The first issue of Gerard Way’s foray back into world of comic books left quite the impression. With the second issue he, Shaun Simon and Becky Cloonan just keep getting better as the world they created in the first issue gets fleshed out and a lot more interesting.
Written by Gerard Way and Shaun Simon
Illustrated by Becky Cloonan
“Our home was sent to the heavens and there ain’t nowhere to go!”
Delve into the life of Korse, one of Better Living Industries’ most productive and violent Scarecrows! See the trials and tribulations faced by Blue, an android down on her luck! Meanwhile, find out who—or what—survived the original Killjoys’ deadly confrontation in Battery City.
Creating a dystopia can be a tricky thing. Making it an inherently broken world that comments on our own while making it a fully fleshed environment in and of itself can lead to either a dystopia that does not comment anything or a world that doesn’t feel fully realised. Thankfully, we’re talking about Gerard Way here and so the world presented in “The Trude Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys” felt both incredibly realised as well as comment on our own society. He presented a world trapped by a bureaucratic corporation and where gangs would roam the desert wastelands using music to free people’s minds. Joined by Shaun Simon and Becky Cloonan, Way managed to make a return to comics in good form with a great introduction to this dystopian world.
With the second issue of the series, what teething problems the first issue had in showcasing the world seemed to have been sorted out for the most part. While there are at least three, very different subplots that the comics follow that are largely disconnected, it works as a way of continuing to develop the setting. Way and Simon continue to keep the focus on The Girl and her attempt to survive in the wasteland which is the main crus of the story. However, they also explore Battery City by way of Korse’ subplot and by way of a subplot in which an android attempts to fight against the circular bureaucracy of the city to save her partner. Showing the lives of those stuck in Battery City allows them to showcase the hopelessness of the dystopian world they live and will surely lead to satisfying payoff down the line. Here, though, it still serves as set up for the world the comic takes place in and while the story starts to develop, the reader is allowed a better glimpse at the setting.
While the writing from Way and Simon certainly help to establish the tone of the world they have created, it’s Becky Cloonan’s art that fully realises it. From the characters to the desolate, grey walls of Battery City to the vast open wastelands, Cloonan has created a dystopia that Orwell or Dick would be proud of. Cloonan’s soft lines really allow the pages to breathe as they are not overburdened with the harshness that usually accompanies such settings. The colors from Dan Jackson really help too as the world of Battery City, from the harsh whites of the SCARECROW Unit to the seedy greys of the underbelly of the city, really contrast with the earthy tones of the wastelands. Again, it all serves to fully realise this world that just grabs the reader and doesn’t let go.
That immersion into the world is really what helps the story of this issue, from Gerard Way and Shaun Simon. Much like the first issue, this is still very much setting up the characters and backstory for those not versed in the story from the My Chemical Romance music videos. That’s not exactly a complaint as it allows readers to slowly sink into the world and fully become immersed in it as the final page of this issue promises that things are set to kick off. This issue seems more focused on taking the three main storylines, that of The Girl, Korse and the android woman from the first issue, and just developing that little bit more to make the reader care. It’s really what makes the issue work as Way and Simon have clearly taken their time to develop these characters and given us a reason to care as the story develops.
Continued belowThis issue was much the same as the first, but better. It still feels mired in set-up, but with four issues still to go a little time taken to develop the story and characters now can only help in the long run. If this is any indication then Way, Simon and Cloonan can only get better from here on out.
It also made a nice change to see Grant Morrison in a comic where he wasn’t playing himself.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – Buy
