Runaways : Dead End Kids

Reviewer: Scott A. Williams - Quick Rating: Very, very good - Story Title: Dead-End Kids Part 3 - Rated T+

The Runaways gotta go back… to the future!

Writer: Joss Whedon - Penciler: Michael Ryan - Inker: Rick Ketchum with Jay Leisten - Colorist: Christina Strain - Cover Artist Jo Chen - Lettered by: Virtual Calligraphy’s Joe Caramagna - Assistant Editor: Danny Ketchum - Editor: Nick Lowe- Editor-In-Chief: Joe Quesada- Publisher: Marvel Comics

Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. Yes. This is what I’ve been wanting, waiting for, hoping for. A few issues into Joss Whedon’s stay on Runaways, by Jove I think he’s got it. From the start, he showed a love and understanding of the characters (indeed, it bordered, seemingly, on sycophantic devotion) and he’s always been a talented writer when it comes to plots, sure, but something about the first couple issues didn’t gel for me. After the brilliance of the inaugural Brian K. Vaughan’s run, Whedon came off as a relief pitcher; talented but somehow lesser. But here, he finds his step.

The story is one part oddball plot – the kids are in over their heads again, this time after a time-traveling mishap leaves them in the Buster Brown-reading, Teddy Roosevelt-electing streets of turn of the century New York City. There, they encounter period heroes and colourful characters (I smell a spin-off!) including, bizarrely enough, the Yellow Kid (personally, I’d have preferred Little Nemo but I guess he was asleep) and some very cute era-approximate dialogue.

The characters sparkle in this situation. Nothing like time travel to cement a character’s traits. Karolina in particular finds herself taken with the charms of the period, only to be disgusted with its Dickensian nature. It’s just fun to see the characters wander around the setting and behave, let alone the plot. Whedon is apparently smart enough of a writer to know there’s no suspense in “will they get back?” The DeLorian always somehow gets fired up; it’s not important how they get back, but what they do until they do. Whedon leaves us with a last page that comes out of nowhere despite being, in hindsight, not only obvious but downright logical.

And thus, the issue comes together as a complete classic in the Runaways canon. It’s appropriately each of the following: irreverent, iconoclastic (inasmuch as we value history,) sarcastic, insightful, true to its characters, light on its plot, intriguing in its events and turns, and aware of its status in the pantheon of comic book reality. There’s a moment between Chase and a hologram emitted by the Leapfrog that made my heart sank. It was so incidental that it may as well not have been included, but it was the piece that seemed to be missing.

The artwork is truthfully among the best the series has ever seen, with all due respect to Alphona. Ryan’s work is clean, clear and consistent. It always shows you what you need, looking good, and keeps the story easy to follow. The era is rendered like the ole photo essays you study in Grade 10 history class (cities before cars were mandatory.) The coloring is, perhaps deliberately or perhaps as an invention of my mind, bathed in a subtle sepia tone, to make it look like the photographs of the day (which reminds me of one of the best lines in the issue, wondering about the existence of cameras.)

With only a handful of issues left in his stay on this book, Joss Whedon has done good by it by keeping its spirit alive with a story that is a great deal of fun to read, loaded with exquisite visuals, and moments both small and big that help keep this book’s reputation as the finest of its time and place.

P.S. As always, love Jo Chen’s cover.