By Svetlana Fedetov
Ever since Valiant got back into the comic game mid-2012, they have been burning up the superhero game with old favorites and new creations. While never at the Marvel or DC level, many fans have fondly returned to the 90’s megastar and for great reasons. Solid writing, kick-ass art, and an ever-expanding universe has created a fathomless well of ideas to draw from. Unfortunately, with so many superheroes and super-villains running around the place, Valiant wasn’t offering much in the way of the bizarre, you know, the kind we at Brutal as Hell enjoy so much (except Shadowman, great comic!) Enter The Delinquents, the comic that sold me on two words: Hobo King. A great goof of a story that borders the line between superhero saga and cross-country adventure of the strangest of proportions, this work drops the reader straight into an American urban legend and doesn’t let up.
So, before I delve too deep into the story, the comic is not an original story but actually a team-up between two separate teams. Though I didn’t know this going in, it actually didn’t affect my enjoyment of the comic, which is saying something. Essentially, the two teams are Archer and Armstrong, a teen assassin and a homeless immortal, and Quantum and Woody, adopted brothers who are billed as the world’s worst superheroes (obviously they haven’t heard of Florida Man.)
The tale opens up with Armstrong back in the early half of the 20th century as he hops trains and travels the country with nothing but a bindle on a stick and straw in his mouth. After traveling with the King Hobo himself, he is given a pair of pants (or trousers if you will) that has a map of the ultimate Hobo treasure on the ass. Of course, in standard Armstrong fashion, he immediately loses it and the fabric spends the next several decades floating around U.S. of A. until it falls into the collection of a multi-millionaire bio-food engineer. The engineer quickly hires Quantum and Woody to find the treasure for him while word soon travels among the hobos to Armstrong that the treasure map had been found. With his super serious partner in tow, Archer and Armstrong hit the road themselves.
While the story doesn’t sound very bizarre – in fact, it sounds like a prime-time sitcom – it’s the way the plot is handled that really sets The Delinquents apart. The writers James Asmus and Fred van Lente really up the homey aspects of Americana, such as princess parties and Norman Rockwell-esque hobos, and put it through the grinder, coming out with something that’s pretty similar to Goon humor. The Hobos are drunk and nuts, the princesses are spoiled brats, and Godly spiritualism can be bought at a dime a dozen. It’s a solid statement on American culture, on the disposability of the human experience, while placing in some serious laughs and super powers. If you’re a fan of the DC/Vertigo Fables off-shoot, Jack of Fables, or even the absurdity of Deadpool, you’ll definitely dig this. Oh, and yes, there are some pretty good shoot-em-up scenes.
Another appeal is the beautiful page and panel layouts by artist Kano. He has several pages where he completely strays from the idea of individual panels and instead, creates a large scene in which the characters move around in. It gives the comic a great pop art feel as he unabashedly mixes elements of graphic design and traditional comic work. The coloring also creates a light atmosphere that tends to change with the mood, creating a welcoming throw-back to popular animation.
The Delinquents hit shelves Aug. 25.