The Boys Volume 1
By Garth Ennis
How Do I Rate it?
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Author : |
Garth Ennis |
Publisher : |
Titan Books Ltd / Dynamite Entertainment |
Released : |
October 2007 |
Page Number : |
152 pages |
Collects : |
The Boys issues #1-6 |
R.R.P : |
£9.99 (Tpb) £18.99 (HC) |
Artist : |
Darick Robertson |
Description : |
From the dark and twisted mind of Garth Ennis, co-creator of "Preacher" and "Hitman", and the savage pencil of Darick Robertson, artist of "Transmetropolitan", comes a darkly hilarious story that will change the way you look at superheroes forever!Meet Billy Butcher. He's not a nice man, and neither are his team: the Frenchman, Mother's Milk, and the Female. They hate "capes"...and so does Billy's newest recruit, Wee Hughie, whose girlfriend has just become collateral damage in a super-brawl. But does Hughie know what he's getting into?This hugely controversial new series - which caused an uproar upon original publication - explores the sordid side of superheroics! Warning: Adults Only! |
The Boys Volume 1
What happens when an individual becomes so powerful that they threaten the status quo of the planet? It’s a question that governments are forced to ponder every day, with anxious glances thrown towards their borders and beyond. But what if the threat you are nervously trying to plan for is not chemical warfare or nuclear warheads but a living breathing weapon that can think and scheme for itself? Well if your name is Garth Ennis, you just send The Boys around.
Following on from the critically acclaimed Preacher was always going to be a tall order. But Ennis manages to bring the same razor sharp dialogue and engaging characters to a world of politics, secret CIA groups and superheroes without ever falling back on the cliques of the genre. Mixing heartbreak, tragedy and degradation with black humour and knowing nods to the classic characters that he is paying ‘homage’ to, The Boys is a wildly entertaining combination of espionage, conflict and moments that make you question if any individual can be trusted with so much destructive force. In Billy Butcher and Wee Hughie, Ennis gives us two protagonists who have both suffered loss at the hands of superheroes but still have vastly different world outlooks, and it is this conflict that drives the book forward from issue one and beyond.
Fans of Transmetropolitan will already be aware of the quality of Darrick Robertson’s artwork, and his style perfectly matches the world that Ennis has created. Robertson manages to catch both the quieter notes and the battles with equal aplomb, although the standout moments are always the visceral battles involving Butcher and the rest of the gang. As the blood flows and the f-bombs fly, it starts to become apparent why DC comics-owned Wildstorm decided to drop the book after six issues.
As a huge Ennis fan The Boys was always going to be a book I’d enjoy. That I enjoyed it so much is a testimony to the man’s genius. And as the series is coming to an end this year, now is the perfect time to pick up this fine story. An essential purchase for any comic fan.
By Ryan Tandy
Look below to watch an interview with Garth Ennis where he talks about the boys. Apologies for the sound!!
