I'm back with another physical TPB this week, and this time, it's one of my many Runaways books. I want to hold off on covering them here until I've completed the collection, but I made an exception for this book, as it's more of a standalone affair. BACKGROUND:
I love the Runaways. It's probably my all-time favorite comic. I've slowly been collecting every Runaways TPB over the years, and as of now, I'm only missing a few volumes (plus some miscellaneous tie-in comics). I obviously had to have this book. THE WRITING: This version of the Runaways is set in the midst of Marvel's Secret Wars event from a few years ago, so if you're hoping for the original six kids, you're out of luck. You get an entirely different cast of kids in this one, with Molly being the only one from the original Runaways. During Secret Wars, the Marvel multiverse got fucked, and all that remained of it was Battleworld, which was an amalgam of a number of different alternate universes. This version of Battleworld is ruled by Doctor Doom, and he has created the Institute for Gifted Youths, where kids from all over are molded to become his loyal soldiers. The book follows the escapades of a group stuck in detention who end up becoming a team during final exams. When they discover the horrible truth behind these exams, they attempt to escape from school. Of course, the school's not gonna take that sitting down, so the kids must figure out what to do next while being hunted down. Although the plot is very far removed from the original Runaways comic, it still has the essentials: a group of gifted kids discover some sort of conspiracy, they run away, they're being hunted, all mixed with a dash of teen drama. It's not quite on the level of the original, but it still has some great character moments worth checking out. This TPB also contains issue #1 of Secret Wars: Secret Love, which is a compilation of short comics dealing with romance and all that mushy shit. The stories are nice and wholesome, and some of them are funny, but I personally enjoyed the different art styles a lot more. THE ART: They go for a "rougher", simpler overall look for the characters and use a more toned down palette, which is also kind of a departure from classic Runaways, but it's still some solid art. I like all the animated facial expressions many characters had, because some of the faces got hilariously weird (in the best way). VERDICT: Runaways: Battleworld is completely different from the Runaways most readers know and love, but different doesn't necessarily mean bad. This comic takes the essence of Runaways and puts a new spin on it, and it's a shame that it doesn't really go anywhere (this series, as far as I know, begins and ends with this book). Given more issues, they could've made something that rivals the original, but as it stands, the original's still the one to beat. Check out the comic over at Comixology: https://www.comixology.com/Runaways-Battleworld/digital-comic/314229?ref=c2VhcmNoL2luZGV4L2Rlc2t0b3Avc2xpZGVyTGlzdC9pdGVtU2xpZGVy - end -
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June 2024
Derryck
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