Comments on: The Escapists #1 & #2 of 6

By: Joseph Johnson

Joseph Johnson — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 05:23:51 +0000

Oh. I also forgot to mention the first issue was a dollar. How great was that? Nothing bad about this series at all. Just wish I had #2 in my hands.

By: Kiel

Kiel — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 02:00:28 +0000

Probably my favorite mini going on right now. In the midst of crises and wars, this book is a gem, written by one of the most consistant writers in the business.

And the covers are all great - an upcoming issue has a beautiful cover by John Cassaday.

By: Randy Lander

Randy Lander — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 01:04:41 +0000

I really need to read Kavalier & Klay at some point. My novel reading is at an all-time low these days, although I did recently read some of the Fletch novels for the first time, and I dug the hell out of those.

How great are these covers for Escapists, though? First Frank Miller (not his best work, I thought, but eye-catching), then James Jean, and I see in the new Previews that Paul Pope is doing one as well.

As for Dark Horse obfuscating, I guess I just don’t see it that way. What would have been the upside of spelling out the reprint nature of the book? Most retailers would probably have ignored that it was Brian K. Vaughan and talented artists, and cost only a buck, and would have said “Oh, Adventures of The Escapist… we couldn’t sell that book. So let’s only order 2 or 3 of these.” I don’t see how the information would have helped retailers make a more informed (rather than kneejerk wrong) decision about ordering. Yeah, I’ll agree that maybe it was “tricking” retailers to fail to mention that aspect, but y’know what? It was for their own good, like telling them the medicine tastes like cherry and they should drink it down.

I say this as someone who does the ordering for a retail shop, and who gets annoyed at the lack of information publishers sometimes offer. But I don’t think Dark Horse was in the wrong here. Then again, I knew it was a reprint and ordered based on how I thought we could sell the new product, and the end result was selling out of as many copies as an average issue of Ultimate Spider-Man and getting a bunch of readers for the book. Now I’m just hoping that the book will be reorderable, as it appears to be, so we can get more in and get more people onboard.

By: Nick Budd

Nick Budd — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 00:36:59 +0000

I’m mainly buying these because of the James Jean covers….Just kidding. BKV’s writing is astounding on this book. I keep worrying that he’s going to stretch himself too thin and somehow his writing is going to suffer. That hasn’t happened and with this book, so much like in feel, and just as easy to get into as Michael Chabon’s Cavalier & Clay (which is a great read), he reaches yet another peak of the written word. Books like this don’t come around all that often.

By: Joseph Johnson

Joseph Johnson — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 21:10:26 +0000

I had no prior reading history with these characters. I bought this solely on the fact that BKV was writing it and the fact that the first issue cover was by Frank Miller. I really enjoyed it and plan on getting all six issues. I love the whole concept behind the story. Unfortunately, issue two has been a little late getting to my comic shop and into my hands and as much as I love Miller’s cover I love James Jean’s work and that cover is gorgeous.

By: Primate

Primate — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 15:38:33 +0000

Vaughan is, indeed, so damn readable. The guy is certainly a dark horse (pardon the pun) of the modern comics scene, consistently advancing the art of writing comics, without all the “sense shattering” crossovers and corporate icons. Millar and Johns may be getting all the headlines, and perhaps deservedly so, but Vaughan is absolutely the best writer currently working in the medium.

While I do think it’s shady for Dark Horse to obfuscate the fact that #1 is a reprint, I’d agree that at least this put it in the hands of a wider audience. Well done, easily on par with Ex Machina and Y.

By: Dave Farabee

Dave Farabee — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 07:20:09 +0000

Thought it’s only two issues in, I am absolutely LOVING this book. In fact, while Fables is the most consistantly great monthly I read, Escapists has, at least for the moment, nabbed the top spot on my favorites list. Nothin’ against Fables, but Escapists has the virtue of shiny newness, and like all of Vaughan’s stuff…it’s just so damn readable. I went into the story as a skeptic, but the central trio of characters - Max, Case and Denny - just really won me over. That and the book’s insider savvy into what it’s like to try to launch a new series in the modern comic market.

Interested parties should check out the 4-page preview of the first issue at Dark Horse’s website. Randy mentioned Vaughan’s choice of Cleveland as the book’s pivotal city, and the preview’s a great grabber spotlighting Cleveland’s role in the comics scene. Go look!

http://tinyurl.com/s8m5c