Runaways, Vol. 1: Pride & Joy

My wife and I just purchased Disney Plus, ostensibly for the kid, but we’ve been spending more time watching stuff than the six-year-old. We’ve already binge-watched the first seven episodes of “The Mandalorian”, which is as awesome as the hype made it out to be, and so now we’re just skimming and surfing. I recently came across a Marvel TV series that I had never heard of, and my wife and I had just settled down to check out the first episode. Before we knew it, we were hooked, binge-watching six or seven episodes in two days.

The show is called “Runaways”, and it is based on a long-running Marvel comic book series of the same name. I had never heard of it prior to watching the show, but it intrigued me because Brian K. Vaughan had his name attached to it as the writer. Vaughan is the writer behind two excellent comic book series that I love: “Y: The Last Man” and “Saga”. He was also a co-writer for the TV show “Lost”, which I also loved.

I devoured the first volume of “Runaways”, titled “Pride and Joy”, in a sitting. It collected the first six issues of the series, written by Vaughan and drawn by Adrian Alphona. (This may show my age, but I didn’t like that the book was published in “digest” format, which is roughly the size of those manga magazines. The print is too damn small, especially for 47-year-old eyes. Anyway, that’s my grumpy-old-man comment for the day...)

The plot: a disparate group of high school students who all happen to have grown up with each other and consider each other friends inadvertently discover that their parents are a group of super-villains. They witness their parents kill someone in a secret ritual, and they then struggle to figure out how to report it to the authorities while dealing with the fact that it is their parents. They also begin to realize that each of them has their own super-power.

Overall, I was impressed by how the producers of the TV show adapted the comic book so closely, with a few minor changes.

Actually, the changes weren’t so minor, but they were, in my opinion, improvements.

The first major difference is that the TV show eliminates any subtle or not-so-subtle connections with the MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe). The comic book series clearly grounds the story in a world in which superheroes exist. The Avengers are real, but they live all the way in New York. (The story is set in California.)

By eliminating references to the MCU, the show is grounded in a reality that more resembles our own. It helps to make the revelations by the kids of their parents’ evil actions and their own superpowers that much more intense and believable. The parents in the show don’t wear super-villain costumes, and the kids don’t spend an entire day coming up with superhero names for themselves. The truth is, the TV show could still be a part of the MCU, it just doesn’t seem relevant or necessary to the plot.

Another major difference is that, while the parents are clearly doing horrible things, they don’t come across as absolutely horrible people. They still love their children, and they rationalize their actions by believing that they are making a better life for their kids. On the same token, the kids are truly conflicted about going to the authorities, because they still love their parents, despite the horrible things that they now know about them. This adds an element of realism and believability to the show that seems absent from, or at least watered-down in, the comic books.

I’m still enjoying the comics, because I realize that what works in comic books doesn’t always translate well to TV or movies. I think the producers realized that and made a choice, one that I think works well.

My wife and I are looking forward to watching season 2 someday (as soon as Disney and Hulu can come to some sort of contractual agreement), but in the meantime, there are about ten more volumes of “Runaways” to read. I just wish they had them in large print.

What would you do if you discover that your parents are super villains? And if, after that, you find out that yourself have powers?



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That's the premise of this history and let's be real,if you have a tons of teenagers for that plot it can be really awesome or a total disaster. In this case we have a incredible story.

But, what is what make it so good? First, this isn't the typical superheroes comics. Yes, it shows the moment when discover their powers, or abilities or artefacts that let them fight against the evil, but none is alone when happen. Even more, all characters have their own abilities, but that doesn't mean that all have powers or lot of money to transformate themselves in superheroes, in fact in this number they don't want to be one, just want to stop their parents.

As younger people we have romances but, please, don't run away, this romance is credible. First because they know each other since they we're kids. Second because you feel that this group have a friendship, doesn't matter how many differences they have, you believe that they are good friends.

And speaking about the characters...I'm gonna speak about the girls and boy as separate sets. In this number we have two guys, Alex and Chase, the first one is super-smart, the second is super-funny and have a straing artefact to defense; the both have awesome personalities and are lovely in their own way...but i prefer Chase.

The girls...oh Geez, i love these girls. THEY ARE BAD-ASS. They make her own decisions, and if she are leaders is because they want to be. Have power but they think in what they gonna make, accepts help if they need, and give the same help to other, and take "the team" as a family. And don't get me wrong, the boys have the same qualities, but in historically the very few heroines are provide of this kind of personality, so i want to point it.

We have 4 girls, Nicco who is one of the leaders. Karolina, is a alien. Gertrude, like a Daria Morgendorffer with purple hair and a dinosaur as a pet. And Molly, like a little hulk without the green part.

Aparently these guys isn't connected with the rest of Marvel Universe but ww have a lot of winks to other superheroes, and the way that are presented is super funny.

Yeah, basically this isn't a review, is more a fangirl leakage. But if you like comics, good characters and funny and smart histories, you need to read this history, I freaking love it.

So I started the show and here I am now!! This was so GOOD and it's still different from the show, which definitely makes sense since it has been about 10 years since this came out :) Also definitely spoiling myself for the show
The kids are all very interesting and I really like how they interact with each other (but I think I also like the beginning of where they are more on the show), but it's very interesting to see them on their own and trying to deal what they have found out
Just one thing, Molly seems younger than 11 in this right?! Or do I just not remember how I was ten years ago??
But really GREAT start and I'm really looking forward to read more :)

I read this book years ago - probably when it was still an active series in its early, obsessive days of new wild-eyed fans who couldn't believe comics could be this good.

At the time I thought it was a little juvenile for my tastes - who would I be kidding, a grown man reading a comic about a group of teenagers? So I think I put it away and tried to forget how skeezy I felt, and returned to stuff that was a little more age-appropriate (or at least didn't make me think of how many perverts drooled over the teenaged girls in this book). Weird thoughts, but almost certainly among those in my head at the time (along with "Why did I move to this rain-infested town?" and "When will Americans finally figure out how to write an unambiguous date?").

Now I'm re-reading this book because my partner Sara (of SaraAndMikeOnComics) is going to try this book soon, and I wanted to have something to contribute to the podcast episode beyond "Hey, isn't it crazy how they're kids of supervillains!" Now that I've re-introduced myself to these kids, I think I understand why I felt ashamed of how much I liked these kids: it's the dialogue, stoopid.

As is Vaughan's signature move, he infuses the dialogue between characters with the sharp edge of real-sounding people who are thrust together but don't quite like each other enough to hide their conflicting opinions from each other. They're individuals with different speech patterns, specific desires and interests, and wildly different approaches to solving problems.

So when a group of kids who see each other every year or so discover (not all at once) that their parents aren't quite the squares they thought they were (and are actually killing and scheming their ways against the good guys, it's not like they know what to do or even agree on what they should try to do. There's arguing, bad ideas, disbelief and stubborn refusal.

How these kids get into trouble, and the frankly implausible scenarios that keep them one step ahead of getting stomped, is a pretty wild ride. Vaughan doesn't let up long enough for us to try to figure out the next move before he throws the next curve ball.

Nice job with the twist there Mr. V, way to up the tension and blow all sorts of holes in how predictably this might play out.

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How old is James Masters in the TV show adaptation from this cómic. Since 2002 when I fall in love with him for being Spike in Buffy.

Geweldige verhaallijn, prettig geschreven en goede graphics! Snel verder in vol. 2 ♡

Brian Vaughn and Joss Wheedon are two of the best sci-fi/fantasy writers alive and it is great they are also gn writers. They are similar in that they are witty, sometimes downright hilarious, they are pop culture and sci-fi/fantasy scholars, they read everything and anything... and they are very smart. For instance, Vaughn goes from references to the Who to Twister the Avengers to technology to romance... everything, and he knows how to tell a story...

First book of 2019!

Re-reading the early days of the Runaways. I had completely forgotten this was originally part of Marvel's short-lived 'Tsunami' range of supposedly manga-inspired titles.

This is a great set-up. The only thing that stops it getting five stars from me is the artwork, which, while perfectly serviceable, stops short of greatness. Knowing how much the artist has improved in the last fifteen years, it'd be cool to get them to redraw these early issues. Or pointless. One of the other.