Title: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys: National Anthem
Media: Limited-series comic written by Shaun Simon and Gerard Way, with art by Leonardo Romero.
Approx length: Six issues
Where to find it: Collected as a trade paperback, or available to read online at https://comiconlinefree.net/comic/the-true-lives-of-the-fabulous-killjoys-national-anthem.
What is it, in summary?: The story of Mike Milligram who discovers that the tedious reality he lives in is a carefully-cultivated fiction, and that his fragmented memories of being a last-ditch defender in a technicolour dystopia are all true, because the past is about to catch up with him.
What do you love about it?: The world of the Killjoys is so vivid and imaginative and out-there, with themed teenage gangs (like the Pristeens and the Lorettas, not to mention the Wierdss), a constant questioning of reality and a big overarching conspiracy. The story is rich and many-layered and the art complex and detailed.
What sort of things are you likely to request for it?: There's so much worldbuilding to be explored in the setting - about the other gangs, the Analogue War which they were fighting, and the creatures who attack reality - and so many questions left unanswered in the story. What is the meaning of the daisy, x-ray, ladybug motif? Who is the man who steps out of the Sterelax commercials? Who is the DJ giving a live commentary on events as they happen? I'd prompt for anything which expands on the existing plot and background.
Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence): It's violent in a comic-book fashion, and the imagery is sometimes gory and disturbing in a reality-warping way, but it's not done for shock value.
The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys: National Anthem
Media: Limited-series comic written by Shaun Simon and Gerard Way, with art by Leonardo Romero.
Approx length: Six issues
Where to find it: Collected as a trade paperback, or available to read online at https://comiconlinefree.net/comic/the-true-lives-of-the-fabulous-killjoys-national-anthem.
What is it, in summary?: The story of Mike Milligram who discovers that the tedious reality he lives in is a carefully-cultivated fiction, and that his fragmented memories of being a last-ditch defender in a technicolour dystopia are all true, because the past is about to catch up with him.
What do you love about it?: The world of the Killjoys is so vivid and imaginative and out-there, with themed teenage gangs (like the Pristeens and the Lorettas, not to mention the Wierdss), a constant questioning of reality and a big overarching conspiracy. The story is rich and many-layered and the art complex and detailed.
What sort of things are you likely to request for it?: There's so much worldbuilding to be explored in the setting - about the other gangs, the Analogue War which they were fighting, and the creatures who attack reality - and so many questions left unanswered in the story. What is the meaning of the daisy, x-ray, ladybug motif? Who is the man who steps out of the Sterelax commercials? Who is the DJ giving a live commentary on events as they happen? I'd prompt for anything which expands on the existing plot and background.
Content warnings (ie, rape, incest, racism, gore/violence): It's violent in a comic-book fashion, and the imagery is sometimes gory and disturbing in a reality-warping way, but it's not done for shock value.