Runaways Guest Appearance in Avengers Academy

[long_silence]

Okay so the Daken guest appearance didn't really go so great, but it's a new month and our Runaways are going to show up in Avengers Academy next week starting a two part story. Hopefully this next story is better.

Here's a link to the preview

My thoughts on the preview:

• First of all the colorist messed up Karolina's powered form, it looks like only her hair is rainbow-y. Though I guess I can't blame them for not getting Christina Strain on the book for only two issues. And at least they got it right on the cover.
• Chase seems to have the classic model of the Fistigons, I don't really mind since I think they have a better visual.
• I really do not like how Gage is writing Molly, she seems to be a complete joke and even more infantile than she has been in the past.
• The art looks kinda boring. That scene where Victor takes over the Sentinel should be so much more dynamic and exciting, but he's just standing there.
• I still don't really care about any of the Avengers Academy students. It mostly ranges from apathy to outright hatred. 

I am glad that it they're bringing back Old Lace.

For legality the covers for the next two issues of Avengers Academy by David Lafluente


 

Comments

[darkknightjrk]

Does anyone find it ironic that the two bi girls are rushing at each other in a way that looks like they're going to collide and kiss at the same time?

[long_silence]

1) Karolina isn't bi. She's a lesbian.
2) I don't think it's ironic or a coincidence. I've read interviews where Gage said he's going to revisit their flirting.

[darkknightjrk]

D'oh! Sorry about that. I thought since her girlfriend is a shapeshifting Skrull there might be a little leeway. Honestly, I haven't read the whole run of Runaways yet, and the stuff I have read never really covers that relationship.

[mrstatham]

Nope. I think even back in Vaughan's run, Karolina gets a little uncomfortable when Xavin's in his male form. That said, thanks to Terry Moore, Xavin isn't even around anymore - she got shipped off into space in a suitably shitty story.

[ian_karkull]

Oh yeah.. I forgot all about that! And I will purposefully forget it -and Whedon's stupid flower girl- again starting... now.

Continuity: Just make up your own.

[pyrotwilight]

Aww, I like Klara though she hasn't had much time to develop past being the other kid on the team.

[majingojira]

Eh, I like this preview. It's not as good as classic runaways (and the colorist did make a mistake), but it's still decent.

It's just not the quality we attached to them originally.

Still better than their other appearances post cancelation.

[darkknightjrk]

Considering that their first run was by Brian K. Fucking Vaughn, it only makes sense that it isn't AS good.

[nefrekeptah]

Dude, Old Lace is back! That's awesome!

One thing that I missed is they got Karolina's powers wrong - it's not just her hair that lights up, it's all of her.

[long_silence]

These two issues seem to be the Runaways visiting the Avengers Academy to ask somewhere there to help bring back Old Lace.

And yeah that mistake on Karolina is bugging me. And so is that weak looking force square she makes.

[lieut_kettch]

That is some truly disturbing headgear on Molly.

[akodo_rokku]

I think Mettle's more dazed by the hat than the punch.

[darkblade]

Her hats went down hill without Vaugnh.

[flo_nelja]

Did something happen to Klara recently, or is she just not on the pic?

[lieut_kettch]

She's still with the Runaways, from what I saw in the preview. She uses her powers to restrain Juston's Sentinel during the prerequisite superhero fight.

[batman]

...why does Molly not know what a Sentinel is? Her hero for a while there was Wolverine, she went to Xavier's for a day and she's a mutant in her own right. It just beggars belief that someone with Molly's intellect would not be aware of the robots that are designed explicitly to kill her. There's pretending to be less smart than you are and then there's that.

[stubbleupdate]

Intelligence doesn't mean that you are immune from ignorance.

Some of my (bright) students are dreadfully informed about the world outside their own tiny part of it.

[batman]

She'd have to be a new realm of ignorant to not recognise that this is one of the robots designed to kill her given there was recently a huge story arc about governments having robots designed to hunt down and exterminate mutants just like her. That's just wilfully being stupid.

[stubbleupdate]

It doesn't seem like you appreciate that stupidity and ignorance are two very different things.

Ignorance is being unaware of, or shielded from, events and information.

Stupidity is a failure to use information that you have in a sensible way.

[lieut_kettch]

Just chalk it up to writer-induced stupidity. Molly's written like she's six, not twelve.

[benuben]

I don't think it's that bad. Though Molly seems to be a little over the top.

How exactly is it possible not to like Mettle :-)
BTW, Striker is apathy or hatred? Cause I think the scene, when he was talking about his sexuality was pretty well done.

[shadowpsykie]

how is Striker apathy and hatred? sure you are not confusing him with Stryker? Striker is more... self loathing (though he is getting better) and "builds a shell to keep others out"

[benuben]

Uh, have you read what Long_silence wrote?

[long_silence]

A little over the top? She literally wets herself like a little kid. And then she announces it to everyone. And like what batman said, she doesn't even seem to know what a Sentinel is (but Wolverine was her favorite hero, she had a poster of Northstar on her wall, and she somehow heard about the Five Lights after Second Coming and had a little talk with Beast about the future of mutantkind). That's just insulting.

I honestly still don't care much for Striker, him coming out doesn't suddenly make him a good character. And the scene where he came out just didn't do much for me. There was a lot of exposition and he said things so matter-of-factly. Everything Julie said was good. But the whole scene seemed so artificial to me, not like an actual coming out story. It read more like a Gender Studies textbook than a real conversation between two teenagers who were struggling to figure out who they were.

I don't like how apparently Striker choosing not to sleep with his emotionally vulnerable friend Veil was suppose to be a hint that he's gay. And then when Veil showed up in the last issue she pretty much said of chose he's gay for not wanting to sleep with her.

I'm still uncomfortable with the fact that Gage chose to have Striker blame his sexuality on the man who molested him as a child and then start blaming himself for asking for it. I know Julie told him that he was completely wrong for even thinking that but it just seems tacky to bring it up in the first place.

And I didn't like how in the middle of his conversation with a complete stranger (Julie who he'd known for about a day) he reveals his deep dark secret of how he accidentally killed his molester and starts crying. The same thing happened in the next issue with the new White Tiger. I realize that these are emotional subjects to talk about, but it just seems random to me that they just start spilling their whole life stories to people they don't even know (or particularly like in White Tiger's case) and start openly weeping. And the art didn't really help make me feel sympathy for these characters in those scenes.

In that response to that homophobic letter in the last issue Gage claimed he wasn't being political in Striker's coming out scene but I really think he was and that's not necessarily a bad thing.
But Julie was pretty much just a mouth piece spouting off exactly what Gage said in the interviews he did when it was revealed Striker would come out (which was like a month before the issue even came out along with preview pages of the whole coming out scene. And Marvel obviously released that scene early in order to get attention and get people talking about the book and increase sales, and what's that if not trying to use politics for their own gain?)

[benuben]

Good point, but I would give it chance.

I never said it makes good character, I just didn't see, how after that scene you can someone feel apathy after that and hatred seemed like pretty weird choice.

Since pretty much all your complains you said about the scene seem to be just matter of view, I really have nothing to say. Just about your feelings towards mentioning that thing... The thing is, that some people actually do think like Striker.

Hmm. Its almost like if Marvel cares more about the money rather then simply telling good stories. Nah, its definetly just a coincidence.

Just one thing: HOW CAN YOU NOT LIKE METTLE :-]

[shadowpsykie]

i am sooo looking forward to this, as a matter of fact Avengers Academy has been one of my favorite marvel books (and aside from Majorie Lu's run on Astonishing in a Month, the only Marvel title i have on my pull)

what i like most about the preview is that it lasts all of 5 seconds before Giant man is like "Okay, no we are not doing THIS again"

[auggie18]

...that was a horrible version of Molly. Other than that, they did a pretty job with the Runaways, I guess.


As per usual, the only character that comes off vaguely likeable in the AA is Mettle. Though Striker has successfully made the transition from hatred to apathy, so yay, I guess.

[lorriek]

First comic purchases once I find regular employment will be Avengers Academy. I so enjoy the scans/previews I've read of this book. I've seen comments about how some of the characters not likeable, but I don't see how this is a negative. I very much enjoy unpleasant fictional characters as long as they have layers, especially on team books where conflict is much more entertaining than everyone getting along.

Besides, they're teens. As a former teacher (and former teenager), I expect teens to be difficult, especially those with the kinds of issues these kids have. They seem nicer- and less potentially dangerous- than many of the kids I taught (it was a very tough district, and one of my students did in fact murder a classmate a couple of years after I taught them), so I'm not going to be put off by a little surliness.

[benuben]

Not being likeable, doesn't mean bad people, just that there is no reason to like them. Why do you think people complain about some characters being "Mary Sues"? What you propably mean, is that you find them flawed, and like that about them.

Or atleast I think it's like that...

[thatnickguy]

For me, Runaways and their existence ended with Vaughan.

[suzene]

What he said. The only redeeming factor wrt the post-BKV Runaways was Ryan's art paired with Strain's coloring, and that's not nearly enough to put up with Whedon or Moore's lackluster writing.