We Can Never Go Home Vol. 1

We Can Never Go Home #1-5

by Matthew Rosenberg, Patrick Kindlon, Josh Hood (Illustrations)

The story of two teenagers, a mixtape, a stolen car, a fully loaded .45, strange abilities, dead drug dealers, and their money. A dark and modern story about getting lost and finding yourself on the backroads of America. Collecting We Can Never Go Home #1-5.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction, Young Adult

160 pages, Paperback

First published November 25, 2015

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

"I haven’t always been a writer. My parents are writers and my brother is a writer, and I resisted that as long as I could. When I was 17, I hopped in a band’s van and I went on tour for a summer, and that was it, that was what I wanted to do. I ran a record label for 10 years, a small indie punk label. I did everything in music that you can do that doesn’t involve having musical ability. Eventually the music business, probably in a similar way to comics, will just start to break your heart, and I realized one day that I kind of hated music. I was resigned to thinking, if I’m going to be involved in music forever, I’m going to hate it for the rest of my life. I just stopped. I stopped having any sort of business with music, any involvement.

I read comics my whole life, so I just naturally fell back into another medium that is marginalized and hard to make a living in."

Source: http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles...

Writer of comics WE CAN NEVER GO HOME, SECRET WARS JOURNAL, OUR WORK FILLS THE PEWS, 12 REASONS TO DIE, & MENU.

Reviews

[Shelby *trains flying monkeys* · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started to give this dang book a 2 star, but it was like a trainwreck..I couldn't look away and I thought about it all last night. So a 3 it is getting.

Madison is one of the 'popular' girls and is going out with that hot football player. They go off and are doing the smooching thing when he wants to take it farther. Madison says no. Then a little dork named Dustin shows up and thinks he is saving the day. Not. Madison's eyes go all glowy and she kicks some ass.


Dustin is a first class hanger on person and he tells her that they will be judged, because he has powers also. He can kill people.
Dustin gets a bit power happy because he is a dumbass.


The crap hits the fan because of more of Dustin's stupidity.


So they have to go on the run. Lots of Madison being stupid and listening to Dustin happens. She even takes his advice to go all superheroey.


The whole book consisted of me wondering if she has so much powers and is so ass-kicky then why does she listen to dork ass Dustin? Then a naked picture and the size of certain body parts made me say "ohhhhh"

(I would totally share that image-but I get flagged enough)

Totally worth the read so that you can sit here with me and shake your head. Do it.

Booksource: I was gifted a copy of this book from a wonderful book fairy.


Check out my buddy SUSAN's review I hadn't heard of this little book until she clued me into it.

[Kelly (and the Book Boar) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Find all of my reviews at: http://52bookminimum.blogspot.com/



What just happened?

Okay, so maaaaaaaaybe if this . . .



and



(without the smoochyface)

had a baby it might look a little something like this crazy mess.

This is the story of Maddie and Dustin and what happens after Maddie gets a bit too PMS-y and starts zapping laser beams out her eyeballs. Unfortunately for Maddie, no one ever bothered having a heart-to-heart with her like this guy . . .



But luckily for Dustin a wardrobe malfunction provided a “music montage” type of scene like this . . .



(There’s a spoiler in there somewhere *wink*)

I have no clue what else to say about this story. I think maybe you’re supposed to do drugs before reading it but Whitney always told me that crack is whack so I refrained. Be forewarned, if you too just say no to drugs you’ll probably look like this the entire time you’re reading . . .



I’m probably supposed to say something about the art before signing off, huh? It was aiight.

The source of this book is about the most coolio thing ever. A friend bought this and then gifted it to a mutual friend who then gifted it to me. Kind of a pay-it-forward for all of us booknerdy delinquents. Many thanks to both friends for thinking of me!

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, that was interesting, I guess.

This book is a classic case of not knowing or understanding its own identity. Is it a killers-on-the-run plot? Is it a (bad) teen romance? Is it a play on Breaking Bad? Is it a government conspiracy? Is it a Heroes rip-off? It's all this, and more.

Duncan, all-around geek and high school punching bad, is on his last straw when he meets Madison, superpowered-but-doesn't-know-how-or-why. They run away, attempting to rob drug dealers, running afoul of the local police and feds, running headlong into a crazy Rah's al-Guhl-like character with superpowered henchmen. It's really all over the place and has a severe self-identity crisis.

It's not a bad story, but desperately needs to be pared down to the basics and rebuilt from there. And maybe see a psychiatrist along the way for treatment for multiple personality disorder. Even still, if I see the next volume, I'll probably pick it up.

Thanks to a Goodreads friend for sending this one along in a "kind of pay-it-forward for all of us booknerdy delinquents", as she says; I was third to receive it (I think). Pretty cool, no? Many thanks!

[SUSAN *Nevertheless,she persisted* · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid 3.5 stars. There was a lot I liked but where it lost me was continuity. I loved Madison's character. She had a lot of depth,she was solid.
Where it fell a little flat was Duncan's character. I couldn't get a grip on him,he was all over the place. He stood up to having his a*s beat down all the time,perhaps to the point of the ridiculous.
I liked the story and will follow it to see where they go with Madison's character.

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

What if Stray Bullets dealt with superpowers? Madison is the cool girl in school with a secret, she is superstrong. Duncan is the class outcast. They accidentally kill someone and go on the run. The dialogue and relationships are fantastic. I'd love to see this continue on. There's some intriguing world-building started in this book and I'd love to see where it goes.

[Eleni Ouzouni (Life is Art) · Rating 3 out of 5]

H Madison είναι το τέλειο κορίτσι! Πλούσια, όμορφη και δημοφιλής ενώ τα έχει επίσης με τον διάσημο συμμαθητή της και παίκτη του America Football. Όλα κυλάνε καλά μέχρι την ημέρα όπου μετά από έντονο περιστατικό ανακαλύπτει πως έχει υπερφυσικές δυνάμεις που δεν μπορεί να χειριστεί.
Μπροστά στο συμβάν είναι και ο Dustin, ένα αρκετά περιθωριοποιημένο αγόρι από το σχολείο τους. Αυτό θα τους δέσει και θα αρχίσουν σιγά σιγά να κάνουν παρέα αλλά οι μπελάδες τους δεν θα έχουν τελειωμό με αποτέλεσμα να το σκάσουν μαζί μακρυά από τα σπίτια τους.

Ήταν λίγο περίεργο! Ήταν σαν ένα πάντρεμα X-men με το The end of the fucking World και ενώ ο συνδιασμός αυτών των δυο έπρεπε να το κάνει φοβερό(τουλάχιστον στα δικά μου μάτια) κάπου το έχανε!
Υπήρχαν κομμάτια που μου άρεσαν πολύ και άλλα που μου φαινόντουσταν λίγο γελοία δυστυχώς!
Θα τσεκάρω όμως και άλλες δουλείες του Matthew Rosenberg

[James DeSantis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good old coming of age story with a super powerful badass teenager and a quick talking assholish kindish boyfriend. Let's go!

So Madison, the main star of the series, has some extremely badass powers. Her eyes light up and she becomes super strong and fucks up shit. Then we have Duncan who is basically a sly asshole nerdy dude who decides to one day stand up to bullies. When he does Madison shows off her powers. They begin to connect and one day he makes a mixtape for her. After that she goes to visit him and in the middle of him getting attacked by his father she comes in and ends that. Then they run away, hence they can never go home.

Good: The dialog can be pretty sharp at times, and well done, and you feel Madison and Duncan relationship grow. The art is pretty solid too and mostly easy to follow. The first half of the story feels like a coming of age type story with a lot more death than usual and high stakes. The runaway feel is very interesting.

Bad: The second half becomes a "bigger" story by adding big government agency stuff, secret organizations, and it just didn't gel with the first. I also thought the humor was hit or miss, sometimes solid, sometimes cringe worthy. It's a little jumpy too and shaky in terms of pacing.

Overall this was solid stuff. It's not amazing but very solid and fun read. Some awesome ideas and it's sweet to see the start off Matt's career and already seeing how far he's gotten in just a little time. A 3 out of 5.

[Skye Kilaen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Violent, not at all hopeful, but an extremely compelling graphic novel. Teenagers with superpowers doing the teenage angst version of Bad Decision Theater, on the run because of their powers and tangling themselves up with crime. Why did I love this? Did I just get into the inevitability of disaster? I don't usually go for such messy characters, especially young men who are as fucked up and manipulative as the male main character here, but Duncan's desperate, broken behavior made me want to wrap him in a blanket and send him to therapy so he could stop self-destructing and taking other people with him.

The female half of the duo, former popular kid Madison, was the one I rooted for, even knowing there was probably no way to save her situation. I was pleasantly surprised with how okay I could be with her fate, and that's all I'll say about that. If you're looking for a reality-based take on what would happen to the teenage mutants Xavier didn't find and bring to his school, this is your book. I've read this twice and liked it even better the second time around.

[Des Fox · Rating 3 out of 5]

So a while back, I read a book about super-powered teens called "They're Not Like Us". If you follow my reviews, you'll know already that I was not a fan. We Can Never Go Home, in more ways than one, follows a lot of the same tropes and ideas as that book, but consistently executes them in a more graceful, relatable fashion. There are a lot of cute moments in this book, and at times, Madison shines as the breakout character. The art is rock-solid and a lot of fun to look at, while the punk-rock ethos of the book provides a unique atmosphere, that helps makes this a very readable title. On the other side of things, parts of the storytelling are amateurish. The pacing of the book is way too fast at times, taking little time to savor the moments in which are characters are meant to grow, which makes them difficult to empathize with, and their arcs harder to buy. This problem is emphasized by the book's abrupt ending, though I imagine that had more to do with the uncertainty of the creators coming back for round two. The dialogue is really hit-or-miss, and in the end, while it outpaces its nearest contemporary, as a book about teens, it still has leagues to go before it catches up to the heart and authenticity of Deadly Class, another book I couldn't help but think about while reading this one.

We Can Never Go Home is a solid read, with big potential. Now that the creators have experienced some success, I'm hoping the follow-up story is a more focused affair that works on dishing up some answers.

[Lady An ☽ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ya me aburrió y lo dejé de leer en la página ¿10?.

[Frédéric · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clumsy teenage Bonnie & Clyde with powers.

The story starts really well; the kids are cool,  dialogues hit the spot, offbeat humor mixed with very violent action gives some good interesting scenes and the pacing is good... up till the last issue which seems somewhat rushed-up and out of place compared compared to the 4 previous ones. Was this shady organizations stuff necessary? The promised volume 2 having never been delivered I reckon we'll never know.

I would have hesitated with 3* if not for Josh Hood who really does an admirable job in both art and storytelling.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very mixed feelings about this one. It kept me engaged but I'm not really sure what it has to say. The character beats rang true more often than not, but there were moments that felt off, like the writing was a little amateurish. I give it credit for doing something different, and for writing a romance (of sorts) that subverts your expectations. In general I thought Maddie was a great character, and there were a number of other really interesting characters and ideas, but I'm not sure any of it lived up to its potential. Three stars for a complicated female protagonist who doesn't need to be rescued, and because even if the book wasn't perfect, I didn't feel like I wasted my time. Not sure I'll keep reading, however.

[A Fan of Comics · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this one!

A teenage couple decide they can be out on their own since both have super abilities. However, after some trouble with the law, someone may not be who they seem...
If you like revenge stories you will like this book. It was clever and smart enough not to be too cliche. Kind of reminds me of Deadly Class and maybe a little like the X-men. I really liked the dynamic between the two main characters. Their relationship is interesting. This book tries so hard! Sometimes a little too hard, but I feel like they nailed the teenage superhero drama and even wouldn’t mind reading more from this series. I also really liked the colors for this book! It was really well done.

[Liam · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*

[Paige · Rating 1 out of 5]

Okay so I completely and absolutely hated this. It reminded me so much of fanfiction, the really bad kind of fanfiction.
Examples of the tropes that are in fanfiction and in this book:
-Everything is super forced and dramatic for absolutely no reason.
-All these random people show up with no background.
-There's all this weird teenager sexual angst.
-The boy is from a troubled home so he obviously has a gun and pretends to be the nice guy when he's super manipulative.
-The main characters were at school for a second then had to go on the run because things are too hard at home, and no one understands them.
-Every single person was a cardboard cut out of an interesting idea.
-Unnecessary violence, nudity, and throwing up.
-Every single plot point was obvious from a mile away.
-Their angst was uncalled for and unnecessary.
-The only girls beside the main character were bitchy, mean, and self preoccupied.

I can think of more but I want to bury this book from my memory ASAP and forget it ever happened.

[Jay · Rating 1 out of 5]

I picked this graphic novel up a while back and only now got around to reading it.

Unfortunately, the story reads like so much claptrap with no character worth rooting for and frankly it was a deeply unsatisfying read because of it.

More could be said but that's the best I can say without going even more negative.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I knew nothing about this book before buying it and was completely blown away. A tale of teenage love, violence, and alienation with a punk rock soundtrack, this was a great blind buy.

[Anna (Bananas) · Rating 4 out of 5]

That took a couple of interesting left turns near the end.

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

Violence felt repetitive and I didn't really like the art style.

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty raw and freewheeling teenagers-with-powers road trip yarn, with solid artwork and a few twists and turns.

Heavily indebted to all things Brian Wood, like Demo and Local, and to GNs like Teenagers from Mars, but not quite as good as any of those works.

[Joe Crawford · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a tough one for me. "I want to like it more than I do" applies for me here. Morally, the protagonists are so far from my center that I have a hard time rooting/relating to them. Still a worthwhile read I think.

[Sara G · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't decide if this is a completely anticlimactic let down or a relatively creative way to handle a story like this. Ether way, it's a really quick read and the art is nice...

[C.W. Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, this was bloody awesome! Literally!! The art was a bit plain for my tastes but the fast-paced, action-packed story MORE than made up for it. Is Volume Two out because I need it in my life!

[47Time · Rating 4 out of 5]

The artist draws some amazing eyes. His faces are also beautiful, especially close up. The comic starts innocently enough, but quickly spirals into superhero land. Still, it's more realistic than a regular superhero book. And there's a reference to 47 in the last issue. Oh, yeah. 4 stars easy.

Madison has a secret. She has a superpower that manifests when she is anxious. Duncan witnesses this power when she gets angry at her boyfriend. The two agree to keep the event a secret. On the way to visit Duncan, Madison witnesses his father beating Duncan to within an inch of his life. She intervenes and accidentally kills Duncan's father with one superpowered blow. Duncan offers to protect her, but they must run away from home.

Duncan plans to threaten some drug dealers into giving up their cash. Things turn for the worse when Madison has to fight the bagman. They make their getaway, but the police catch up to them. Madison goes full Hulk on them while Duncan grabs their things. In the confusion he doesn't grab the money or her clothes, so the next scene has her shopping for not just plain clothes but a costume in the funniest scene in the story.

A black book Duncan found on the drug dealer has more locations visited by the bagman, so they choose the closest one. Madison doesn't want this lifestyle, but she opens up to Duncan and kisses him. It turns out it's not Madison, but a shapeshifter working for Carroll, the man they robbed. He offers them employment in his organization. The two refuse and leave, only to be stopped by the FBI's own superpowered team. The FBI's deal only extends to Madison, so they refuse that offer as well and reconsider Carroll's.

Carroll tests their abilities and they pass, but Madison wants out. Duncan helps her escape and she calls the FBI. When Duncan kills the FBI agent that offered them a deal, Madison helps him escape. The two part ways, but she visits him one last time before returning to the life of a fugitive.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

With its esoteric punk references and ridiculously great writing, this was one of the best series I've read in about a decade. It reminds me so much of Chris Claremont's stellar run on the X-Men, mixed with an angst-ridden counterculture vibe of The Doom Generation.

I found myself anticipating the release of each individual issue, and twice I even traveled to multiple comic book stores to track down the newest installment - something rarely required since the Internet Age began! But between its small publisher and the prices on eBay, the individual issues were really difficult to come across, and are already considered collectors items. That said, I would highly recommend getting your hands on this trade paperback.

This month, after buying what I thought would be the final issue, I learned the series is coming back in the new year, and I cannot wait to see where these characters go next!

[Ian Foley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd heard good things about the comics Black Mask has been putting out so I gave this trade paperback collection a shot. Reminds me a little of Brian Wood and Becky Cloonan's Demo. This is a well done punk rock approach to super powered beings. I like that the main characters are neither good nor evil. They're kids and make dumb decisions that have disastrous consequences. While the art can be inconsistent in places, the page layouts, character acting, and general storytelling are better than you normally see from new artists in indie comics. The mixtape playlists for each chapter are amazing, too.

[Dan Santillo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the first 4 chapters of the story but by the last issue it got a bit cute with the ending and fell flat . I'm hoping that it had more to do with getting Maddie into the Black Mask shared universe . All problems aside this is a must read and I feel at some point we will be hearing about it being optioned for tv/movie

[Jason Ragle · Rating 3 out of 5]

The punk attitude that permeated the book worked a little too well for me. The story and art felt "punk" in the sense that there is passion and righteousness to it, but the performance is a little weak and wobbly in places. The younger me would have loved this book, but the older, jaded me kinda just smiles a little wistfully.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great bit of teen-romance/teen-angst/rebel-without-a-cause. The introduction of super powers to this mix of course makes it all the more exciting, but it's really the characters that make this story excel. I want to read more about these characters, but I'm also interested in the world that the authors are setting up. Overall, a terrific first volume.

[Justine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received this trade in my January Landfallfreight. We received a poster of the same book and the poster seemed way more kick ass than the actual book. This volume just confused me. Like I get it you have powers but why Rob and kill people constantly? I don't know it just wasn't my favourite. I might continue to see if the series gets better.