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Terry Moore and Humberto Ramos keep ‘em running!

Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like home for the motley crew of kids that constitute the cast of Runaways. And that saying is literal for them, because they don’t have a home. Over all their adventures and all their relocations, they don’t have a place they can call their own, and therein lies just one of the challenges set for the new creative team of Terry Moore and Humberto Ramos for this tiny epic series that took everyone by surprise when it was started by creators Brian K. Vaughan and Adrian Alphona in 2002. Initially, I was not attracted to this title because I thought that it was just another X-type comic: kids with extraordinary powers (Remember Generation X?). But after hearing about it from several other fans and when the man who eventually would take over writing duties, Joss Whedon, I gave it a shot. And from the first trade, I became obsessed with the series. Great writing, great art, great humor and a wonderful encapsulation of the teenage mind made for a brilliant read. When Vaughan eventually left the series, Whedon picked up from there, sending our erstwhile kids into a time-travel backspin. Whedon’s arc was enjoyable with some great plot moments and new characters, but was, I think, a little too chaotic. There were too many ideas going on at once, and some of them got lost in the shuffle. But now, Nico, Karolina, Chase, Molly, Xavin, Victor and their newest addition Klara are back in Los Angeles and back in trouble in Runaways 3 #1.

The issue begins with a spaceship camping out in our galaxy, with a bunch of bad-asses from the planet Majesdane on board who are looking to bring some severe pain to Karolina; something to the tune of seven billion of their people dead. Then we get to our gang who are back in L.A., and they’re looking for a place to stay that will hopefully keep them under the radar of Iron Man and The Initiative. They use the Leapfrog to find a location that may have been left behind by one of their parents, and indeed they find one in Malibu, the land of the rich and famous. Of course, not everything goes according to plan when they finally break into the deserted home to find it’s not quite so deserted and it’s filled with security daemons. They eventually get them shut down and now that they have a nice place to live, they have to figure out how to live… you know, with money and stuff. Of course, Chase is the only one over 18 and the only likely candidate. As the girls go with Chase in pursuit of a job for him, they get to introduce Klara to the amazing conglomeration of shops and eateries known as the Mall, and Chase goes to find his idol, an obnoxious DJ named Val Rhymin. In the ensuing chaos of one of his shows, Chase and Val talk about a possible job when Val’s producer, who happens to be very upset with Val, is mysteriously forced off the high balcony. The fast thinking of Klara and control of plant life she has that even Poison Ivy would be green with envy of (Get it? ‘Green’ with… envy… y’know, plants are green… oh, shut up)  saves the producer, and for fear of risking more public exposure, Nico has the rest of them beat feet back to the house in Malibu. All seems to be going in the right direction for the Runaways, but that’s inevitably when things start to go extremely wrong for them.

I have never read anything of Terry Moore’s. Not Strangers In Paradise, not Echo, nothing. But I will absolutely give him that he has captured the spirit and the ear for the teen-speak that both Vaughan and Whedon brought to the characters. His humor is classically self-referential, which also keeps in the spirit of the book’s predecessors, and Molly is obviously his favorite muse for that humor, which is shown in moments when Molly explains what television is to Klara and particularly when an example of a celebrity is needed in case they’re found in the Malibu home, and Xavin morphs into Kevin Smith. That’s classic Runaways there. So Moore’s voice works well with this comic.

Now, I’m a big fan of the art of Humberto Ramos. I’ve enjoyed a lot that he’s done. I really loved the series Crimson, and I also liked Revelations. Strangely, though, his art didn’t thrill me at all here. I really thought that it would make a good fit, and with Crimson, he proved that he could do teenagers. He has an eye for framing and action, but his figures seem much more cartoony here than they have before. It just seemed like a lot of the same. Obviously Runaways has never been a title that has been much for realistic art styles, but it just feels like Ramos went a little too over-the-top here. What’s strange is that I can’t really nail down what I don’t care for here, but I just don’t think it works. Maybe if it was notched back a bit, it might be a better fit.

Runaways started brilliantly with Vaughan, got a little too high-concept with Whedon but still was a good read, and with Moore, the series is reading back on track. I just wish that it looked as good as it sounded.

Runaways 3 #1
“Dead Wrong: Part One”
Written by Terry Moore
Penciled by Humberto Ramos
Inks by Dave Meikis
Colors by Christina Strain
Letters by VC’s Joe Caramagna

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