Comics Bulletin logo
Search
  • Columns
    Random
    • "Smallville" and More

      Jason Sacks
      November 26, 2001
      It's BobRo the Answer Man!
    Recent
    • Revisiting the Witchblade/Fathom/Tomb Raider Crossover

      Daniel Gehen
      February 8, 2021
    • The Full Run: Usagi Yojimbo – The Wanderer’s Road Part 2

      Daniel Gehen
      December 4, 2020
    • The Full Run: Usagi Yojimbo – The Wanderer’s Road Part 1

      Daniel Gehen
      October 30, 2020
    • What Looks Good
    • Comics Bulletin Soapbox
    • The Full Run
    • Leading Question
    • Top 10
    • The Long-Form
    • Jumping On
    • Comics in Color
    • Slouches Towards Comics
  • Big Two
    Random
    • 5.0

      Review: Wonder Twins #1 Is a Wondrous First Issue

      Jason Sacks
      February 14, 2019
      Big Two, Big Two Reviews, DC Comics
    Recent
    • 3.0

      Review: X-MEN LEGENDS #1 Delivers A Dose of Nostalgia

      Daniel Gehen
      February 22, 2021
    • 4.5

      DCeased: Dead Planet #7 Presents a Hopeful Future (Review)

      Daniel Gehen
      January 22, 2021
    • Retro Review: Detective Comics #826 Remains a Holiday Classic

      Daniel Gehen
      December 3, 2020
    • DC Comics
    • Big Two Reviews
    • Marvel Comics
  • Indie
    Random
    • 4.0

      Review: "Bram Stoker's Dracula" Lives!

      Jason Sacks
      August 23, 2018
      IDW, Indie, Miscellaneous Comic Book Content, Reviews
    Recent
    • 4.5

      Review: THE LAST RONIN #2 Hurts So Good

      Daniel Gehen
      February 19, 2021
    • TIME BEFORE TIME—A HIGH STAKES TIME TRAVEL SCIENCE FICTION SERIES SET TO LAUNCH THIS MAY

      Daniel Gehen
      February 19, 2021
    • Image Comics and TMP Announces SPAWN’S UNIVERSE

      Daniel Gehen
      February 18, 2021
    • Reviews
    • Archie Comics
    • Boom! Studios
    • Dark Horse
    • IDW
    • Image
    • Oni Press
    • Valiant
  • Reviews
    Random
    • 4.0

      Next Men #9 Review

      Jason Sacks
      August 27, 2011
      Reviews
    Recent
    • 3.0

      Review: X-MEN LEGENDS #1 Delivers A Dose of Nostalgia

      Daniel Gehen
      February 22, 2021
    • 4.5

      Review: THE LAST RONIN #2 Hurts So Good

      Daniel Gehen
      February 19, 2021
    • 2.3

      Review: SAVAGE #1 Needs Taming

      Daniel Gehen
      February 16, 2021
    • Singles Going Steady
    • Slugfest
    • Manga
      • Reviews
    • Small Press
      • Reviews
      • ICYMI
      • Tiny Pages Made of Ashes
  • Interviews
    Random
    • Paul Cornell: Man of Action (Comics)

      Jason Sacks
      October 14, 2010
      Interviews
    Recent
    • Interview: Jon Davis-Hunt Talks SHADOWMAN

      Daniel Gehen
      June 8, 2020
    • Interview: Becky Cloonan talks DARK AGNES and Her Personal Influences

      Mike Nickells
      March 4, 2020
    • Simon Roy

      Interview: Simon Roy on His Inspirations and Collaborations on PROTECTOR

      Mike Nickells
      January 29, 2020
    • Audio Interview
    • Video Interview
  • Classic Comics
    Random
    • Frank Miller's Ronin Pt. 4: Eyes in the Darkness

      Jason Sacks
      August 5, 2016
      Classic Comics, Classic Comics Cavalcade
    Recent
    • Countdown to the King: Marvel’s Godzilla

      Daniel Gehen
      May 29, 2019
    • Honoring A Legend: Fantagraphics To Resurrect Tomi Ungerer Classics

      Daniel Gehen
      February 15, 2019
    • Reliving the Craziest Decade in Comics History: An interview with Jason Sacks

      Mark Stack
      January 2, 2019
    • Classic Comics Cavalcade
    • Classic Interviews
  • News
    Random
    • This Week in Boom! for 1/14/15

      Jason Sacks
      January 14, 2015
      This Week in BOOM!
    Recent
    • TIME BEFORE TIME—A HIGH STAKES TIME TRAVEL SCIENCE FICTION SERIES SET TO LAUNCH THIS MAY

      Daniel Gehen
      February 19, 2021
    • Image Comics and TMP Announces SPAWN’S UNIVERSE

      Daniel Gehen
      February 18, 2021
    • SAVAGE DRAGON IS A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH THIS MAY

      Daniel Gehen
      February 17, 2021
    • Press Release
    • Kickstarter Spotlight
  • Books
    Random
    • Review: 'Otto Binder: The Life and Work of a Comic Book and Science Fiction Visionary' by Bill Schelly

      Jason Sacks
      July 20, 2016
      Books, Classic Comics, Reviews
    Recent
    • Collecting Profile: Disney Frozen

      CB Staff
      November 22, 2019
    • Collecting Profile: NFL Superpro

      CB Staff
      August 31, 2019
    • “THE BEST OF WITZEND” is a Wonderful Celebration of Artistic Freedom

      Daniel Gehen
      September 15, 2018
    • Review: ‘Machete Squad’ is a Disappointing Afghan Memoir

      Jason Sacks
      July 31, 2018
    • Review: ‘Out of Nothing’ is the Antidote to Our Sick Times

      Jason Sacks
      July 23, 2018
    • Review: ‘Bizarre Romance’ Shows Rough Edges in the Early Days of a New Marriage

      Jason Sacks
      July 10, 2018
What's New
  • Collecting Profile: Blue Beetle
  • Review: X-MEN LEGENDS #1 Delivers A Dose of Nostalgia
  • Collecting Profile: Kraven the Hunter
  • Review: THE LAST RONIN #2 Hurts So Good
  • TIME BEFORE TIME—A HIGH STAKES TIME TRAVEL SCIENCE FICTION SERIES SET TO LAUNCH THIS MAY
  • Image Comics and TMP Announces SPAWN'S UNIVERSE
  • RSS Feed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Contact Us
  • Write for us!
  • Visit Video Game Break!
Home
Reviews

Youngblood #1

Jason Sacks
January 21, 2008
Reviews

Hey, Youngblood’s back! And this time Joe Casey’s got ‘em. Hmm, what’s that silence I hear? Is it apathy that I’m hearing? Yeah, ol’ Rob Liefeld isn’t working on this revival, for what it’s worth, but Joe Casey is writing it, and the comic’s not too bad, really. Unfortunately it’s not that great or original either.

The comic’s all about the government manipulating the Youngblood team members into becoming media stars. Members are chosen for their photogenic appearances and not their fighting skills, and seem to be intended by the Federal government to be used as propaganda tools rather than fighting heroes. As the next issue blurb succinctly puts it, “is the new Youngblood a bona fide force for good… or just another marketing scheme cooked up by the U.S. government?”

The problem is that this idea would have been fresh eight or ten years ago, but in 2008 it feels like ground that’s been trod a few times. Casey himself has done more interesting variations on the superhero archetype with his work on two volumes of Wildcats and we’ve seen other comics mine this territory in other interesting ways than we see in this issue. Of course, it is hard to judge a story based just on its first issue. There’s a mysterious scene between Shaft and an interstellar woman that’s intriguing, and the villains at the end of the issue could be interesting. But there’s just not that much fresh here to grab onto.

I also can’t escape the feeling this issue that all the media saturation just comes too easy. We have an administration now that can’t help but continuously shoot itself in the foot, and that makes it hard to imagine a government that’s able to get heroes on Oprah or the cover of Time or Nike ads. Basically readers are given the impression that all the media saturation happens very quickly, but there’s no feeling of momentum behind the story, nothing that indicates why these characters are so tightly embraced by corporate America.
Derec Donovan’s art does nothing to add to the comic. It’s perfectly fine and functional artwork, but doesn’t have the slickness or pizzazz necessary to really sell this story. This story really calls out for artwork that’s a bit outlandish and larger than life, but Donovan just delivers work that’s simply functional.

This isn’t a bad comic, and it has some potential, but this first issue is kind of lackluster.

Until, that is, the section in the back of the book, a five-page preview of the Youngblood Volume 1. In this preview we get five pages of Liefeld art in all its glory, from a time when Rob’s popularity was at his height. We get Rob’s famous manic energy, horrible costumes, impossible musculature, poor panel rendering, the whole bit. Man, I can look at those pages forever. There’s a crazy kind of genius in Liefeld’s artwork. If only Rob could have drawn the front part of the book. Now that would have been memorable.

Derec DonovanImage ComicsJason SacksJoe Casey

Share On:
Tweet
That’s No Lady, That’s A Blackhawk!
Green Day: The Rehabilitation of Henry J. Pym

About The Author

Jason Sacks
Jason Sacks
Publisher Emeritus
Google+

Jason Sacks has been obsessed with pop culture for longer than he'd like to remember. Jason has been writing for Comics Bulletin for nearly a decade, producing over a million words of content about comics, films and other media. He has also been published in a number of publications, including the late, lamented Amazing Heroes, The Flash Companion and The American Comic Book Chronicles: the 1970s,1980s and 1990s. Find him on Facebook and Twitter. Jason is the Publisher Emeritus of Comics Bulletin.

Related Posts

  • NEW SCI-FI MINISERIES MADE IN KOREA TO EXPLORE A.I. FUTURE WHEN IT HITS SHELVES IN MAY

    Daniel Gehen
    February 5, 2021
  • The Walking Dead Deluxe Gets 6 Connecting Covers From Charlie Adlard

    Ashley Hurst
    September 9, 2020

Latest Reviews

  • 3.0

    Review: X-MEN LEGENDS #1 Delivers A Dose of Nostalgia

    Daniel Gehen
    February 22, 2021
  • 4.5

    Review: THE LAST RONIN #2 Hurts So Good

    Daniel Gehen
    February 19, 2021
  • 2.3

    Review: SAVAGE #1 Needs Taming

    Daniel Gehen
    February 16, 2021
  • 4.3

    Review: RADIANT BLACK #1 Shines Brightly

    Daniel Gehen
    February 12, 2021
  • 2.7

    Review: DEEP BEYOND #1 Can’t Commit to a Premise

    Daniel Gehen
    February 4, 2021
  • 2.0

    VINDICATION Falls Short of its Lofty Goals (Review)

    Daniel Gehen
    February 1, 2021
  • 4.5

    DCeased: Dead Planet #7 Presents a Hopeful Future (Review)

    Daniel Gehen
    January 22, 2021
  • Review: The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Cartoonist

    Daniel Gehen
    December 14, 2020
  • Retro Review: Detective Comics #826 Remains a Holiday Classic

    Daniel Gehen
    December 3, 2020
  • 4.5

    TMNT: The Last Ronin #1 Lives Up to the Hype (Review)

    Daniel Gehen
    October 29, 2020
RSSTwitterFacebookgoogleplusinstagramtumblr

Comics Bulletin is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for website owners to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, audible.com, and any other website that may be affiliated with Amazon Service LLC Associates Program. As an Amazon Associate, Comics Bulletin earns from qualifying purchases.

All content on this site (c) 2018 The Respective Copyright Holders