot. Let us call this particular something "X". By using X, Whedon takes this book in a pretty unexpected direction. It’s logical in terms of the world of these characters, but I’m not convinced our teens would pursue this path. I understand it and yet the greater issue of morality makes me inclined to disagree. Some members of the team would be interested in it, but I don’t think the majority of them would be. It seems to me there’s also a continuity issue with X, but honestly I don’t get too obsessive over that stuff. I’m willing to assume time gaps in other series to make this work logistically.

Any transition of this nature is difficult. Despite the occasional hiccup, Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona delivered incredible and original stories to Marvel fans. It seemed almost impossible that any team could easily replace them. In that sense it’s gratifying that Joss Whedon and Michael Ryan don’t make me instantly forget the past. It’s a different experience entirely. Whedon presents some brilliant ideas that make me really excited for what’s around the corner. Ryan’s work, though different than Alphona’s, is still very good. Ultimately this book will never be the same - but it still will be good.