Comic Book Junction

I haven’t followed this latest iteration of Youngblood long enough to really know what is going on here. The main story, by Joe Casey and Derec Donovan, is entertaining enough, I guess, in that sort of “hey, we’re all profesional superheroes” sort of way. It’s the sort of comic that fits in great with Invincible, Dynamo 5, etc.

The real shock comes when you turn the comic book upside-down and read the Rob Liefeld back-up, in which President Obama co-stars. The two stories presumably take place in the same “universe” — but they are radically different in every way. It is as if Image Past ran smack into the face of Image Present. The contrast is jarring.

The “plot” of the Liefeld story is a little cheesy — by Obama being “briefed” about each member of Youngblood, we are re-introduced to the characters. Not really a story, but more of an expository device. There is also a liberal use of statting involved here, with three identical Obamas on one page, and two on another.

But the next thing I’m going to write is key. I experienced more visceral excitement and interest in those six pages than I did reading the entire main story.

This is not a dig on Casey and Donovan, who did a great job. It’s just that as Jaded Comic Book Reader, I often want something different, something that is going to stop me in my tracks. I want a compelling reason to drop $3-4 on a comic I’ve never heard of before or a title I haven’t picked up in ages.

Call it nostalgia, call it flashbacks I need therapy for, call it what you will — the Liefeld story stopped me in my tracks. And while I cannot guarantee I will buy Youngblood #9, in which Liefeld starts “a new era” for the team — I can’t rule it out, either.