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Love and Rockets
Locas II
This volume picks up shortly after Maggie and Hopey slong-awaited reunion at the end of the first Locas. Even though her love life remains as chaotic as ever, Hopey takes her first few steps toward responsible adulthoodwith a real job (as a teacher), while a demoralized, divorced Maggie ends up as the manager of a fleabagapartment building where she continues to wrestlewith the demons of her past most prominently in thestunning centerpiece of the volume, the graphic-novel-length Maggie serial, with its stunning, hallucinatorydream finale.
Meanwhile, Ray still carries a major torch for Maggie, butfalls in with the Frogmouth, the volatile bombshell whoseties to local thugs cause him no small amount of grief.
Of course, Maggie, Hopey, and Ray s paths continue tointersect in Hernandez s increasingly complex, intricate, and always vitally realized world.
This omnibus volume compiles stories originally printed in the pages of the comics Penny Century, the one-shot special Maggie & Hopey Color Fun (presented here in black and white), and Love and Rockets Vol. II, and was formerly collected in the volumes Dicks and Deedees, Locas in Love, Ghost of Hoppers and The Education of Hopey Glass.
424 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 2006
About the author
Jaime Hernández
260 books422 followersJaime and his brother Gilbert Hernández often write together under the name "Los Bros Hernández".
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
August 16, 2017
maybe a 4.5
I wasn't as interested in the "second wave" characters that seemed to be the focus of much of the second half of this volume.
However, this book (and all of L&R) really deserves the designation "graphic NOVEL."
I wasn't as interested in the "second wave" characters that seemed to be the focus of much of the second half of this volume.
However, this book (and all of L&R) really deserves the designation "graphic NOVEL."
August 2, 2012
My girls, Maggie and Hopey. I still have my full run of "Love and Rockets," up through the last regular issue(s) produced. I got turned on to Los Bros Hernandez in college, and trolled a few comics shops in Berkeley, looking to get earlier issues and complete the story. Just hearing the characters' names (Maggie, Hopey, Izzy, Daffy, Ray, Doyle...) sends me roaring back to those years of my life, a la Proust and his damned cookie. (Actually, Proust and his madeleine take me back to that time, too, but not "in a good way." Ugh.) I belatedly explored the punk scene, and Central California culture of the 80s with those comics, and fell madly in love with Jaime's characters and their sometimes strange, sometimes familiar experiences. I kind of came of age at that time, learned a lot about who I did (and didn't) want to be, so it's all kind of tied up in my mind with the Locas...good stories, good times.
April 3, 2018
Superbly written and drawn, probably Jamie's best work to date. Maggie, Hopey and Ray face middle age, wonder about the choices they've made, and try to figure out what's next for her or himself. Subtle writing influenced by an undercurrent of surrealism and magical reality that enforces the brittle humanity of the characters. And Jamie's in a world of his own as a comics artist.
January 13, 2019
Great to follow the characters as they age.
November 2, 2019
By far my favorite comic.
January 2, 2020
As much praise as L&R gets, it's not enough.
June 25, 2020
The best book. It just is.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 4, 2009
No one does comics like Jaime Hernandez. His comics have engrossing developments, beautiful art, pitch-perfect dialog, and a total immersion into his world, the world of Maggie and Hopey. So what, you might say, other people can do that too. But Jaime (and his brother Gilbert) are different. What makes their comics special is both their serial nature and their characters changing in-real-time. Unlike superhero serials where the characters never age and never change, the characters in The Hernandez's stories age, change, and grow, and in a different way then in movies, TV shows, or film. Maggie, Hopey, and the rest of their cast have grown over the years from punk kids to less-punk adults. Maggie is no longer the skinny mechanic she once was; Hopey is now a teacher; and the rest of the former punks are still moving on with their now-completely-different lives.
Jaime (and his brother Gilbert, along with their predecessor, King's Walt and Skeezix ) create characters that have narrative arcs that are quite unlike the narrative arcs of characters in other mediums. The stories of Maggie, Hopey, and all the rest will only be complete when the characters are dead. Now, that may seem like a big fucking whatever, but what is different about Love and Rockets is that their stories are being written in real time. The characters are aging with us, and with their authors. And BECAUSE their stories are evolving in real time, there is no over-arching plot. Instead of plot, the characters' lives meander, just like our lives, and there's a beautiful some thing about their messy ramblings in a near-parallel world that has no equal in any medium.
But enough about that. If you're reading this, you probably agree with me. And you probably already know about Love and Rockets. And you've probably already read Locas . So I'll just state what you already suspect: this book is as brilliant as Locas.
We've gone a long way from the first Maggie stories; a long way from Rand Race and quirky superhero stories that reveled in the quotidian and sundry (yet Jaime has returned to the superhero stories - with Penny Century!). After Jaime brought Maggie back to Hopey, we followed them into the LA punk scene, and then to their background and lives in the barrio. Now they're aimless and wandering and on the verge of much delayed adulthood. This book is mainly dalliances, little love stories and missed connections that occupy their time as they try to get a bearing on their changed and changing lives. (Along with a quick marriage, a character who embodies trouble, an off scene death with gangsters, and the seeming magical departure of a major character.)
Maggie and Hopey are drifters, and they are surrounded by drifters, but stability, despair, adulthood, and age are creeping along. How they handle change, their mundane existence, and their encroaching age is what makes this book beautiful.
Jaime (and his brother Gilbert, along with their predecessor, King's Walt and Skeezix ) create characters that have narrative arcs that are quite unlike the narrative arcs of characters in other mediums. The stories of Maggie, Hopey, and all the rest will only be complete when the characters are dead. Now, that may seem like a big fucking whatever, but what is different about Love and Rockets is that their stories are being written in real time. The characters are aging with us, and with their authors. And BECAUSE their stories are evolving in real time, there is no over-arching plot. Instead of plot, the characters' lives meander, just like our lives, and there's a beautiful some thing about their messy ramblings in a near-parallel world that has no equal in any medium.
But enough about that. If you're reading this, you probably agree with me. And you probably already know about Love and Rockets. And you've probably already read Locas . So I'll just state what you already suspect: this book is as brilliant as Locas.
We've gone a long way from the first Maggie stories; a long way from Rand Race and quirky superhero stories that reveled in the quotidian and sundry (yet Jaime has returned to the superhero stories - with Penny Century!). After Jaime brought Maggie back to Hopey, we followed them into the LA punk scene, and then to their background and lives in the barrio. Now they're aimless and wandering and on the verge of much delayed adulthood. This book is mainly dalliances, little love stories and missed connections that occupy their time as they try to get a bearing on their changed and changing lives. (Along with a quick marriage, a character who embodies trouble, an off scene death with gangsters, and the seeming magical departure of a major character.)
Maggie and Hopey are drifters, and they are surrounded by drifters, but stability, despair, adulthood, and age are creeping along. How they handle change, their mundane existence, and their encroaching age is what makes this book beautiful.
May 4, 2010
This is one of the best collections of comic art around, by one of the masters of the form. Jaime Hernandez is also a brilliant writer, for my money the equal or superior of any novelist writing today. In Locas II, Jaime's old Hoppers gang not only grows up but begins to grow old. Hernandez weaves togther the stories of dozens of characters over nearly four decades, but the main focus is the tragicomic triangle of the lovable Maggie Chascarillo, her on-again, off-again girlfriend Hopey Glass, and Maggie's former boyfriend, the depressed and frustrated ex-artist Ray Dominguez. Maggie struggles with love in all its forms as she marries and divorces, tries to keep her insane friend Izzy safe, and has her first affair with a woman other than Hopey--the bizarre bimbo Vivian Solis. Hopey is forced to grow up at last, much against her will, and she even begins to feel a few pangs of conscience when she hurts people. Ray, who has become the archetypal lonely guy, drifts downward into LA's semi-criminal stripper subculture, where he too encounters Vivian. None of them quite know what to do with themselves, and they all feel the constant pull of their old Hoppers memories. The story is credible and psychologically true, and there are plenty of laughs along with the drama. There are three great new female characters, too: Vivian, the Russian giantess Alarma (who may be a superheroine), and Angel, a charmingly candid young jockette. I won't soon forget any of them, and I won't forget the stories of Izzy's diabolical psychosis, Ray's involvement in a murder, or Hopey's shattered reaction when her old lover Terry doesn't even recognize her anymore. Ignore the word 'graphic;' this is a great novel, period.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 30, 2016
Absolutely a great book. Haven't read anything else from Jaime Hernández, but I sure will now. In short: the book is about the daily lives of people, mainly Maggie and her closest friend/sort-off-lover Hopey. Sometimes stories are centered about other people, like friends or people from the neighborhood. It reads like a big soap, sort off, though it doesn't feel overly dramatic. Some episodes are about the small things in life, like having a chat on the phone without having something relevant to say, just chat. Or going to work and waiting for the day to be over. Driving home from somewhere...
It's those small events that give bigger meaning; you know, sometimes just nothing happens, or things turn out different from your expectations, people see you make wrong choices, but you still need to find out on your own terms. Locas is about those seemingly small things, that end up being you(r life) when all adds up. Hernández really took the time for these small things to get significant and somehow knows exactly what these things are. I'm really impressed by how much I felt connected to Maggie and her worries, victories, small adventures and dreams even though I'm not Mexican(?), American, woman, gay or the same age.
I also love the artwork; All characters are surprisingly realistic. The facial expressions are spot on and I really like how all people look normal. They are never too comically, or awkwardly sexualised, or stereotyped. The drawings are one of the reasons it took me so long to finish the entire book. (the other one was that I didn't want it to end)
Will definitely read more of Maggie and Hopey's stories after this!
It's those small events that give bigger meaning; you know, sometimes just nothing happens, or things turn out different from your expectations, people see you make wrong choices, but you still need to find out on your own terms. Locas is about those seemingly small things, that end up being you(r life) when all adds up. Hernández really took the time for these small things to get significant and somehow knows exactly what these things are. I'm really impressed by how much I felt connected to Maggie and her worries, victories, small adventures and dreams even though I'm not Mexican(?), American, woman, gay or the same age.
I also love the artwork; All characters are surprisingly realistic. The facial expressions are spot on and I really like how all people look normal. They are never too comically, or awkwardly sexualised, or stereotyped. The drawings are one of the reasons it took me so long to finish the entire book. (the other one was that I didn't want it to end)
Will definitely read more of Maggie and Hopey's stories after this!
August 8, 2013
One of the most fabulous fictional worlds I've ever had the pleasure to visit. I want to be friends with these characters. Given the intimacy of Hernandez's storytelling, I feel I am friends with these characters.
Pretty sure this elevates Jaime Hernandez to one of my favorite artists. Not in the narrow sense, but I mean, of all the ARTISTS whose works I've explored, including musicians, authors, and sure, artists in that narrower sense of the word too.
Love & Rockets is a beautiful labor of love. If I ever get a chance to read the first collection (the library only has this second volume...), I'll jump at the chance. I can't say Charlie Burns's Black Hole left so profound an impression; I've never been as amazed by the comic book format, and I've been on and off of the superhero stuff since childhood.
Hopey appeals to the male lesbian in me. I identify closer still to Ray Dominguez and Maggie, whose anxieties are specific to their long-developed characters yet recognizable to anyone who's paid any attention to their human experience.
Gush, gush, gush. That's all I can do. What a book.
Pretty sure this elevates Jaime Hernandez to one of my favorite artists. Not in the narrow sense, but I mean, of all the ARTISTS whose works I've explored, including musicians, authors, and sure, artists in that narrower sense of the word too.
Love & Rockets is a beautiful labor of love. If I ever get a chance to read the first collection (the library only has this second volume...), I'll jump at the chance. I can't say Charlie Burns's Black Hole left so profound an impression; I've never been as amazed by the comic book format, and I've been on and off of the superhero stuff since childhood.
Hopey appeals to the male lesbian in me. I identify closer still to Ray Dominguez and Maggie, whose anxieties are specific to their long-developed characters yet recognizable to anyone who's paid any attention to their human experience.
Gush, gush, gush. That's all I can do. What a book.
August 11, 2011
O que dizer de uma série underground que se extende há 25 anos, cujas protagonistas são duas chicanas punks gostosas que vão envelhecendo, engordando, ganhando celulite e mudando de empregos e de amores? Apesar do apelo imediato, Jaime tem o pulso firme tanto para o desenho quanto para a narrativa, costurando os anos que se passam de maneira realista e sem esquecer do passado de suas personagens - que, em determinado ponto, parece tão distante em aventuras fantasiosas em comparação com as armadilhas emocionais e rotineiras que prontamente tomam conta da obra a partir de seu primeiro quarto. A série faz realmente jus a sua fama e mostra-se indispensável a qualquer um que goste de quadrinhos. Como as muitas edições podem assustar quem quiser aventurar-se, recomendo as compilações "Locas I" + "Locas II" ou "The Locas Collection", que contêm as histórias quase na íntegra e em ordem cronológica.
April 17, 2013
A huge come down from the first collection, and a book that becomes increasingly interested in smaller things told with less imagination the closer it moves to the end.
No risks, just pure soap opera. I loved these characters when they were young and the strange world they lived in. The Locas are out of Hoppers (even Izzy), Magpie and Hopey are in LA living apart and lonely in their pointless lives, and more than half the book is given to a walk-on boyfriend from volume one and his broken relationship with a girl he lusts for a much as he hates her.
Think of the story arc of a season of Grey's Anatomy and you have this volume.
No risks, just pure soap opera. I loved these characters when they were young and the strange world they lived in. The Locas are out of Hoppers (even Izzy), Magpie and Hopey are in LA living apart and lonely in their pointless lives, and more than half the book is given to a walk-on boyfriend from volume one and his broken relationship with a girl he lusts for a much as he hates her.
Think of the story arc of a season of Grey's Anatomy and you have this volume.
April 24, 2013
Jaime Hernandez is one of the greatest cartoonists of all time (tell me something I don't know, right?). In this chunky piece of bold, funny and poignant art, he delights the reader with stories that are both down-to-earth real and darkly surreal.
Miss Maggie Chascarillo is the most lovable female character of the comics pantheon, so do yourself a favor and meet her as soon as you can.
But don't start your "Love & Rockets/Locas" journey with this book, it's best savored if you get "Maggie the Mechanic", "The Girl from Hoppers" and "Perla La Loca" first.
Miss Maggie Chascarillo is the most lovable female character of the comics pantheon, so do yourself a favor and meet her as soon as you can.
But don't start your "Love & Rockets/Locas" journey with this book, it's best savored if you get "Maggie the Mechanic", "The Girl from Hoppers" and "Perla La Loca" first.
December 19, 2011
What can be said about Love & Rockets that hasn't already been said better than I can say it. Locas II follows Maggie, Hopey and Ray around their exploits as they slowly grow older and their lives continue to brush up against the fantastic and the surreal. I'm fascinated by how Jaime pulls off short stories in the comic format. Many of them as short as a single page. Some of the best comic storytelling out there is housed in this enormous tome.
July 11, 2010
Whereas the 80s Love And Rockets covered the exploits of Maggie and Hopey in their 20s in the L.A. punk world (and in some sci-fi side stories as well), this expands the scope from their childhoods to present day, where they are in their 40s and dealing with aging and some of the disappointments of life. It's as deep and compelling as any novel, and Hernandez's art is amazing.
February 22, 2011
Hernandez is just the best. The best at showing what (and how) women think. The best at depicting Hispanic culture. The best at showing the 80s punk scene, and what happens to scenesters when they grow up. He's the best at showing evolving relationships, and the best (and maybe only) artist who can represent reality and magic at the same time.
November 9, 2013
Las desventuras de Maggie y Hopey empiezan a tomar senderos propios, donde la mutua nostalgia es a ratos un lastre frente a las agridulces experiencias que no eluden el hambre, la soledad, el reencuentro con viejos amores y el inevitable repaso al alucinante microuniverso de Jaime Hernández.
September 29, 2010
Another addictive Love & Rockets collection. While I was a little disappointed with the first panels of the book (they didn't seem to have the same detail as Hernandez's other books), I was soon caught up again in the minor and major dramas of the lives of Maggie and Hopey.
July 9, 2012
Loved it -- fun, compelling, clever, and addictive. The girls from Hoppers have become some of my best friends. So glad the Bros. Hernandez are still churning these gems out. This is a great collection that consolidates all the Hopey and Maggie story lines from the later years.
May 14, 2015
Not quite as compelling as the first volume, but still love Maggie and Hopey so much! They've both aged - Maggie's dealing with a divorce, Hopey's trying to get a real job as a teacher's assistant. Old characters make appearance, but there are some new additions as well.
January 7, 2010
I love Maggie and Hopey forever and ever.
June 3, 2011
Amazing.
September 24, 2014
I didn't like this quite as much as the first Locas collection, but maybe it's just because it's not as long.
November 11, 2010
Like Proust w/hot pants.
October 16, 2011
The best. Everyone should read this series.
April 22, 2012
vivian's shenanigans were too addicting! couldn't put it down...
June 5, 2014
Excellent read.
April 11, 2015
An older fatter down on her luck Maggie and a more mature Hopey still fascinate.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews