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geekwayne's review
3.0
I read 'Danger Club, Vol. 1: Death' by Landry Q. Walker after reading the second volume. I liked the second volume more than this one.
The heroes have all gone somewhere, and only the young sidekicks are left behind. I was confused by this in the second volume and it's not explained here either. The things I liked in the second volume begin to form here, but the story just didn't really hook me. It seems to want to be hyperviolent, and it doesn't seem to know what to do with it yet. That works better in the second volume where the violence is done with more shock.
I gave the second volume four stars because the story gets a bit deeper. This time around, I have to give it less because the story comes across as cliche. Maybe I've read too many deconstructions of superhero stories, or maybe I've just read better ones.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Image Comics, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
The heroes have all gone somewhere, and only the young sidekicks are left behind. I was confused by this in the second volume and it's not explained here either. The things I liked in the second volume begin to form here, but the story just didn't really hook me. It seems to want to be hyperviolent, and it doesn't seem to know what to do with it yet. That works better in the second volume where the violence is done with more shock.
I gave the second volume four stars because the story gets a bit deeper. This time around, I have to give it less because the story comes across as cliche. Maybe I've read too many deconstructions of superhero stories, or maybe I've just read better ones.
I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors, Image Comics, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.
drewwoodworth's review
2.0
What happens if you try to combine Watchmen, Bratpack, and Pulp Fiction into one post-modern take on super-heroes. Well, unless you are a genius, you get this mess of a book. The art is enjoyable if you like a bit of the old ultra-violence, but the story just feels like it’s reach exceeded its grasp a bit. Valiant effort, but didn’t quite pull it off.
daynpitseleh's review
2.0
I received this from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This was alright, although it felt a bit derivative of other, better things. I wasn't super interested in it, and it didn't feel like it was original enough. While it was a decent comic, I don't think I would go out of my way to read more.
This was alright, although it felt a bit derivative of other, better things. I wasn't super interested in it, and it didn't feel like it was original enough. While it was a decent comic, I don't think I would go out of my way to read more.
nathanprimeau's review
3.0
Quick thoughts: I like a lot of this, but a lot of the "somewhere new" promised by Matt Fraction in his introduction just feels like the same edginess we get with stories like The Dark Night Returns, etc.
jmanchester0's review
5.0
Holy Schnikes! What a crazy first issue!
It got my attention and sucked me into the story.
And the retro splash pages were pretty amazing.
Remote control, bitches!
Hilarious!
The more I read of this volume, the more I have to ask - how is Image getting all the great new stuff?
Okay - I guess this isn't new, being published in 2012. But, still. It's pretty amazing.
I can 3- and 4-star comics all day that I can read and enjoy. But to pick up a book like this, gives all the reason behind the phrase, "I couldn't put it down."
I loved the writing. And the art was great - perfect for the genre.
And -
Aw, crap?? Really?!? A cliffhanger.
Damn.
When is volume 2 released?
(What - it's been out for 6 months? Okay - going to hunt it down.)
Thanks to NetGalley, Diamond Distributors, and Image Comics for a copy in return for an honest review.
It got my attention and sucked me into the story.
And the retro splash pages were pretty amazing.
Remote control, bitches!
Hilarious!
The more I read of this volume, the more I have to ask - how is Image getting all the great new stuff?
Okay - I guess this isn't new, being published in 2012. But, still. It's pretty amazing.
I can 3- and 4-star comics all day that I can read and enjoy. But to pick up a book like this, gives all the reason behind the phrase, "I couldn't put it down."
I loved the writing. And the art was great - perfect for the genre.
And -
Aw, crap?? Really?!? A cliffhanger.
Damn.
When is volume 2 released?
(What - it's been out for 6 months? Okay - going to hunt it down.)
Thanks to NetGalley, Diamond Distributors, and Image Comics for a copy in return for an honest review.
theartolater's review
4.0
I'm inadvertently on a weird trend right now with the graphic novels I'm reading where it's more of a post-hero mindset. In Danger Club, it's sort of like Teen Titans, but in a world more similar to Irredeemable or something where all the heroes are gone, and the teen heroes are all that are left. It's a really fast-paced read with some truly great moments, although at only four issues it feels too rushed at times to truly let the weight of a lot of things sink in. Still a good read on a whole, though - apparently the series was on hiatus for a time, so jumping back in will be nice soon.
lastson's review
5.0
One of the BEST comics I've read in a LONG time. Love how there's no hand-holding through the storyline. Teen team comics for intelligent comic readers!!
formtruthregret's review
4.0
This review covers volumes 1 and 2.
Danger Club is a miniseries set in an original superhero universe, where all the heroes went off to face a cosmic threat and, to a one, died. Leaving their sidekicks to pick up the slack, because the thing that killed all the adults is still coming.
That premise makes it sound like it goes a little Lord of the Flies and it does, a bit, at least at the beginning. But the main thrust of the narrative is really more about these kid heroes' struggle to still be, well, heroes, in a world devoid of the lodestones that have guided them. It's about responsibility that too much for their shoulders but that they bear anyone because there really is no one else left to do it.
It's about superheroes -- or rather, superhero comics.
Each issue starts off with a one-page Silver Age-esque teaser. These are brilliantly done, they do an excellent job of mimicking the older style comics in both writing and art (especially the costume designs!). More to the point, each one serves as a quick characterization of the characters and relationships to come. This being a wholly original universe, there are definitely recognizable archetypes at play -- but that doesn't really tell you anything about the characters, really. So these one-pagers serve as a really interesting narrative device, helping quickly establish the characters while also establishing the universe-that-was.
There's more to it than that, though. I think the combination of "comics" and "restarting universes" brings to mind one thing, and that is, of course, reboots. The constant struggle to start over, clean things up, make everything neater and better and more modern and -- you get the idea. The brilliance of Danger Club is that it weaponizes that regurgitating timeline and names it Chronos. Time itself, as the destroyer and rebooter of worlds, desiring that perfect world where everything is devoted to itself.
Mind you, I don't know or care nearly enough about the Big Two to take it further than that. I just think it's neat, this idea that time itself is the destroyer and recreator. And in the end, the cycle is broken, and the world is restored to status quo -- but even then, after this time(line) shattering event, nothing's really changed except the kids, who now have bucketloads of trauma to deal with poorly, as is the superhero's wont.
I think nothing exemplifies this sense of -- we won! but what did we win? -- more than Kid Vigilante. After a flashback where his mentor, Red Vengeance, says to his face that he's an inadequate copy of his much more beloved twin brother, a faulty tool for saving the world, KV manages to pull it all off anyway. A ridiculous, desperate gamble that probably only works due to Comics Logic. But he did it. And what does Red Vengeance have to say to him, while he stands there hopefully bleeding from various facial orifices?
"Acceptable."
They saved the world. They undid all the damage. Nothing's changed.
But on the other hand... Nothing's changed.
As you might guess, Danger Club isn't a happy story. Aside from the violence -- and there is quite a lot of bloody violence in this comic, like, a lot -- there's a strong sense that the world the kids fought so hard for is still so flawed, imperfect, brutal. And that saving it left scars that the kids will have to deal with forever.
I still loved it, though. The one-pagers, like I said, are a really well done narrative device to reinforce the themes while short-cutting characterization. Walker does a really great job sketching out these characters in a very short time (4 issues per volume, that's only 8 total!) while also driving forward a tricky time-travel focused narrative. I think it's a testament to the character work all around that I closed the second volume wishing I could spend more time with these kids.
Jones' art is amazing. I really have to mention the character designs here. Since, as I mentioned, there's multiple universes represented, each one roughly tied to a specific era and aesthetic of comic book history, Jones redesigned the main cast to match each one. And the designs are really well done, a good mimicry, with each character's look altered sufficiently to match the era while still being recognizable across universes. And Jones' art is absolutely a part of the characterization short-cutting. With so little room for events and dialogue to reveal characters, Jones' facial expression and body language do a lot to help sketch in the personalities of all these kids.
And Drake supplements all of that with his colors. The cosmic scenes beyond time, in different realms, all of these are suitably impressive. Lots of great work with effects.
So overall, a very well done read. Two volumes, short and sweet, lots of good character work, an interesting narrative through time and sorta comment on the Nature of Comics. But also an absolute downer. Still, I recommend it.
Danger Club is a miniseries set in an original superhero universe, where all the heroes went off to face a cosmic threat and, to a one, died. Leaving their sidekicks to pick up the slack, because the thing that killed all the adults is still coming.
That premise makes it sound like it goes a little Lord of the Flies and it does, a bit, at least at the beginning. But the main thrust of the narrative is really more about these kid heroes' struggle to still be, well, heroes, in a world devoid of the lodestones that have guided them. It's about responsibility that too much for their shoulders but that they bear anyone because there really is no one else left to do it.
It's about superheroes -- or rather, superhero comics.
Each issue starts off with a one-page Silver Age-esque teaser. These are brilliantly done, they do an excellent job of mimicking the older style comics in both writing and art (especially the costume designs!). More to the point, each one serves as a quick characterization of the characters and relationships to come. This being a wholly original universe, there are definitely recognizable archetypes at play -- but that doesn't really tell you anything about the characters, really. So these one-pagers serve as a really interesting narrative device, helping quickly establish the characters while also establishing the universe-that-was.
There's more to it than that, though. I think the combination of "comics" and "restarting universes" brings to mind one thing, and that is, of course, reboots. The constant struggle to start over, clean things up, make everything neater and better and more modern and -- you get the idea. The brilliance of Danger Club is that it weaponizes that regurgitating timeline and names it Chronos. Time itself, as the destroyer and rebooter of worlds, desiring that perfect world where everything is devoted to itself.
Mind you, I don't know or care nearly enough about the Big Two to take it further than that. I just think it's neat, this idea that time itself is the destroyer and recreator. And in the end, the cycle is broken, and the world is restored to status quo -- but even then, after this time(line) shattering event, nothing's really changed except the kids, who now have bucketloads of trauma to deal with poorly, as is the superhero's wont.
I think nothing exemplifies this sense of -- we won! but what did we win? -- more than Kid Vigilante. After a flashback where his mentor, Red Vengeance, says to his face that he's an inadequate copy of his much more beloved twin brother, a faulty tool for saving the world, KV manages to pull it all off anyway. A ridiculous, desperate gamble that probably only works due to Comics Logic. But he did it. And what does Red Vengeance have to say to him, while he stands there hopefully bleeding from various facial orifices?
"Acceptable."
They saved the world. They undid all the damage. Nothing's changed.
But on the other hand... Nothing's changed.
As you might guess, Danger Club isn't a happy story. Aside from the violence -- and there is quite a lot of bloody violence in this comic, like, a lot -- there's a strong sense that the world the kids fought so hard for is still so flawed, imperfect, brutal. And that saving it left scars that the kids will have to deal with forever.
I still loved it, though. The one-pagers, like I said, are a really well done narrative device to reinforce the themes while short-cutting characterization. Walker does a really great job sketching out these characters in a very short time (4 issues per volume, that's only 8 total!) while also driving forward a tricky time-travel focused narrative. I think it's a testament to the character work all around that I closed the second volume wishing I could spend more time with these kids.
Jones' art is amazing. I really have to mention the character designs here. Since, as I mentioned, there's multiple universes represented, each one roughly tied to a specific era and aesthetic of comic book history, Jones redesigned the main cast to match each one. And the designs are really well done, a good mimicry, with each character's look altered sufficiently to match the era while still being recognizable across universes. And Jones' art is absolutely a part of the characterization short-cutting. With so little room for events and dialogue to reveal characters, Jones' facial expression and body language do a lot to help sketch in the personalities of all these kids.
And Drake supplements all of that with his colors. The cosmic scenes beyond time, in different realms, all of these are suitably impressive. Lots of great work with effects.
So overall, a very well done read. Two volumes, short and sweet, lots of good character work, an interesting narrative through time and sorta comment on the Nature of Comics. But also an absolute downer. Still, I recommend it.
rgag86's review
3.0
All of Earth's superheroes are missing and it's now up to their side-kicks to save the planet from an unknown evil. This was a pretty interesting idea and I'm anxious to see where Vol. 2 leads as there were quite a few cliffangers in this one.
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