Kris Anka

I borrowed this because of Rainbow Rowell, unaware (or else forgetting) that it was a sequel-reboot rather than a remake-reboot. A group of teenagers who ran away together after discovering that their parents were super-villains have since gone their separate ways. But then Chase turns up on Nico’s doorstep with Gert, having used a time-machine to rescue her from the past before she died, and demands that Nico save Gert’s life. Gert wakes up to find that she’s missed two years and her show more friends are no longer together like she remembers.

Even though I didn’t know the characters or the details of their previous adventures, it was obvious that these characters know, and care about, each other. That made it easy to become invested in this story about reuniting, dealing with change and working out how to be a team again. Also, Gert has a telepathic lizard (dinosaur?) which is an awesome sidekick. I mean, if you’re not going to include dragons…

So I’ve requested the second volume from the library. I was also curious enough to look for the original comics (by Brian K. Vaughan, who wrote Saga, which made me doubly curious). show less

I enjoyed Brian K. Vaughan's original Runaways series, but have been disappointed by appearances of the characters since he left the property.

Rainbow Rowell tries to convince me that there's a reason to get the band back together for this new iteration, and damned if she doesn't pull it off. I enjoyed this first volume and am looking forward to the next.

I didn't know thing one about Runaways until Rainbow Rowell started writing for it, and I only picked it up because of her. And I *loved* it. This picks up where the most recent run left off (sort of), and I could tell that there were bits that would have resonated more strongly if I had read those; however, Rowell does an excellent job of making the emotional moments land for a new reader. I was never confused, and I was immediately enamored of the characters. I'll be carrying on with this.

I'm a long-time Runaways fan from the original run. The characters are precious to me for a variety of reasons, so of course I was wary that it was being picked up again. Wary but also excited because there's a lot of potential to be mined.

I need not have worried as Rainbow Rowell's take, complemented beautifully with Kris Anka's art, was perfect. Rowell has a great grasp on the characterization and voice of each kid, incorporating what the Runaways had been doing in other Marvel comics with show more ease. They're older, sadder, maybe wiser, maybe more desperate, but their connections to their fellow Runaways remain strong. Kris Anka's art is gorgeous, vaguely reminiscent of Adrian Alphona's distinctive style while still unique. His attention to detail is particularly noticeable in the personal style of each character. As always, Matt Wilson's colouring is outstanding, I just love how his style looks; it's bright and vibrant, using colour to really set the mood and tone of scenes.

The book starts with two of our arguably most damaged Runaways dealing with their regrets in different ways. Nico by wallowing in her dank apartment and Chase by trying to save Gert. Going back in time, he brings her back to Nico on the brink of death. With some help, they manage to revive her but are now faced with a bunch of new problems; number one being that two years have passed for everyone else but no time at all for Gert. Gert returned, they set out to get the whole gang back together, including Victor's disembodied head.

A great first six issues. show less