RUNAWAYS #24, out this week from Marvel Comics, shows us what it’s like to be a team full of people who desperately need to find themselves. The short answer is; a whole lot of adjustments. The longer answer is a bit more complicated than that.
***SPOILER WARNING***
Runaways #24 is one of those classic setting up issues. There are a lot of little things that happen in it (and some big things), and you just know that it’s all going to be followed up with an explosive issue next time around.
Rainbow Rowell has done an excellent job of showing us how much the team has grown during their years apart – and what that means for the Runaways. They’re not the misfit teens they once were, as hard as it is to picture.
This issue really focused on that, showing us all of the changes our heroes are dealing with. And all of the changes they’ve been trying to make for themselves. In that sense, it’s a bit of a ‘feel-good’ issue.
Though, this is the Runaways we’re talking about. There’s always something darker looming just on the horizon. In this case, there are two elements than likely will leave fans concerned. The first; there’s Gib. They still haven’t managed to feed him, and since new Runaways members don’t have a great track record…and that leaves us concerned about his fate.
And then there’s Karolina and Nico. It’s awesome that they’re trying to become heroes again, even if they are doing it outside of the main group. But it’s likely that they’ve bitten off more than they can chew. At least, if the fight we saw is anything to go by. But we’re sure that they’ll figure something out sooner rather than later.
Runaways #24 is full of fun panels – brightly colored and shown with strong lines. It’s an iconic look, for this team. Although some of the panels are more memorable than others – particularly the ‘dancing’ scenes that come towards the end. Those were a riot.
Andrews Genolet was the artist for this issue, with Matthew Wilson being the colorist to work alongside him. They did a solid job on this issue, though you can tell that they had more fun on certain pages.
The costume designs in this issue (for Nico and Karo) do leave something to be desired…but they’re not bad either. Perhaps we just need to see them in action a bit more before giving a final say on that count.
This issue was a fun and lighter read, which makes us feel like it’s the calm before the storm. Given the past patterns with the Runaways, this doesn’t seem like an unreasonable leap. We know one thing for sure – we’re going to keep reading to find out exactly who this mysterious new stranger is.
