Ya know how you're apprehensive to start watching Lost, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Dexter, and all those great shows your friends seem to be hooked on? Oh, my bad.... you are one of those people? Well then you definitely don't need to read this review, and you especially don't want to read "the Escapists" by Brian K. Vaughn.
No, no. You definitely don't need to read this graphic novel. It will only lead you to reading more of this guy's writing, and we all know you really need to get off your bum, exercise, do your work, and excel in society. So this is a review encouraging you not to read this book, because it's much too good, and you will only become a junkie like I, and several of my homies, have become.
I mean, first it's "The Escapists," then "Y:The Last Man," then you're under you covers in the bed at 2am reading "Pride of Baghdad." Next thing you know you're on Epinions at 4am writing in my comments section and looking for your next fix. I just can't have that. I just can't be responsible for doing that to you, so you really need to stop reading this now................... You're still there? (sigh) Oh, well, it's your life and you can do what you want.
----------------------The Actual Review----------------------
The Book.
So...This book assuredly sets a high bar. I consider it to be up there in the top 5 if not top 3 best graphic novels I've read. One of the critic reviews calls this Vaughn's "love letter to his chosen medium." Wow, that's poetic, huh? It's also true. It's about $20 in hardback, and honestly worth every penny. In fact, I'd like to go out and buy it twice just to give the man his work's worth.
The Story.
This book is about a kid, Max. Max discovers upon his father's death that his dad was in love with an old comic book character named the Escapist. Max becomes obsessed with reviving this comic book character. He meets a guy named Denny at school who is a calligrapher. He later meets a cute girl, Case, who becomes the penciler and letterer for his revival comic. This book follows their attempts to revive the retired character. The story consistently jumps back and forth between the story of these three kids and the story they are writing. The writing accentuates the parallel between the two, and seamlessly bounces between them, often fitting narration or dialog from both into a single panel (drawn box on a page).
Max, Denny, and Case use multiple stunts to help revive the character. PR stunts lead to more attention than they can handle, and some serious issues arise. The story is moreso a book encompassing love, the pressures of being involved with the comic industry, and coming-of-age.
I really shouldn't divulge the entire plot to you, because it's worth the read. I've skipped quite a bit to be honest. Suffice to say that the writing is terrific, and what you would come to expect from a writer at Vaughn's level.
The Art.
I don't think Vaughn ever works with poor artists. I've always been impressed with the art in the books he writes. "The Escapists" is no exception. The book has several artists as there are multiple styles of art needed to work with the story. There is the art for the surface story-line, and there is also the art for the comic they art writing and drawing. Brilliantly, different artists draw these. I'm not very familiar with Steve Rolston, Jason Shawn Alexander, Philip Bond, and Eduardo Barreto, but they all do an exceptional job.
The revived comic has a classic look that really throws one back to earlier ages of comics. The textures are conveyed in subtle yet effective detail, and heavy inking gives a dark and looming feeling to the story. The standard story art is more cartoonish and playful, a unique and somewhat ironic fact. The coloring is appropriate without being distracting. Subtle pastel backgrounds in less than epic settings still gives a feeling of depth and space without drawing your eyes away from the characters. It's intelligently laid out and organized. For instance, a page will start black & white on the first panel, and gain more color as you move from the first panel to the next, and so on. Creative. That's what this book is.
The Summary.
This book pulls no punches. At a mere 175 pages, you might think 'That's no length to communicate a full and developed story,' yet you'd be wrong. The truth is that this book is well done in every respect. It has no flaws as far as I can see. Then again, I'm kindof a junkie now. And if you fear the same for yourself, I'd suggest you read the disclaimer at the top of this review. But once you're hooked, I'd suggest moving on to "Pride of Baghdad" which I've also reviewed here.
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