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dantastic's review against another edition
3.0
When Doctor Blasphemy kills the Brat Pack, the kid sidekicks of the heroes of Slumburg, Moon Mistress, the Midnight Mink, King Rad, and Judge Jury have to find some new recruits. Will the new Brat Pack even find their footing before joining the old Brat Pack in their fate?
I've been aware of this book for years, thanks to the iconic cover of Chippy, the Robin analogue, shaving his legs. When I saw it was being brought back into print, I decided it was time to finally read the thing.
Brat Pack reminds me of Garth Ennis' The Boys in that it shows the dark side of living in a world of super heroes. It also asks the question "What kind of sociopath would bring a kid into a life of fighting crime?" The answer is these kinds of sociopaths!
The book is basically Robin, Wonder Girl, Speedy, and Bucky trying to fill the shoes of their disposable predecessors while finding out what kind of people their mentors are. Chippy, Luna, Wild Boy, and Kid Vicious have their work cut out for them. The heroes of Slumburg are pretty terrible, more focused on merchandising than fighting crime. And what the hell do they want sidekicks for anyway?
This is one of those books that I recognize as high quality but I wouldn't say I actually liked it. Rick Veitch's art is spectacular, especially the backgrounds of Slumburg, and he does a great job portraying what pieces of shit the heroes of Slumburg are. There's just not a likable character in the entire book by the end and the ending felt kind of rushed.
Brat Pack is an interesting, if brutal and depressing, piece of comics history. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
I've been aware of this book for years, thanks to the iconic cover of Chippy, the Robin analogue, shaving his legs. When I saw it was being brought back into print, I decided it was time to finally read the thing.
Brat Pack reminds me of Garth Ennis' The Boys in that it shows the dark side of living in a world of super heroes. It also asks the question "What kind of sociopath would bring a kid into a life of fighting crime?" The answer is these kinds of sociopaths!
The book is basically Robin, Wonder Girl, Speedy, and Bucky trying to fill the shoes of their disposable predecessors while finding out what kind of people their mentors are. Chippy, Luna, Wild Boy, and Kid Vicious have their work cut out for them. The heroes of Slumburg are pretty terrible, more focused on merchandising than fighting crime. And what the hell do they want sidekicks for anyway?
This is one of those books that I recognize as high quality but I wouldn't say I actually liked it. Rick Veitch's art is spectacular, especially the backgrounds of Slumburg, and he does a great job portraying what pieces of shit the heroes of Slumburg are. There's just not a likable character in the entire book by the end and the ending felt kind of rushed.
Brat Pack is an interesting, if brutal and depressing, piece of comics history. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
thrakaboom's review
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
neven's review against another edition
4.0
A lot of very good writing and art here. It's rather misanthropic and lacking in fun, though.
bstratton's review against another edition
5.0
Utterly horrific and mean-spirited, and one of the most important comics ever published.
cjordahl's review against another edition
2.0
Bratpack is an on-the-nose superhero deconstruction and morality tale with a brash, gonzo sensibility that I dislike. Veitch is criticizing superhero comics' violence, fascistic inclinations, commercialism, and particularly the clouds of exploitation and pedophilia over young super-sidekicks. But his approach has no depth or nuance, and there's not much of a story, just a bunch of characters spiraling to extremely obvious and unconvincing depths. Some of the art is pretty good, but there are a bunch of anatomy errors, and many panels are unsettlingly grotesque. Ultimately Veitch's book is an absurd strawman rather than an insightful critique of superheros.
khianamh's review against another edition
4.0
I didn't realize what this book was about when I picked it up, I just went for the provocative cover.
Gaiman's intro really put it in perspective for me and after reading it, I really appreciate the point that Veitch was making, even if the story and art itself were are times over the top and jarring.
Even though this was written in response to the comic boom in the 80s, I think several of his points still hold up when considering our current superhero movie universe. Is it a coincidence that Marvel has killed off several of our beloved heroes for an impactful finale to their movie series?
Either way, if you're into weird stuff or like being offended then this is a good read for you.
Gaiman's intro really put it in perspective for me and after reading it, I really appreciate the point that Veitch was making, even if the story and art itself were are times over the top and jarring.
Even though this was written in response to the comic boom in the 80s, I think several of his points still hold up when considering our current superhero movie universe. Is it a coincidence that Marvel has killed off several of our beloved heroes for an impactful finale to their movie series?
Either way, if you're into weird stuff or like being offended then this is a good read for you.
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