Review - The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys #2

"Remember to get those headphones on, folks. As we say in Battery City, 'what you can hear can't hurt you.'"

Life's hard enough as it is without having to deal with life-powering batteries running down, roaming bandits and a city under strict rule. Of course, all that does make for a rather interesting story, which means people will pay attention when you throw characters smackdab in the middle of a world like that. A world like that of The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys #2.

The issue is written by Gerard Way and Shaun Simon, illustrated by Becky Cloonan, colored by Dan Jackson and Nate Piekos of Blambot!.

Things don't seem to be getting better for anyone, either inside or outside of Battery City. On the outside, the Girl is paired up with Cherri Cola. Inside, Korse is showing a decline in kills and an android is fighting to save a friend. It seems that the world the characters inhabit is chock full problems and obstacles, all having the common denominator of life on the line.

It's nice that Way and Simon spend a bit more time in Battery City to show the contrast between "civilization" and elsewhere, but the description is carried primarily by the setting itself. All the characters are presented as selfish fragments of a greater puzzle. It's possible that there will be some overlapping storylines and characters will learn to help the others, but as it stands everyone seems to be in it for themselves. By the end of the second issue, readers can usually find at least one character to "root" for, but, unfortunately, there's really no such character in The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys #2.

Cloonan's art does most of the heavy lifting in the book and it's not short of awesome. She uses very soft and clean lines to present the dystopia that supports the legend of the Killjoys. Contrasts between Battery City and the wild are very apparent, ensuring the reader realizes just how desolate this world really is. What's more is the coloring by Jackson oscillates between light and dark, again showcasing the dichotomy between the two vastly different worlds. Everyone has their own problems and the art really depicts that well.

While the first issue offered a lot of exciting promise, the second issue seems to be mired in lack of momentum. The Girl still isn't named, yet is held as some sort of ideal hope in the bleak world. Hellish worlds are all the rage in comics and media these days and it's described very well in The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys #2. Unfortunately, the characters that inhabit that world aren't given nearly the same amount of attention to detail as the world around them.

The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys #2 is in stores now with interiors below.