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Opening Fire by Greg Rucka. Art by Leandro FernĂĄndez
Series: The Old Guard, #1
Read Time: 4 Days
Rating: 4/5
The quote: "Mother of God."
"I know.
You do not want to get in Andy's way when she's got a mad on." â Nile Freeman & Sebastien 'Booker' le Livre
Why yes I am reading this because of the 2020 Netflix film. To a degree, I can't help compare this to that film, which I will do first to get it out of the way. Okay firstly there is a major difference in one of the plot points pretty much everything about Noriko/ Quᝳnh is a bit different and the ending is different. But it is a very good adaptation with large parts of the scripts using dialogue directly taken from these comics. That is most obvious with Joe and Nicky. Their two iconic moments in the film ("incurable romantic" and "Malta") are taken directly from this. It has been explained that Noriko's name was changed to Quᝳnh to reflect actress Vân Veronica Ngô Vietnamese birth.
Of the missing or severely altered traits and moments aka something closer to the works as it should be read and reviewed. It's so sex-positive. Andy is sleeping her way through her immortality and the only judgement made on her for that is that it isn't a healthy coping mechanism not about the act itself. She is so fierce and her relationship with Nile is fun, there is little in the way of combat. The comics are written from Andy's perspective, she is almost talking directly to the reader as she talks about her history and that of Booker, Joe and Nicky. In the film, we are given Booker's dark story for why they break from humans, but Andy has another story. His name is Achilles and this story provides a brilliant complement to Booker's darkness a potential. The colouring of these pages is much brighter than most of the others. The colouring for the whole book is intelligent, providing contrasts and telling something of its own story. I like the character designs too. The guards, in particular, they look so huge and brutal almost like walking walls. The styles of all the characters are wonderful, they are all distinct. The chapter breaks are smart too, well-known quotes about war and love. Calling it a fairy tale is a good choice that is what it feels like, a messed up and maybe slightly more realistic fairy tale.
"You are a child. An infant, and your mocking is thus infantile."
"That man is not my "boyfriend". That man is more to me than you could dream in your simpering, pathetic life."
"That man is the stars in my sky, and the sun that lights my days. That man is the moon when i am lost in darkness, the warmth when i shiver in cold."
"I love that man beyond measure and reason. His kiss thrills me, even after millenium since i first tasted him. His body, to this day, awaken a passion you will never know. His heart overflows with a kindness which this world is not worthy. His very thoughts make music of the mundane."
"He is not my "boyfriend". He is not my "lover", nor my "partner." He is all and more."
Thinking about these panels from Opening Fire, and how different media - comic, movie, fanfic - handle their healing powers (which is a whole separate post), and Iâm just picturing Joeâs dangling eyeball climbing back up that cord of blood vessels and nerves like a spider climbing back up its thread.
That month was a wild one. I absolutely failed this month on my goal of reading less. I read 11 books this month which is one more than I read in the month of January in 2020. Success. [/sarcasm] But I did mange to read one book my Mother-In-Law gave me for Christmas and two books that were on my Read It or Leave It 2021 List. Letâs get into it (in reading order).
1. The Old Guard Book One: Opening Fire by Greg Rucka, Leandro Fernandez-- Rating: 4 Stars. I reread this for the Podcast with my husband and we watched the movie (again). It was such a fun time. We have a bunch of immortal fighters who love each other. Found family trope FTW.
2. Kisses and Croissants by Anne-Sophie Jouhanneau (NetGalley ARC)-- Rating: 3.5 Stars. This is about a girl who goes to Paris to spend 6 weeks in a ballet workshop. This is the best of the best in the world of ballet and she also finds romance and has a family mystery. Itâs cute. But I spent the whole time with my Mom Brain activated wondering why sheâs out until 2 a.m. when she should be resting before a hard 16 hour ballet day.
3. Vicious by V.E. Schwab-- Rating: 5 Stars. One of my all time favorite books. This is about two guys who are roommates in college working on a thesis to understand how ExtraOrdinaries are made. They test this thesis and attempt to give themselves super powers. Ten years later Victor and Eli are enemies. And we spend the book figuring out how that happened.
4. The Old Guard Book Two: Force Multiplied by Greg Rucka, Leandro Fernandez-- Rating: 4 Stars. This was a good continuation of the first book. I felt like the action scenes were clearer and more easy to understand. I also enjoyed that this one took place in other parts of the world. That ending though.
5. Sag Harbor by Colson Whitehead (MIL Christmas Present)-- Rating: 1.5 Stars. This is one of the worst books I read in years. So, I donât know what it means that my Mother-In-Law got me such a bad book. This is about a black boy who spends his school year in a predominantly white private school in New York City and his summers in the black neighborhood of Sag Harbor. But instead of diving into any deep issues, this author spends pages devoted to what frozen dinners were like in the 80s. I wish I was joking. I would classify this as a fictionalized memoir.
6. Enjoy the View by Sarah Morgenthaler-- Rating: 4.5 Stars. This is the final book in the companion romance series and one of my most anticipated releases. This was my favorite book of the whole series. Moose Springs, Alaska is a tourist town that hates the tourists who come and âinfectâ their town every year. But in this book we follow a woman who is making a documentary about the town for the Alaska Tourism Board. And she will make this work no matter how many hoops the town throws her way. It involves the quietest, biggest, nicest man in the series as her love interest and it made me so soft.
7. Red Sister by Mark Lawrence (Read It or Leave It)-- Rating: 3 Stars. This was probably my biggest disappointment of the month. I have heard such amazing things about this series, but I could not get along with this at all. I like the setting and thatâs about it. This is a story about assassin nuns and their training. But be forewarned that the story follows a girl from the ages of 9 to 13. I had no clue going in and spent a lot of the time waiting for her to reach adulthood.
8. Vengeful by V.E. Schwab-- Rating: 4 Stars. This is a continuation of the Villains series. Victor has some repercussions to deal with after the fall out of Vicious. I donât want to go too far in depth with this one because it could spoil book one.
9. The Deal by Elle Kennedy-- Rating: 2.75 Stars. I picked this book up as a free book of the day for a few reasons. 1) Fake dating trope, 2) Hockey, 3) itâs almost Valentineâs Day? I mostly enjoyed this book. I had a problem with pacing and the author not giving the action room to breathe. On top of that, I felt like the author got too many hockey related things wrong. As an avid hockey fan, thatâs kind of inexcusable. But the thing that drove down the rating for me the most was the volume of sex scenes. Theyâre fake dating at first but once the sex scenes start showing up, they donât stop.
10. The Risk by Elle Kennedy-- Rating: 2.25 Stars. So, ignoring some of what I said above, I picked this book up immediately after finishing The Deal because I had a book credit. And this is supposed to be a later work so I thought Kennedy might get better with the whole hockey thing. She does, but the book was just worse. I read The Deal in less than 24 hours. This one took me 3 days. It wasnât compelling, the hockey was better, but everything else was worse.
11. Girls of Paper and Fire by Natasha Ngan (Read It or Leave It)-- Rating: 2.5 Stars. Part of me wanted to rate this one worse than I did But I cannot deny that Ngan put in a lot of work in the world building and creating a setting that makes sense and feels real. But, as someone who has had to deal with a lot of the issues brought to the front in this novel, it was a lot. It felt unnecessary to put that much into it. Plus there were a few issues with the Caste system and descriptions of characters and the pacing.
Overall, I averaged at 3.37 stars. I really hope that I have a better reading month when it comes to my feelings about what I read.
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Just got a notification that my bind up of The Old Guard: Opening Fire has finally shipped! I ordered it about three weeks ago. I'm so excited to hopefully read it next week.
The Setup: Itâs our first Reaction to a comic book! And itâs not from the Big Two! Written by Greg Rucka (Wonder Woman, Gotham Central, Black Magick) and drawn by Leandro Fernandez (Punisher MAX, The Incredible Hulk, Deadpool & Cable) -- a duo who previously collaborated on Wolverine and Queen & Country -- The Old Guard is about (mostly) immortal warriors who can trace their lives back through Napoleonâs attempted invasion of Russia, the Crusades, and the conquests of Alexander the Great. Theyâre led by Andromache of Scythia, but you can call her Andy.
Andyâs fought and fucked, loved and loathed her way across thousands of years and at least six continents, and she is tired. So when a seemingly routine rescue mission goes way off the rails, and just a few hours later her team learns that -- contrary to what theyâve believed for a century or two -- theyâre not the last immortals left after all, Andy has to find out if she can still surprise a world that she didnât realize could still surprise her.
Kris, who briefly studied ancient military history in college, really liked Ruckaâs Batwoman: Elegy and his webcomic Lady Sabre & The Pirates of the Ineffable Aether, so when he learned about The Old Guard he asked Marchae -- a BIG fan of Ruckaâs Lazarus -- if sheâd want to react to it.
Two spoiler notices below, but until the jump itâs just first-issue stuff.
KRIS: So weâve both read some Greg Rucka before
I donât think Iâm an expert, but Iâm fairly aware of at least the range of his work
MARCHAE: I am a HUGE fan of at least one of his comics!!!
KRIS: And he seems to be One of the Good Ones re: male feminist writers
MARCHAE: YES I absolutely agree and spent even more time thinking about that as I read The Old Guard
and this notion that I have about âsuper herosâ
but also I like some of the things he examines in his works, at least what Iâve read
KRIS: Oh good I think weâve all wanted to hear more from you about your theory of superheroes, so definitely feel free to get into that when itâs relevant
MARCHAE: LOL
I definitely will talk more thatâs for sure - and especially since Iâm reading Jessica Jones at the moment
KRIS: Also I really like how distinctive most of the faces in this are, just wanted to say that upfront although I am not super qualified to discuss the art
MARCHAE: So Iâve spent some time making connections between what Iâm currently reading , a traditional comic, versus the indie books
Neither am I - but the art is gorgeous
KRIS: OH and for our readers who may not be super into comics (yet), maybe we should say how weâre reading
Iâm using the Comixology reader on their website, in Guided View mode
MARCHAE: And I use an app from my public library called Hoopla
I also use  a guided view mode - however I definitely prefer hardcopies
KRIS: I like Guided View a lot, although occasionally you lose some of the impact of splash pages, and there are very rarely (but especially with older comics) sequencing errors
ANYWAY sorry tangent
MARCHAE: I am reading newer ones mostly, it definitely feels more cinematic to me reading it electronically.
I like it a lot especially for fast paced ones like The Old Guard
like an action film
KRIS: But I wanted to just get it out there that there are good accessible digital ways to read comics, which is often more affordable, and also for some reason Amazon is selling a bunch of Marvel comics at massive discounts
Yes! Thank you for getting us back on track -- the action layouts here are great
MARCHAE: Affordable and FREE!
and youâre welcome!
I am a newbie to comics- Iâve only been reading them for a year maybe less - and I am obsessed with how much I can relate to them from a screenwriting perspective in terms of sequencing and layout. In this weird abstract way. This was one of the best oneâs Iâve read in a while in terms of the pacing with layout - and I love it. I actually started re-reading the book just to gawk at the art etc
KRIS: Oh you should check out Ruckaâs web comic Lady Sabre and the Pirates of the Ineffable Aether [see above] -- it was like the equivalent of a page or so twice a week, and Ruckaâs script for each entry was included
MARCHAE: **GASPS**
KRIS: I always mean to really break down and study a comic book or two but just like with studying TV, I end up being too lazy, and just hoping Iâll absorb lessons through sheer osmosis
MARCHAE: LOL -
I have studied the dialogue
I think more closely than anything
although I really need to study their structure
KRIS: Thatâs interesting
I would not guess that most comics writers do dialogue as well as Rucka
MARCHAE: Itâs something about these short bursts of dialogue that kind of flow with the quick images we get that makes sense to me⌠Iâve read a couple that I really prefer
KRIS: Iâm interested in how comics people obviously think in âshotsâ
MARCHAE: Revival is good and so is Alex and Ada ⌠it shouldnât come as a surprise that they are super character driven
KRIS: and I think a lot of screenwriters donât
MARCHAE: YEAH
KRIS: or arenât necessarily really well trained to
MARCHAE: It is fascinating when you think about because there are SO MANY correlations between the two
because as screenwriters and movie makers we end up having to think like comic writers when we get to the storyboarding portion of the work
which i guess is more of a production function
but
KRIS: Right, it should be super obvious, and we do get TOLD to think in shots but thereâs still such a division (at least in our film school experience) between learning to write and learning to tell stories visually
MARCHAE: I feel like with comics the action - even  in some of the not as good ones Iâve read is all about taking you to that next shot
EXACTLY!!!
KRIS: Honestly this is one of my very favorite parts in the whole book, just as a visual storytelling beat:
MARCHAE: I was grateful that I had the experience of reading comics at least near the end of my time in school⌠i did take a lot of lessons from the comics
OHHH
tell me why
KRIS: I think a lot of the impact for me was in the guided view
The panel before this is Booker trying to talk Andy into the mission: âHe says there are kids involved, Andy. Kids.â
Then in GV you get everyone looking at Booker, and you can linger on that panel
MARCHAE: The guided view makes a tremendous difference!
it feels like a moving image
KRIS: Then the next panel makes you sort of realize that itâs not really âeveryoneâ looking at one person, but Joe and Nico looking back and forth between the new guy and the boss
although I guess you donât get the ânew guyâ information until later
MARCHAE: Exactly
KRIS: Yes! The movement is there, and can have this weird interaction with how long you can linger in a single shot
But I guess what I like about this page is how the visuals help establish the relationships even without Andyâs exposition
MARCHAE: And i feel like you should be able to tell the story without the words
some of my favorites were the panels without words period
I especially love the first few pages
KRIS: Yeah, and in a nutshell thatâs what comics writers are trained to do and what a lot of screenwriters (including me!) are often too precious about their own dialogue to internalize
MARCHAE: its just a few bits of inner dialogue
(side note your dialogue is beautiful!!!)
KRIS: Yeah but I didnât become a playwright
MARCHAE: YESSSSSS
KRIS: ^That spread is so amazing and efficient
MARCHAE: YESSS Â and YESSS
those were my favorites
oh my word and its just pretty
KRIS: Itâs not even a really dense two-page spread by any means and there are only like 30 words on it
But it tells us so much about Andy
MARCHAE: Iâm looking at it now on my device and its in guided view - so it shows up as each individual panel
YES!
KRIS: Right
MARCHAE: and Iâm hooked from the beginning and thatâs what I think makes this story effective and invests you in it
Rucka does this with my favorite comic - Lazarus
also
KRIS: Sheâs a warrior, sheâs been around forever, sheâs bi, sheâs tired, she doesnât have a lot of meaningful human connection in her life
MARCHAE: And we get that quickly
and efficiently
KRIS: and obviously the sense of repetition
in her day-to-day (century-to-century)
MARCHAE: thats been going on for centuries
[SPOILERS throughout below]
KRIS: Oh sorry did you want to say more about Lazarus
MARCHAE: Itâs okay -
I was just going to say that there are some definite similarties between the two books
Specifically just the idea of strong female protagonists who are capable and leaders
and also the notion of these women dodging death
All. the. time!
I thought it was interesting to have read and to be a HUGE fan of both books now
and think critically about what he means to demonstrate and also why i consider the woman he portrays more heroic than other âheroesâ
that was a long rant LOL
sorry
KRIS: And thereâs a quietly great line in chapter 2 about how everyone just defaulted to Andy being the leader because she was the oldest, so it was obvious
MARCHAE: Yes I remember that
KRIS: And I havenât really thought about this, but itâs interesting and Iâm assuming very deliberate that the oldest and the youngest leads are the women
But so matter-of-factly
MARCHAE: Yes - I did note that and remember being worried for Andy and what it meant later on in the series
and also the conflicts that we could expect to see in the future books
I think itâs smart  honestly and kind of this mentorship that also gets to happen between the two women
we know that historically women have a difficult time finding mentors so I guess it is great to see it demonstrated in this medium
I think weâll eventually see some bickering between the two , but ultimately a respect which is also not often depicted in other medium as much as I feel like it should be
KRIS: Iâll save it for a little later but I did screenshot that great (affectionate) bickering toward the end
MARCHAE: YES!
KRIS: We often write these in a way that sort of assumes the reader knows at least generally what weâre talking about but maybe we should try explaining a little about at least the main character relationships here
MARCHAE: Thatâs true - especially considering this is our first time reacting to a comic book
KRIS: Oh my god wait I just want to show this page transition I didnât pick up on in Guided View
MARCHAE: I was trying to find a good article that listed the main concept with characters (mostly because I need to know how to spell andyâs real name)
KRIS: The color palette!
MARCHAE: Itâs beautiful I liked these panels
KRIS: They only say Andyâs whole name twice but itâs not the same both times!
MARCHAE: I have this weird way that I read them⌠1. for story. 2. art with story 3. only with art
KRIS: Oh interesting
MARCHAE: even the layout is nice
KRIS: Iâm not much of a re-reader (or re-watcher) but I should be
MARCHAE: I donât generally - but because I am so used to reading âregular booksâ I have to almost get the story then go back so I can appreciate the art with the story
then just the art cause #pretty
KRIS: Oh man I sidetracked us again
OK so
Andy!
MARCHAE: its okay really theres is a lot here to talk about actually!!!
Yes, Andy short for Andromeda?
I think
KRIS: I THINK Andromache is what her name is supposed to be, since thatâs what the Comixology store âloglineâ uses
MARCHAE: YES
KRIS: and thatâs what Booker calls her
MARCHAE: I was all off LOL
KRIS: but when she tells Nile an issue or two earlier, she says Andronika
which Iâm assuming is just a continuity mistake on someoneâs part
MARCHAE: I am now curious if it changes with the time
KRIS: and maybe a reprint will correct it
MARCHAE: like each century she modifies it?
yes but sheâs centuries old
and most important
KRIS: But I got the sense that we were given everyoneâs âtrueâ name at least once
MARCHAE: Immortal - she canât die - at least sheâs not able to right now
KRIS: So âAndyâ is her modern day shorthand and maybe in the 1800s it was something else, but Andromache is her birth name
MARCHAE: yeah! thatâs my deduction at least
KRIS: So Andromache means âbattle of a manâ
(I think Andronika would mean something like victory of a man?)
MARCHAE: I love your to the minute, on the spot research!
KRIS: Well Andromache I knew because I briefly studied Greek in undergrad and have always been a little bit of an Ancient Greek Stuff nerd
What Iâm not sure of is in what sense âbattleâ is being used
MARCHAE: are the names from the same era?
I guess it could be two fold
KRIS: Like, is it a battle as in an event, or is it in the sense of âsheâs got fight like a manâ
MARCHAE: Oh i was going in a different direction!!!
wow
yours is probably more appropriate LOL
KRIS: Andromache is at least as old as the Odyssey
MARCHAE: I was thinking more of âbattle of a manâ - as in battle against oneâs self
KRIS: Oh interesting
MARCHAE: like man against man conflict which i suppose is fitting considering that sheâs somewhat immortal
KRIS: oh I meant the Iliad -- Andromache is the wife of Hektor
MARCHAE: OH YEAH
Also thinking of âbattle of a manâ to mean battle of time and life
we always want to live longer, better, never die
KRIS: I donât know much at all about Arabic so I donât know how old Joeâs real name is, etymologically speaking
MARCHAE: and here Andy is wanting to be done
I loved that scene where introducing himself
KRIS: Yeah, thatâs pretty classic
MARCHAE: and we get to Joe!
So I am checking an article and [the Newsarama interviewer] says Andyâs real name is Andronika
(also side note I feel redeemed and a bit smart that he mentions some of the themes I pointed out and made similar comparisons! )
KRIS: OK skimming now
âJohn Wick meets Highlanderâ
Thatâs pretty great
MARCHAE: Truth!!
KRIS: Oh Black Magick I should link to that [see above]
MARCHAE: I havenât read that one
KRIS: Anyway where were we?
MARCHAE: Ok we have digressed again! I guess a brief synopsis of the main characters
KRIS: Right right
So we have this 4-person mercenary team
MARCHAE: Right and theyâve been connected FOREVER it seems like
KRIS: Led by [Andronika/Andromache?] Andy, who is literally biblically old
MARCHAE: Well it doesnât seem like - they have been together for ever
KRIS: Then Nico and Joe (Nicolo and Yusuf) who met during the First Crusade, so 1090s
And presumably they linked up with Andy sometime between the Crusades and the Napoleonic Wars, when we get Booker
MARCHAE: There is a lot of history here
KRIS: And thereâs this stuff about how when a new immortal dies for the first time, other immortals (maybe within a certain range?) start having dreams about them
MARCHAE: and thatâs how they are introduced or at least made aware that they will be meeting someone new? did I read that correctly
KRIS: Yeah
MARCHAE: HA - I misread your text LOL
I literally rephrased what you said LOL
KRIS: Andy had to figure it out the first time it happened, like the dream doesnât spell anything out for them
MARCHAE: They are often killed or incredibly injured during their battles and they heal themselves which is how they discover ultimately that they are immortal
for a spell at least
KRIS: Oh there are some GREAT âmatch cutsâ in this
Thereâs a really good one in the Nico/Joe origin story
MARCHAE: OH YEAHHHHHH
KRIS:Â
But that whole sequence is great
MARCHAE: I loved the twist there
KRIS: So yeah sorry for our readers my mental leap isnât obvious, but this is preceded by a couple pages of Joe and Nico during the Crusades repeatedly killing each other
MARCHAE: I sent over a few screen shots hopefully they will come throughâŚ
The book definitely has a distinct aesthetic thatâs for sure
KRIS: Itâs mostly serious but lightly comic, like they just donât question it, like okay yeah I guess Iâll just kill you again
Oh getting your screenshots now
Yes the faces (again)! You can see the modern Nico and Joe even under all the facial hair
MARCHAE: you mentioned my idea of hero
KRIS: Yes
MARCHAE: and your point âitâs mostly serious but lightly comicâ
thatâs the thing⌠saving lives/the world is a serious thing
these people have real problems that are connected usually to slightly dystopia ideas of our current world
I feel like with more mainstream comics we are in some alternate reality all together and the people are trying to be funny and trying to save the world and trying to be coolâŚ
I feel like in Ruckaâs books (and also a few otherâs I read) itâs rooted in something that i can grasp and their problems are real
so in this text itâs when does my suffering end
in a book like lazarus itâs why wonât my family love me
and itâs not in this over the top let me fly all over the place and shoot missiles out of my hands kind of way
itâs serious
itâs business
KRIS: But I think tonal variation is a good thing
for the genre and the industry
Like a lot of the recent DC movies are SUPER SERIOUS on a surface level, but theyâre not necessarily handling ideas in an intellectually rigorous way
MARCHAE: I absolutely agree I guess in a world I could see myself being saved by someone who is more similar to Andy than say Captain America
I think thatâs the thing I like is that it is this exploration of more complex ideas in these types of comics and I feel more connected to the work
itâs more accessible
KRIS: And even though the Marvel movies are lighter, and not SUPER thematically driven, theyâre relatively smart about the thematics they do include
See I think most people would say Marvelâs tone is more accessible
But I think you might mean accessible in a different way
MARCHAE: LOL hence the mega fafillion dollar industry
KRIS: Like youâre looking for something concrete to latch onto
MARCHAE: I think I agree with you there - I want a take-away
KRIS: And I think the Iron Man tone is more âhere is a world that speaks the language you speak with your friendsâ in a generalized sense
MARCHAE: I can give you thatâŚ
the more mainstream comics make the business of saving the world seem less serious
I also am a lover of drama and heavy topics so I think there is also the attraction - these people donât always feel like they have be âonâ to me
they are trying to make it
and that I can relate to!
KRIS: I think thatâs because âsaving the worldâ isnât REALLY what theyâre about, though, to the extent that theyâre about something
I think at some point, maybe with all four of us, I do want to talk more about the difficulty you have with comedy
MARCHAE: Itâs like an intervention LOL
KRIS: No! Well maybe a little. But itâs so ingrained for you that I think I also just want to understand
Maybe when we eventually return to Sweet/Vicious, which I still really want to do
MARCHAE: comedy is truly a challenge for me with the exception of a few - but even those make a larger statement in my opinion!
we do need to finish S/V
KRIS: Iâd also like to see you and Keely talk about comedy
ANYWAY
We should talk about Nile
MARCHAE: that might be fun - Keely and I have talked about why I like her brand of comedy bestâŚ
OK NILE
KRIS: So Nile is an American Marine
in a Female Engagement Team in Afghanistan
MARCHAE: I absolutely adore her
sheâs the âyoungestâ immortal
KRIS: So at first I didnât realize she didnât know she was immortal
For some reason I assumed she had abandoned the team at some point
MARCHAE: OHHHH
KRIS: But then she becomes our (great) audience surrogate
MARCHAE: Which is why I like her - sheâs new- but itâs clear sheâs competent
and is legit just trying to understand âwhat the heck is going on hereâ
KRIS: Yeah, and she gets to push back a lot when Andy is like âdonât worry about itâ
But never in a way that sells out either of their characters
I feel like so often the ânew oneâ is obnoxious
or the âold oneâ is a tired âAsshole with a Heart of Goldâ trope
MARCHAE: Agreed! it is very organic and you can believe in them⌠but also it establishes what the relationship can be
I also think that because we know that eventually these people run out of âchangesâ to live - I almost felt like we are operating on a clock
ticking clock*
it ramped up the tension for me when reading  - my mind was legit going a mile a min.
KRIS: And itâs this female friendship that never really leans on âthe women! they are alike and get along because they are women!â but also doesnât completely pretend gender doesnât matter
Oh man that freaked me out when Andy shot herself to convince Nile
I was like âWHAT IF THIS IS THE ONE, ANDY WHAT ARE YOU DOINGâ
MARCHAE: YESSS
Because she doesnât know when the one will be
thatâs what makes me nervous about this entire series âŚ
KRIS: The moment when they find Booker [temporarily] dead was amazing to me
MARCHAE: like antsy and I like the characters so itâs worse LOL
KRIS: Andyâs narration is like âheâs the youngest, if heâs really dead it would be so unfairâ
And weâre trained to THINK that means âunfair because he was so youngâ
But then thereâs the reversal of âunfair to ME (Andy)â
MARCHAE: Right! But he isnât young at all - none of them are except for Nile
it kind of plays with your mind when you put into context that one of them is 5000 years old? did I read that or am I making that up - either way itâs insane
But there is also this entertainment of how in real life we all want to live forever, Andy is ready to kick the can
KRIS: Yeah in the last issue Andy says sheâs over 6000
so the others are ALL babies compared to her
MARCHAE: yet they donât ACTUALLY live forever at all
geesh i was off by 1000 years
good googley-moogley
KRIS: haha
So we get what becomes, by a little bit, our central relationship between the oldest woman in the world and the youngest woman on the team
MARCHAE: I love that! LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!!
KRIS: although the book really does manage to make all the relationships pretty robust
Nico and Joe are our romance, and where a lot of our humor comes from
MARCHAE: The majority of it actually⌠and they are some deep relationships
KRIS: Andy and Booker obviously have a lot going on because of her dependence on his tech savvy and then The Twist
MARCHAE: (but this isnât unusual for Rucka which is why Iâm #obsessed and why he was my entrance into comics)
KRIS: I loved how the running joke of Andyâs inability to learn new tech ends up becoming a totally serious, really important story detail
MARCHAE: It actually does and it runs through the entire story
itâs smart and well thought out and incredibly problematic in our current world
KRIS: Only tangentially related but I really like how well the body language is rendered in this panel:
MARCHAE: and intentional on the writers part and what Iâd imagine- if I were a 6000 years old hero - a real real problem
KRIS: Hereâs a better one for the âjokeâ aspect
MARCHAE: LOL
KRIS: If you had that panel out of context it would be totally relatable for a lot of people
MARCHAE: she is so clueless - and itâs funny
KRIS: Although maybe with relatives who donât look as young as Andy does
MARCHAE: Oh god I know all too well!!!
Itâs also funny because sheâs so on top of it in every other area of the job
I want more of her backstory too - I am so curious - Iâve already downloaded the other book
KRIS: which other book?
I love her
MARCHAE: I misread - I just looked and it doesnât exist LOL
đ sad face
I was curious about what your thought were about the exploration of being immortal
or mostly immortal
KRIS: I mean personally I still find the idea of death terrifying, maybe because Iâve never really dealt with it yet
So Iâm kind of in the âyes we should try to become immortalâ camp most days
And I tend to feel that the idea that immortality would ultimately be boring or soul-crushing is kind of a self-serving one, to make us feel better about mortality
BUT
I think this is a really good exploration of it
MARCHAE: interesting!
KRIS: The speech Booker gives to Nile about why she shouldnât contact her family is really really good
MARCHAE: and kind of sad I loved it (not because it was sad, but because it was good)
KRIS: And Andyâs ultimate epiphany -- she doesnât want to die, she wants something to live for again -- is really simple in the best way
And itâs also really sad, and I think mostly unremarked upon, that it takes Booker betraying the team for Andy to realize that the team is what she has to live for
MARCHAE: yeahâŚ. sheâs incredibly melancholy to me and I like that sheâs wanting to push again
they are her family
KRIS: And itâs great that part of how Nile pushes the change in Andyâs mindset is very specifically âmillennialâ -- sheâs always hustled, sheâs worked a bunch of jobs briefly and picked up a bunch of random skills
in a way thatâs convenient to the plot but doesnât feel TOO Convenient
MARCHAE: Exactly - I could believe and buy into each and every single character
KRIS: Everything about Nile is like, Thatâs So Real
MARCHAE: I wanted to be on the team by the end of it
even the emotions that Andy experiences
there is a lot of hurt âŚmaybe that imitates from the page
A lot of it is in her inner dialogue, the panel placement and the colors
but you feel for her
and you want her to win and win hard
KRIS: So hard
It was amazing to me that they actually fit a Booker redemption arc into this
and it works because of Andyâs feelings
MARCHAE: they do! A lot rides on the protagonist here - And what I think is amazing is that she carries so much of the tone for what we experience over the story - because of her we are able to buy the rest of them
I think if we had been led by anyone else it might not have been as effective
KRIS: Itâs very successful at being clearly led by one character but still having a really strong âensembleâ feel
And that first issue and a half have to do so much heavy lifting to establish the team relationships so we buy the motivations when they spend most of the rest of the story separated
MARCHAE: It really is amazing from a storytelling standpoint
I could see the movie adaptation as I was reading it
Its so well crafted
KRIS: I think this arc could actually work as a feature
MARCHAE: (have you read lazarus?)
KRIS: and not lose much detail
Not yet
MARCHAE: (KRIS!!!!!! THAT IS A FEATURE WAITING TO BE MADE)
(BUT KRIS READ IT STAT!!!)
And it would be beautiful to shoot those period scenes
KRIS: It would
(I just love the face drawing so much in this book)
MARCHAE: they are much more expressive than others  - I feel like other books Ive read are more sketch like
?
KRIS: This sequence was VERY cinematic too
Not in a spectacle way but just in a general visual storytelling way
with the elevator door
I feel like a lot of superhero books donât bother making faces distinctive
MARCHAE: That bugs me too - I think itâs why i started reading them three times
KRIS: It can get especially ridiculous when people donât bother drawing Clark Kent and Bruce Wayne differently from each other
The one issue I can think of in The Old Guard is that in the first issue, it wasnât super clear to me that Joe was a man of color
And I feel like Andyâs skin tone was also a little variable, but itâs more or less obvious that sheâs supposed to be from Somewhere In the Mediterranean
MARCHAE: I Â didnât entirely register that either until he said his name
I can agree with that too
I also get the impression that Nile is also likely a POC as well
KRIS: Nile for sure read to me as a black (or possibly multiracial) woman, I guess the color was just off in the first chapter
MARCHAE: it was refreshing to see a more diverse group of characters thatâs for sure
KRIS: Oh shit my mistake I guess the Scythians (Andy) are of Iranian/Central Asian descent
Yes! Which was why I was so glad Joe turned out not to be white -- at first I was like âhmmm this is an oddly white book for someone as woke as Greg Ruckaâ
MARCHAE: OH NO WAY!! (Re Andy)
KRIS: I really should have known that from like freshman year classics courses
MARCHAE: You are much more well versed than I am in historical references  and I definitely donât have a tremendous breath of the classics
KRIS: I guess we should talk about the action
Itâs almost funny that we havenât, much
This is very much an action story
MARCHAE: There is so much action thatâs for certain and I LOVE IT
KRIS: And all of the set pieces are distinct
MARCHAE: I love seeing it on the page, the pacing of it, how the panels are set up and YES the set pieces!!!!
KRIS: Which is definitely something superhero comics struggle with
Guided View is GREAT for these layouts
MARCHAE: It works beautifully and makes the work fly
KRIS: There have to be some good interviews out there with comic artists about how thatâs influenced their approach in the last several years
MARCHAE: like the action legitimately in this comic soared off the page in my opinion I wanted to be in it
thatâs really interesting Iâll have to take a gander
KRIS: I do have to say, I wished Andyâs axe had come back
MARCHAE:Â YES! Sheâs fierce!
theres a cover where sheâs flailing that axe
Sheâs powerful
the look on her face
even and her posture
I LOVE THIS IMAGE
KRIS: For our readers, that variant cover is by Nicola Scott, Greg Ruckaâs collaborator on Wonder Woman: Year One
Yeah even though Iâll tag this as a spoiler post I wonât include the axe sequence, everyone should have to go read the book to see it
Itâs short but awesome
MARCHAE: Its so unapologetic and that makes me happy as a woman!
(re the axe photo)
but to talk about action
I really liked this and how it looked!
KRIS: so good
The other standout for me was the Crusade battle -- the use of silhouettes in the night scene
MARCHAE: it reminded me of the old school batman TV show but also has this frantic feel to it like if you are in the room - the images move almost
KRIS: And the use of the BANGs in the background instead of within most of the panels is really interesting
MARCHAE: OHHHHH thatâs a great one too
KRIS: literal background noise
MARCHAE: it reminds me of sound
AHHHH YESSSS!!!!
visual cacaphony
which i suppose is a bizarre pairing of words but the best i could come up with
KRIS: It conveys the chaos but also leaves the actual action layouts clear
MARCHAE: nothing is left to confuse the reader - which when I was a newer reader of comics was always confusing
KRIS: Oh hereâs that great banter scene:
MARCHAE: these comics are new user friendly
KRIS: Definitely an advantage of indie books
MARCHAE: I like that one - laughed a few time reading this book like legit noise came out which doesnât happen terribly often
KRIS: I mean I get it, if youâre writing Big Two characters, you want to reference the stuff you grew up with, it canât be an easy balance to make it accessible to new readers and rich for longtime readers, but still, you canât blame people for having trouble getting into most recent Marvel or DC stuff
Yeah I guess a way to describe how humor works best for you is that in a scene like this itâs like, cathartic?
Or itâs a release valve
You like it as punctuation, not as the baseline
MARCHAE: I can read it now but I tried starting with Hellboy and was like ABSOLUTELY NOT!
KRIS: Oh thatâs interesting because isnât Hellboy indie? Was it that you jumped into a late story arc?
MARCHAE: I am not sure⌠if it is⌠All i know is that it was a challenged to follow on the page
I think I started at the beginning?
Also YES! in regards to humor!!! Itâs kind of like a sigh đ
KRIS: I only know the movies but Iâd believe itâs just a weird-ass book as a first comic
MARCHAE: I do not love humor as a baseline - ever generally
LOLOl
it was not a good first jaunt I didnât finish it and sold it back and the comic book store owner was like what do you like - we chatted and he handled me Lazarus
and Iâve been hooked on the comics since and they all have the same tone save one that I like called Alex and Ada
Weâve digressed again
KRIS: yep
Iâm just grabbing a link for Alex and Ada to put into the post [see above]
MARCHAE: yeah its drastically different in tone from what I generally read - but the characters and story were pretty good!
Also an Image comic if Iâm not mistaking
KRIS: Yes
MARCHAE: Yup!
KRIS: (For readers: Image is a publishing house like DC and Marvel, but all of its books are creator-owned and independent of each other, rather than company-owned characters in a shared universe)
MARCHAE: Correct! The ones Iâve read seem incredibly character driven to me and tend to be more focused on themes and ideas
What else are we missing - I feel like weâve covered so much with this one trade!
?
KRIS: I was just gonna ask you that
We havenât really talked about the villain but I think thatâs okay
Donât want to spoil everything
We really want you to read it yourselves, everyone!
MARCHAE: I really hope people read this one!
Along with the others weâve recommended!
KRIS: Itâs very accessible if youâre new to comics, the art is clean and you wonât have trouble following it, and Greg Rucka is arguably one of the most acclaimed writers in comics right now so I promise itâs not a risky buy
although MM did you get it from the library, you said?
MARCHAE: I did using the Hoopla App but I will probably eventually buy it for my collection (I do have a comic collection and I keep them in plastic!)
KRIS: Should we talk about the ending? I can add another FOR REAL MAJOR SPOILERS warning around here
[the VERY END is briefly discussed below]
MARCHAE: Can i just say I was absolutely sad when it ended
I was mad indeed
but yes letâs
KRIS: I really liked it
MARCHAE: I think I just wanted the book to keep going LOL
KRIS: Oh for sure
But thereâs just a lot of great storytelling in those few pages
Even just that first page in Malta
MARCHAE: And it really is a hero saves the day type deal and shows Nile and Andy working collaboratively
again the art is beautiful (I just sent another image let me know if you get it)
KRIS: Just got it
Yeah itâs such a hero shot
MARCHAE: The entire team really comes together!
KRIS: And the use of light is great
MARCHAE: (sent over another one)
KRIS: Yeah I donât think Iâll include that in the post for spoilersâ sake but itâs a great page
I think the âzoom outâ makes it
MARCHAE: but even the quote at the end is amazing: â Soldiers live and wonder whyâ
and it perfectly encapsulates what this story is about thematically
why do they - survivors guilt
the desire to move forward and be better
the desire to end something peacefully and in your own time
KRIS: Glen Cook is a fantasy author you might like -- maybe check out The Black Company
MARCHAE: but you do want this story to keep going and be with these characters for much longer than the trade allows
I WILL!!!
KRIS: Someoneâs adapting that series for TV, I forget who but I think for one of the premium cable channels
There are so many interpersonal nuances in this book it was fun to look at
KRIS: I like that Nico is very clearly ignoring Joe here -- no word balloons, but itâs obvious that this is heated
and classic Andy not wanting to deal
MARCHAE: heâs turned away from him entirely
KRIS: (I love that I can say âclassic Andyâ after just five issues)
MARCHAE: LOLOLOL
sheâs so unimpressed by the entire situation
probably mentally sighing
KRIS: So what do you think of the punishment?
MARCHAE: its kind of devastating I think for Booker - It also makes me curious about what time feels like for these people
KRIS: Yeah
MARCHAE: What does 100 years feel like when youâve lived a fafillion years already
KRIS: They have no friends besides each other
You donât even really get the sense that Booker sleeps around the way Andy does because the team is a liiiiittle bit judgey about it in #1
MARCHAE: LOL they kind of are!
and it would just be complicated - we see that with Andy and her relationship
it reminds me of the first book of a series i like called the discovery of witches
just that idea of engaging in a relationship with someone who is mortal youâre constantly reminded that you are too much - and that the person you are with will never be enough for you because they will perish
(the text is now being turned into a major television show)
KRIS: I really love that the last two pages have no dialogue
Itâs not a long epilogue at all but it also doesnât feel too abrupt because those last two pages are a really well done kind of fade-out
MARCHAE: itâs incredibly effective - just as much as the opening which had very little dialogue
KRIS: I mean, just to really drive this home for everyone, not that I think anyone missed this, but THE LAST LINE OF THE BOOK IS âyouâre aloneâ
And itâs so simple, itâs not a Dramatic! scene at all, itâs so understated, and thatâs why it lands so hard
Andyâs not a Dramatic! person
MARCHAE: and you absolutely know she means it and is not in any way playing with this man
KRIS: ANDY DOES NOT PLAY
MARCHAE: Almost like Iâve worked to hard to get us here  - Iâm disappointed and i hate to do this but it has to be done
KRIS: Itâs so good
This will probably not be our last comic Reaction. Marchae really hopes you read not just this but other Rucka work. In the meantime, follow us on Twitter!
