Youngblood #73
Written by John McLaughlin
Art by John Malin
Colors by Ross Hughes
Letters by Russ Wooton
Editors Eric Stephenson
Cover by Rob Liefeld & Ross Hughes
Image Comics
Release Date: August 22, 2012
Cover Price: $3.99

Youngblood #73 reminds you why you loved Image Comics in the 90s. I have to admit, when I was about 20 years old or so, I was REALLY into Image Comics, like everyone was, for a few years they were fun. Then, the company (and its creators) really went into a different direction. Now, it seems they’ve balanced out their brand with books like this, Supreme, Bloodstrike, and things that you normally wouldn’t associate as “Image books” like Saga, Thief of Thieves, Revival, etc. But, it’s very nice that you can pick up a book off the stands and immediately say THIS is an Image Comic!”

Writer John McLaughlin does a great job churning out something that’s been missing for awhile – a straight-out super hero story. There’s no underlying social or politically correct messages in this book, which is great, because as a reader, I just want to be entertained. The team is called to action when a teenage gamer is murdered, and they have to find out who did it and bring them in. But, as you can imagine, things aren’t that simple.

What I loved most about this story is the characters. McLaughlin has really brought each of their VERY opposite personalities to life, and I have to say, one of my favorite characters is Gail Cook. She’s the reporter that’s assigned to follow Youngblood and she’s also the “every man” character that we can all relate to. This book is just plain FUN!!! It’s your typical superhero team book, but BETTER because of the creative freedom that they can take. Also, this book is surprisingly funny without trying to be.

John Malin is a great artist. He’s got the Rob Liefeld look down, without totally copying him. He brings a little of his own style to the book and it really fits great. There are some pages that have a little too much going on, but I think that’s due to the fact that this issue is very heavy on story and action. When the story calls for control, he does it and when it calls for over the top action, he’s amazing at that! I’d really like to see some Youngblood action figures based on his designs. VERY sharp looking book!

Leave the heavy thinking for another day and let yourself be young again with this comic. It’s a classic Image Comic done for today’s audience. I really hope this creative team sticks with the book for a while, I can see this being a classic run on Youngblood. VERY highly recommended!!!