RUNAWAYS #29 REVIEW

[JD Francesco]

<a href="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/covers/marvel/runaways29.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.comixfan.com/xfan/images/covers/marvel/runaways29t.jpg" hspace=10 align=left alt="Runaways #29"></a> Reviewer: JD Francesco, vos_attestor@yahoo.com
Story Title: Dead-End Kids, Part Five (Of Six)

"Victor's kind of a ho-bag lately..."

Writer: Joss Whedon
Pencils: Michael Ryan
Inks: Rick Ketcham
Colors: Christina Strain
Letters: VC’s Joseph Caramagna
Assistant Editor: Daniel Ketchum
Editor: Nick Lowe
Editor in Chief: Joe Quesada
Publisher: Dan Buckley
Published by: Marvel Comics (http://www.marvel.com/)

Contains some spoilers

It is the penultimate chapter of Joss Whedon’s first story arc of Runaways and what a ride it has been. Stuck in the year 1907 thanks to a time traveling device made by Chase’s dad the gang now find themselves in the middle of a brewing gang war between the sinister Sinners and the more judicious (yet slightly dubious) Upward Path. Our heroes’ plight is made even more dangerous by the presence of Gertrude’s time traveling parents who upon learning of their daughter’s death have taken to blaming the kids and planning the mass murder of an entire neighborhood. Oh yes, and Chase seemingly ditches his friends by escaping in the Yorkes’ time machine.

The recap is necessary given how long it is taking these issues to hit the stands. From what I hear it has more to do with artistic delays than writing. The work is top notch but I have concerns that these hold ups might diminish sales in the long run. Readers are understandably split on whether waiting so long is worth their loyalty but the title still has much to offer for those still hanging in there.

Joss Whedon and Michael Ryan take us one hundred years back to a bygone American era of “notch-house doves” and “avendoodles” to deliver a time travel adventure that not only gives us a look into the past but a peek into the mindsets of the people from that time as well. We’re shown a world where social mores such as racism and homophobia are perfectly acceptable. Little girls are married off to old men and children work in sweat shops. At this point in the story the luster of this new setting has worn off for our heroes as Karolina and Molly attempt to save Klara from a life they find appalling. As readers of the modern world we can’t help but root for their good intentions. Unfortunately for all their problems, those from the past aren’t so sure that the morals of the future are any better as Karolina and Xavin’s relationship alone is enough to send Klara running.

Meanwhile Swell’s double cross blows up in his face and his fellow Street Arabs pay the price. I didn’t even get to know Megan or Creeper but I found their executions at the hands of Kid Twist to be effectively sad, which is surprising since after seeing kids die by the busload in other titles I lately find such developments to be rather dull.

Whedon also devotes some time towards advancing the sub plot of Nico further blossoming into a stronger leader. It’s a brutal route to go about it as Nico’s ancestor the Witchbreaker isn’t terribly impressed with her weak descendant and decides to improve her. What actually comes of Witchbreaker’s teaching methods remains to be seen though. Nori certainly stands to gain a power boost out of this but I’m at a loss as to how this will make her a better leader.

And at last the Yorkes’ diabolical plan comes to a head as the war between the Upward Path and the Sinners finally breaks out in the streets with the Runaways caught in the middle. In the hands of a less capable artist that two page spread of the battle would have come across as a cluttered mess but Ryan manages to fit every character clearly in the scene and with such beautiful detail. I love the art so much I can even forgive the fact that just about every character in the issue, regardless of age or gender, is running around sporting manly side-burns.

I don’t know if a gang war of any size is the best time for two characters to start up “the girl is mine” squabbles but Tristan scoops up Victor and they almost start to have it out in the sky until they notice what appears to be a bomb sitting on a nearby rooftop with twenty six seconds left before it blows. Not a bad cliffhanger to leave off with. After all this, regardless of the delays how can I not come back for the conclusion? I just hope we get to read it sooner rather than later.

RATING:
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[Jared Oberholtzer]

Whedon's arc is still going...?

[Kizmet]

Joss' titles always suffer delays but they're never his fault :? I don't remember Michael Ryan's work being delayed on Mystique or New Excalibur.

[Berry]

An entire Chaseless issue :(

[citizenx]

Joss' titles always suffer delays but they're never his fault :? I don't remember Michael Ryan's work being delayed on Mystique or New Excalibur.

Yeah, very odd delays here. Not sure why Marvel can't get Whedon books out on time when Dark Horse has done fine with Buffy this last year. Oh well, it was a good issue, but the delays have certainly messed up the pacing of the story. It'll read great all together, I've no doubt but the waiting sucks. And I also fear that the delays have countered any good will Whedon's name brought to the title. Terry Moore is going to have to knock it out of the park when he comes on.

[Jordan T. Maxwell]

Joss' titles always suffer delays but they're never his fault :? I don't remember Michael Ryan's work being delayed on Mystique or New Excalibur.

they were on New X-Men during his stint with Nunzio and Christina. it's a shame, because he's a damn good artist. and it's understandable that such quality takes time (Bryan Hitch and John Cassaday also come to mind), but you have to learn to be more realistic on how much lead time you need. Runaways does seem to do most of its business in the bookstore and collected market, though, and Whedon tends to thrive there as well since it's a more "mainstream" audience. so i doubt these delays will have much impact there.

still a damn good story! i'm just sad we only get one more issue of it. :(

[Robert Cammarata]

I thought the story rocked. the dialogue was dead on and I love Whedon's take on social differences between today and yesteryear.

I think Whedon gets Xavin even more than BKV. And that's sayin a lot.

There is way too much stuff happening here. Dozens of new characters. A huge battle and months and months of delays. All these things hamper what should be a much more pleasurable experience.

[RingoStarr]

I feel the same about this issue as I do about most Whedan books. They are entertaining enough but not good enough for me to care after such long delays.

[Kevin Sutton]

I must admit that the delay made me forget about this book and don't think the story had as much of an impact on me. That or perhaps for all the action, there wasn't as much to say about this issue's plot. It doesn't lack for good pacing or even a few surprises but I didn't find it as compelling as the last few save for a scene or two. The art was plenty good though. I appreciate that quality of work, just maybe not when these kinds of delays are attached. I still expect great things to come though.

[Commander Breetai]

I don´t believe for a second that the delay is due to Michael Ryan. The man consistently puts out quality work, fast. I´ve basically gotten all his series starting from Cable, and it is only with Whedon that such incredible delays have occured.

[citizenx]

I don´t believe for a second that the delay is due to Michael Ryan. The man consistently puts out quality work, fast. I´ve basically gotten all his series starting from Cable, and it is only with Whedon that such incredible delays have occured.

And yet Buffy comes out on time every single month. True he hasn't written every issue, but of the 11 issues out Whedon wrote 7 of them. Also, people have reported asking Ryan about it at cons and he's taken full responsibility for the delays. Now of course that's all second hand info, but why would Whedon write his Buffy comics ahead of the commitments he had in place prior. He ran 3 TV shows at the same time once. He's a professional. Sure, he could be a part of the problem, but I'm not sure that it has to be an either/or situation. We also know that Marvel pulled Casaday off AXM last minute to do a Fallen Son issue.

Anyway, I'm not familiar with Ryan's past work. I like it here on Runaways though. And I do wish that comic companies were actually upfront about their delayed books. It makes me feel like they actually care about their customers. Oh well.

Only 1 issue to go for this team, hope they knock it out of the park and it doesn't take another 4 months to get out.

[Kizmet]

Maybe Marvel has some weird belief that making us wait for Whedon's work makes it seem more exclusive or something.

Maybe Whedon cared more about the Buffy project.

Maybe Dark Horse required Whedon to turn in the complete arc for Buffy before they started putting the books on the shelf. They've already been burned: the delays on "Frey", which were acknowledged to be Whedon's fault, were utterly ridiculous and Dark Horse actually brought in a different writer to finish the last two issues of the four issue "Angel" mini that Whedon started. If I were at Dark Horse, I'd take precautions against any repeats of those situations.

Maybe Dark Horse has a stricter policy about delays than Marvel.

Somehow it seems like the way in which Marvel handles books with Joss' name on them results in lenghty delays. Maybe it's not exactly Joss' fault but there certainly seems to be a correlation between Joss, Marvel and delays which happens without respect to which artist he's paired with. The engineer in me can't ignore the fact that correlation generally implies cause even if the exact mechanism of the cause can't be pinned down.

[citizenx]

Oh, I completely understand why people think it's Joss' fault (I'm wouldn't be surprised if some blame lied with him), but I do recall on BKV's old message board he mentioned having read Joss' 4th Runaways script around the time the first or second issue hit (nearly a year ago now). Like I said, I just wish the companies were upfront about why a book isn't coming out. It's just good business to keep your customers informed.

[Kizmet]

It's good business to actually meet deadlines, but Marvel doesn't seem to put much stock in that... And honestly my tolerance for Marvel's delays is very, very low these days.

It's not just Whedon, it's Civil War, it's Miller's Ultimates, it's that Ultimate Wolverine vs Hulk project that will probably never be finished, it's NYX, it's Daredevil: Father and Daredevil: Target and probably a number of other books that I'm forgetting. But Marvel is horrible about delays and I just don't believe that they CARE if they get something out on time or not anymore. And in most cases the quality did NOT make up for the delay.

[Jordan T. Maxwell]

I don´t believe for a second that the delay is due to Michael Ryan. The man consistently puts out quality work, fast. I´ve basically gotten all his series starting from Cable, and it is only with Whedon that such incredible delays have occured.

so i'm guessing you skipped his delay and fill in ridden run on New X-Men: Academy X then? :P

Maybe Marvel has some weird belief that making us wait for Whedon's work makes it seem more exclusive or something.

Maybe Whedon cared more about the Buffy project.

Maybe Dark Horse required Whedon to turn in the complete arc for Buffy before they started putting the books on the shelf. They've already been burned: the delays on "Frey", which were acknowledged to be Whedon's fault, were utterly ridiculous and Dark Horse actually brought in a different writer to finish the last two issues of the four issue "Angel" mini that Whedon started. If I were at Dark Horse, I'd take precautions against any repeats of those situations.

Maybe Dark Horse has a stricter policy about delays than Marvel.

Somehow it seems like the way in which Marvel handles books with Joss' name on them results in lenghty delays. Maybe it's not exactly Joss' fault but there certainly seems to be a correlation between Joss, Marvel and delays which happens without respect to which artist he's paired with. The engineer in me can't ignore the fact that correlation generally implies cause even if the exact mechanism of the cause can't be pinned down.

to be entirely fair, Fray's delays did occur while Joss was working simultaneously on three different television series. and seeing as BOTH artists he's worked with at Marvel have had past incidents of delayed books (Ryan on New X-Men, Cassaday on Planetary...though that's also partially due to Ellis falling ill during the series), your correlation/cause paradigm seems to have a few factors missing.

it's that Ultimate Wolverine vs Hulk project that will probably never be finished,

actually, there's a very apologetic (and humorous) note up at Earth 2 Comics here in Los Angeles from Damon Lindelof, saying sorry for the delays and that he's back on track writing the scripts for the remaining issues so once Leinil Francis Yu gets some free time from New Avengers and Secret Invasion, we'll be seeing the end.

and frankly, after last night's episode of Lost, i'm more than willing to wait for the last two issues of a mini series if it means i can still get high quality episodes of one of my favorite shows.

(hell, i'd wait a whole year for the next issue of Runaways if it meant i could have more Firefly on the air...or that Dollhouse would start airing sooner. :LOL: so long as it didn't mean the cancellation of Runaways as well...there are some sacrifices i'm not willing to make. :P)

[Kizmet]

so i'm guessing you skipped his delay and fill in ridden run on New X-Men: Academy X then? :P

I don't have a problem with fill-ins if that's what it takes to get a book out on time. I don't remember NXM ever being missing off the shelves for four months.

And fill-in ridden? There were three artists on the title before the first arc was done, Ryan was the third, I tend to think that has more to do with Marvel than with Ryan, I mean he didn't start drawing the fifth issue in the series and he was so slow that Marvel had to call in two other artists to draw issues 1-4. That first arc was the only one where Marvel had more than one artist per arc, trading artists between arcs isn't a big deal.

Four month delays between issues of an arc sounds like with AXM, not NXM:AX. One month delay I might be inclined to believe it's Ryan's fault. Four months... that's just how Marvel handles titles with big name authors.

[Jordan T. Maxwell]

I don't have a problem with fill-ins if that's what it takes to get a book out on time. I don't remember NXM ever being missing off the shelves for four months.

And fill-in ridden? There were three artists on the title before the first arc was done, Ryan was the third, I tend to think that has more to do with Marvel than with Ryan, I mean he didn't start drawing the fifth issue in the series and he was so slow that Marvel had to call in two other artists to draw issues 1-4. That first arc was the only one where Marvel had more than one artist per arc, trading artists between arcs isn't a big deal.

Four month delays between issues of an arc sounds like with AXM, not NXM:AX. One month delay I might be inclined to believe it's Ryan's fault. Four months... that's just how Marvel handles titles with big name authors.

personally, i prefer delays to fill ins. don't get me wrong, Ryan's an amazing artist and i'm a huge fan. but the guy admits himself that he's pretty slow, both on this title and on New X-Men. as for AXM, again, it's drawn by Cassaday who is one of my favorite artists but, like Hitch, takes a while to deliver that kind of detail and artistry. i'm not saying Whedon's absolutely blameless because i don't have ALL the facts, but when the two titles he's worked on for Marvel BOTH have artists who have shown a propensity for slowness and thus a need for delays or fill ins, i don't think it's the safest bet to just automatically assume it's all Whedon's fault either.

i'd much rather have high quality issues spread out a few months apart than a monthly book with inconsistent artistic fill ins or filler stories from an entirely different creative team (DC's solution).

[Ann Nichols]

Have't read the issue, stopped caring.

[Jordan T. Maxwell]

Have't read the issue, stopped caring.

your loss. :D