Escape to New York

After the initial story arc, Brian Vaughan's Runaway's continues to blaze ahead. While many Marvel books are mired in licensing deals and nostalgia, unable to alter their formula, Runaways stands out as a book where things can actually happen, things can actually change. In this volume a member leaves and the remaining members take on a mission in New York. They have entertaining encounters with the big name Marvel heroes, Captain America, Wolverine and of course Spider Man all show up. Vaughan sneaks in some 4th wall-breaking jokes about Wolverine's frequent guest star appearances but it's all good fun. The art by Alphona and Miyazawa is clean and happy. Faces are expressive, the teens look like teens and not supermodels and the action is easy to follow. The actual story is secondary, the Runaways have to clear a hero charged with assaulting his partner, but the ride is a lot of fun. Definitely worth buying.

The other reviewers has written excellent reviews regarding the material, so read those for information about the writing and art, both of which are brilliant. However, I would highly recommend not buying this specific edition. Most people don't notice in the specs that these are small "Archie's Digest" size reprints, or in other terms, approximately "Reader's Digest" size collections. Being so small, it's difficult to appreciate the art, and hence the book altogether. Instead buy this: Runaways, Vol. 2 which costs $16.49 and collects all 18 issues of this arc. If you buy these small digests separately, you'll end up paying $23.97 for three small books. If you buy Runaways, Vol. 2 instead, you'll be getting an excellent full size hard cover edition and save yourself $7.48. However, if you like to own three smaller sized digests over a single hard cover with a gorgeously illustrated original print dust jacket at a significantly lower price, then get this instead.

Like the other volumes before it, this is a fun extension of the Runaways story. Kudos to Vaughn and team for keeping the fun alive and the story interesting this far into it.

Escape to New York contains to story arcs from Brian K. Vaughan's amazing Runaways series. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the book, Runaways is the story of a group of LA teenagers who learned that their parents were supervillains. They have become a supergroup in order to atone for their parents' sins, but they are one of the most unconventional supergroups in the history of comics. They don't wear costumes, they distrust nearly everyone, including A-list superheroes such as the Avengers (in a previous volume, one of the Runaways was insulted when someone thought that she was part of the Young Avengers), and they are wanted by the police, who see them as delinquants. Led by Nico Minoru, a powerful witch, the other Runaways include Gert Yorkes, who psychically commands a genetically engineered dinosaur, Chase Stein, their ship's pilot, Molly Hayes, a mutant with superstrength, Karolina Dean, a solar-powered alien, and their newest recruit, Victor Mancha, the cyborg "son" of Ultron, one of the deadliest killing machines ever invented. In the first arc, Star-Crossed, Karolina finally admits to her homosexuality and makes a move on Nico, which ends up badly for the two of them. But that pales in comparison to the decision she must face when a Skrull warrior arrives and tells her that he is her betrothed husband. After explaining about the history between Karolina's homeworld of Majesdane and the Skrull world, which includes nothing but violence and deception, he tells her that, he tells her that her evil parents made a deal to offer up Karolina in exchange for aid from the Skrulls. In East Coast/West Coast, the Runaways are reunited with Cloak, of Cloak and Dagger, after the New Avengers accuse him of beating Dagger into a coma. While the Runaways are initially skeptical about helping out Cloak, who was unable to fulfill his promise to them to help them deal with the Pride after the Runaways' parents erased his and Dagger's memory, they eventually concede, and Cloak brings them to New York. While a few of the Runaways try to find out who the imposter is who framed Cloak, others try to keep the New Avengers away from Cloak. This leads to a great scene with Gert, Victor, and Spider-Man, as well as a hilarious confrontation between Molly and her hero Wolverine. Both of these arcs are very well done, as usual. Vaughan is a great writer, and the East Coast/West Coast story may be one of the best since the original run of Runaways. Even better is the fact that Marvel actually used some quality paper to print the series on in this digest, so the colors don't bleed together, and everything is clear, though smaller than when it premiered in single-issue format. I really hope that Marvel puts out a second (and third, and fourth, and so on...) hardcover of this series because these digests don't do it justice. This is truly one of Marvel's greatest assets, and everyone should definitely check it out.

I reall like this runaways... not that i didn't like the 4 before it. well any way this one is totally cool because there is another alien in it who says HES KAROLINAS FIANCE!!!!!!!!! but thats not the only bad part. Cloak is being charge with a crime( not gonna tell you, buy it yourself) and he want's the kids to help clear him. to New York we go. while there the team will deal with something so ordinary you would think that it doesnt belong in the stoy. like, why is Nico kissing Chase? did Chase really take a life? is Nico attrached to Karolina and just doesn't knowit? read the book and find out.