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Posted July 26, 2014 by Drew Bagay in Comics
 
 

COMIC BOOK REVIEW: The Delinquents #1

 

Writers: James Asmus & Fred Van Lente
Artist: Kano
Publisher: Valiant

DELINQ_001_COVER_RIVERA1

Two of Valiant’s comedy pairings – Archer & Armstrong and Quantum & Woody – come together for a wild treasure hunt. That’s pretty much the plot of this book. It sounds simple enough so the book has to rely mostly on character work and humor, which Asmus and Van Lente has nailed down to a tee.

For a more detailed explanation of the plot, Armstrong was once a member of a Hobo community (yes, that’s in the book). His friend Rufus, entrusted him with a map leading to a “Hobo treasure” which gets lost as time went by. Somehow, one-half of the map ends up in the possession of a small town farmer, whose farm is getting taken over by a large GMO corporation. This is where Quantum & Woody come in, as they are recruited by the corporation to get retrieve the rest of the map and the treasure that it leads to. Unfortunately, the two pairings don’t actually meet-up in this issue, at least not yet. It’s a small gripe but it would definitely serve as a better cliffhanger if their encounter was teased at the end.

Like I mentioned earlier, the plot is very simple. It is not as complex or intricate as other titles out there. Treasure hunts have been done a million times before it’s pretty much cliche at this point. Nevertheless, this book lives on its character moments and interaction. Just like in their own titles, the clever humor and banter are enjoyable enough to make it a good read. Asmus is a  master when it comes to proper timing and insertion of jokes, therefore giving it some consistency. While the overall story is crafted by both Asmus and Van Lente, only Asmus writes the script so most of the credit goes to him.

Kano’s art looks much like David Aja’s for the most part. His panel flow is one of the most ingenius introductions I’ve seen in this medium. The beginning of the comic feels very much like the opening credits of a film or TV show. And I very much enjoyed that.

The Delinquents #1 does not feel much of a crossover at this point. And it begs the question of why launch a new title over something like this where it could have easily been a crossover arc for Quantum & Wood and Archer & Armstrong. It feels very much like a Quantume & Woody book with guest stars Archer & Armstrong. With that said, this book is chock full of jokes and funny moments (which is somewhat already expected with these characters and writers) that makes it a nice easy read, although not that engaging.

Rating: 3 / 5


Drew Bagay

 
Drew is a lover of comic books, movies, and all things pop culture. He enjoys crime/thriller/noir fiction, playing the guitar, and taking long walks. He also doesn't like talking in third person.