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Wild Cards
Wild Cards: Now & Then
Two heroes revisit a traumatic incident from their past--and learn hard truths in the present--in this original graphic novel set in the Wild Cards universe, where an alien virus mutates some and grants superpowers to others, created by the #1 New York Times bestselling author of A Game of Thrones.
In 1946, an alien virus ravaged the world, its results as random as a hand of cards. Those infected either draw the black queen and die, draw an ace and receive superpowers, or draw the joker and are bizarrely mutated.
Over a year ago, the U.N.'s Committee for Extraordinary Interventions sent ace heroes Ana Cortez and Kate Brandt--Earth Witch and Curveball--to Brazil to investigate Aurora Mission, a charity that claimed to provide education and medical care for those affected by the Wild Card virus. But local ace and activist Gabriel Silva reported abuses. Ana and Kate helped him get to the truth, which turned out to be far more sinister than anyone expected.
Ana and Kate thought that case was closed, but now a Brazilian official has questions. Did they do the right thing or overreach their authority? The case amply demonstrates that, even in a world of incredible powers, there will always be victims.
Written by New York Times bestselling author Carrie Vaughn with art by Eisner-nominated creator Renae De Liz, this dynamic story gives readers a new look into the Wild Cards universe, and shows how even those with great powers have their limits.
In 1946, an alien virus ravaged the world, its results as random as a hand of cards. Those infected either draw the black queen and die, draw an ace and receive superpowers, or draw the joker and are bizarrely mutated.
Over a year ago, the U.N.'s Committee for Extraordinary Interventions sent ace heroes Ana Cortez and Kate Brandt--Earth Witch and Curveball--to Brazil to investigate Aurora Mission, a charity that claimed to provide education and medical care for those affected by the Wild Card virus. But local ace and activist Gabriel Silva reported abuses. Ana and Kate helped him get to the truth, which turned out to be far more sinister than anyone expected.
Ana and Kate thought that case was closed, but now a Brazilian official has questions. Did they do the right thing or overreach their authority? The case amply demonstrates that, even in a world of incredible powers, there will always be victims.
Written by New York Times bestselling author Carrie Vaughn with art by Eisner-nominated creator Renae De Liz, this dynamic story gives readers a new look into the Wild Cards universe, and shows how even those with great powers have their limits.
160 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2023
About the author
Carrie Vaughn
283 books4,555 followersCarrie Vaughn is the author more than twenty novels and over a hundred short stories. She's best known for her New York Times bestselling series of novels about a werewolf named Kitty who hosts a talk radio advice show for the supernaturally disadvantaged. In 2018, she won the Philip K. Dick Award for Bannerless, a post-apocalyptic murder mystery. She's published over 20 novels and 100 short stories, two of which have been finalists for the Hugo Award. She's a contributor to the Wild Cards series of shared world superhero books edited by George R. R. Martin and a graduate of the Odyssey Fantasy Writing Workshop.
An Air Force brat, she survived her nomadic childhood and managed to put down roots in Boulder, Colorado, where she collects hobbies.
Visit her at www.carrievaughn.com
For writing advice and essays, check out her Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/carrievaughn
An Air Force brat, she survived her nomadic childhood and managed to put down roots in Boulder, Colorado, where she collects hobbies.
Visit her at www.carrievaughn.com
For writing advice and essays, check out her Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/carrievaughn
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 12, 2024
This is an excellent graphic novel set in the Wild Cards universe. It's told as a U.N. investigation of Kate and Ana (Curveball and Earth Witch) and their actions in investigating a joker mission/camp in a remote area of Brazil. The art is excellent, very colorful and vibrant with simple backgrounds and details, but with masterfully and subtly rendered facial expressions and body language. The panel that shows Kate propping her feet on the desk of the interviewer with her cap pulled down over her eyes was especially memorable. It's also a very well-written and well-paced story, with a poignant message as well as a captivating adventure. There were several lines of dialog in Portuguese (I assume) for which I wished translations had been provided, and I'm not sure what the importance of Kate's hat represented, but I enjoyed it very much. Old guy's pet-peeve complaint: I found a fifteen page not-very-appealing-looking "preview" of a different book they were advertising at the end of this book annoying. If they want you to pay twenty-nine dollars for a funny-book (as GRRM himself has called them), they shouldn't make you pay for such a long and silly commercial.
August 13, 2023
George R. R. Martin Presents Wild Cards: Now and Then: A Graphic Novel
by Carrie Vaughn
A dynamic current story showing that need for political and social change in the Wild cards universe. The use of wild card aces to help provide evidence and safety for the world is brought to the forefront of this story. Two of the aces from Inside strait and the committee are investigating South American despots, and joker children. Finding that financial misuse of the poor and joker afflicted children, is a modern look at the despicable use of wealth made by exploitation.
Like most wild card stories this book looks at modern inequality and social conflict. The authors and artists use the story to highlight social problems of the day. This story shows the problems of political crimes against humanity in South America that have slowly been exposed by immigrants and political refugee problems.
by Carrie Vaughn
A dynamic current story showing that need for political and social change in the Wild cards universe. The use of wild card aces to help provide evidence and safety for the world is brought to the forefront of this story. Two of the aces from Inside strait and the committee are investigating South American despots, and joker children. Finding that financial misuse of the poor and joker afflicted children, is a modern look at the despicable use of wealth made by exploitation.
Like most wild card stories this book looks at modern inequality and social conflict. The authors and artists use the story to highlight social problems of the day. This story shows the problems of political crimes against humanity in South America that have slowly been exposed by immigrants and political refugee problems.
October 5, 2024
Kate and Ana are called to the UN to answer for a Committee investigation gone wrong. In flashback we see their trip to Brazil to look into a secretive joker aid charity whose benefactees keep disappearing.
The immediate hero story is adequate; we get to see Curveball and Earth Witch reunited, using their spectacular hero powers in brilliant eye-catching color. Cool. The action scenes aren't the best and the characters are kind of one-dimensional, but eh there's only so much you can fit into a book this short.
Where the story shines is in its broader aspects. The wild card children are, of course, being trafficked and exploited. And the man behind the charity has extensive official cover due to mass corruption fueled by the immense profits of trafficking joker and ace children. Kate, Ana, and local ace Gabriel save a handful of kids and put one bad actor out of business, but the bad guy notes that two more trafficking rings will spring up in his place. As long as there's money in it, it won't--it can't--be stopped. They may save individuals but they can't stop the rotten system. And, of course, Gabriel is later murdered for interfering.
Now & Then is a great example of the Wild Cards series' strengths, its ability and willingness to shine a light on the grim problems and broken systems of the real world. It's a service and a verisimilitude that you just can't get from a Marvel or DC title.
The immediate hero story is adequate; we get to see Curveball and Earth Witch reunited, using their spectacular hero powers in brilliant eye-catching color. Cool. The action scenes aren't the best and the characters are kind of one-dimensional, but eh there's only so much you can fit into a book this short.
Where the story shines is in its broader aspects. The wild card children are, of course, being trafficked and exploited. And the man behind the charity has extensive official cover due to mass corruption fueled by the immense profits of trafficking joker and ace children. Kate, Ana, and local ace Gabriel save a handful of kids and put one bad actor out of business, but the bad guy notes that two more trafficking rings will spring up in his place. As long as there's money in it, it won't--it can't--be stopped. They may save individuals but they can't stop the rotten system. And, of course, Gabriel is later murdered for interfering.
Now & Then is a great example of the Wild Cards series' strengths, its ability and willingness to shine a light on the grim problems and broken systems of the real world. It's a service and a verisimilitude that you just can't get from a Marvel or DC title.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 28, 2023
Enjoyable but slight graphic novel in the Wild Cards universe. Another tale of good intentions and mixed outcomes.
January 3, 2024
Then: The faith-based Aurora Mission provides food, shelter, and education for Rio de Janeiro's abandoned joker children, but locals wonder why the kids who enter the mission are never seen again. There are rumors of forced-labor camps and trafficking rings. The Committee sends two internationally renowned aces from American Hero to poke around…
Now: Over a year later, Curveball and Earth Witch are recalled to U. N. headquarters to be deposed by a lawyer from the Brazil Attorney General's office. Some of their unauthorized actions during what was supposed to be a routine hands-off inquiry are now being scrutinized…
This original graphic novel by Carrie Vaughn is fun, although a bit thin at times. The art by Renae De Liz is clean, bright and vibrant. I especially enjoy her river scenes.
Earth Witch's powers are allowed to flourish here after being given short shrift in the novels. She can sink whole platoons of soldiers, raise defensive earthen bulwarks, and tunnel holes through defenses. Unfortunately, however, the scenes of her leading the children out of the jungle are much too reminiscent of Gardener rescuing similarly mistreated joker children in the Congo in the prior book, another example of the series' tendency to repeat itself.
Chronologically, this should be read after the Committee triad. The frame narrative occurs in the months immediately following Suicide Kings (Lohengrin sports the eye patch from his recent fight with Radical). The flashbacks occur between Inside Straight and Busted Flush (John Fortune is merged with Sekhmet).
Next up: Wild Cards: Sins of the Father (graphic novel).
Now: Over a year later, Curveball and Earth Witch are recalled to U. N. headquarters to be deposed by a lawyer from the Brazil Attorney General's office. Some of their unauthorized actions during what was supposed to be a routine hands-off inquiry are now being scrutinized…
This original graphic novel by Carrie Vaughn is fun, although a bit thin at times. The art by Renae De Liz is clean, bright and vibrant. I especially enjoy her river scenes.
Earth Witch's powers are allowed to flourish here after being given short shrift in the novels. She can sink whole platoons of soldiers, raise defensive earthen bulwarks, and tunnel holes through defenses. Unfortunately, however, the scenes of her leading the children out of the jungle are much too reminiscent of Gardener rescuing similarly mistreated joker children in the Congo in the prior book, another example of the series' tendency to repeat itself.
Chronologically, this should be read after the Committee triad. The frame narrative occurs in the months immediately following Suicide Kings (Lohengrin sports the eye patch from his recent fight with Radical). The flashbacks occur between Inside Straight and Busted Flush (John Fortune is merged with Sekhmet).
Next up: Wild Cards: Sins of the Father (graphic novel).
July 31, 2023
I found this at SDCC 2023 and bought it because it was by Carrie Vaughn. I loved her book Dreams of the Golden Age and its sequel and wanted to try this. I didn't realize it was a part of one of those "shared universe" series, but it can be read on its own. I loved the art. Kate is depicted perfectly in all her bored insouciance and Ana is tough and loving at the same time.
There are some continuity issues. Ana pulls out her original report, but from where? She is not carrying any kind of purse or backpack in any of the preceding scenes. And Gabriel pulls out his knife in one scene, but where was he carrying it before? And when Gabriel and Kate leave the compound, they didn't bother to take their backpacks with them?
The Wild Card virus reminds me of a SciFi book I read years ago. A virus strikes one town in the U.S. and either people are unchanged or they mutate into one of three different species. One species is tree-like and can't procreate--an evolutionary dead end. One species, I believe, is only female and is able to procreate. The third species is big and heavy and one of the women becomes the leader of the town. The story is told from the viewpoint of a young man who left the town and returns to see his father. I wish I could remember the title.
There are some continuity issues. Ana pulls out her original report, but from where? She is not carrying any kind of purse or backpack in any of the preceding scenes. And Gabriel pulls out his knife in one scene, but where was he carrying it before? And when Gabriel and Kate leave the compound, they didn't bother to take their backpacks with them?
The Wild Card virus reminds me of a SciFi book I read years ago. A virus strikes one town in the U.S. and either people are unchanged or they mutate into one of three different species. One species is tree-like and can't procreate--an evolutionary dead end. One species, I believe, is only female and is able to procreate. The third species is big and heavy and one of the women becomes the leader of the town. The story is told from the viewpoint of a young man who left the town and returns to see his father. I wish I could remember the title.
Read
March 28, 2026You can see why they keep trying to make Wild Cards comics happen; until fairly recently, that was the medium in which superhero universes most readily found their audience. Carrie Vaughn has been one of the series mainstays in recent years, so a sensible choice to write, but compared to her prose contributions, there's no sense of interiority here, and the art isn't picking up the slack. You know those graphic adaptations of classic literature that seem to have been done with no real appreciation of comics as an artform, just a vague sense that maybe this will appeal to reluctant readers? The art here reminds me of that, manga-esque faces that are pretty but stiff, and backgrounds which make sense when it turns out the characters are in a textureless, illusory Potemkin village, if only they didn't look like that the rest of the time too. The lettering is worse, no variation at all except bigger for shouting and italics for foreign, so everyone comes across as talking in monotone. As for the story... there's a frame that adds a little interest, but at this point I think it would be more of a twist – either in real life or fiction – to hear about a missionary working with disadvantaged kids who turned out not to be up to something awful in collusion with the authorities. For completists only.
January 31, 2024
A very nice novella that places the emphasis on character.
The leads are Kate (Curveball) and Ana (Earthwitch). Kate has returned to New York to be interviewed, along with Ana, by an attorney investigating one of Kate's last Committee cases that took place in Brazil. The attorney feels that there are some irregularities, and the story is told in the present and the events of the prior year's case.
The two were sent to Brazil to look into how juvenile jokers were being treated in a specific town. IMO opinion Brazil has some complex societal issues. and Vaughn gets some of it (officials are often corrupt) and the ghettos are possibly worse than most of the ghettos in the U.S. (that is not saying any ghetto is good-trying to convey how bad Brazil's are).
The central plot point in some ways goes back to when the Committee was first formed in this series. The idea was not to stand bye and do good. And, Kate who has left the organization, is left wondering if the original goal was ever achieved at all.
The leads are Kate (Curveball) and Ana (Earthwitch). Kate has returned to New York to be interviewed, along with Ana, by an attorney investigating one of Kate's last Committee cases that took place in Brazil. The attorney feels that there are some irregularities, and the story is told in the present and the events of the prior year's case.
The two were sent to Brazil to look into how juvenile jokers were being treated in a specific town. IMO opinion Brazil has some complex societal issues. and Vaughn gets some of it (officials are often corrupt) and the ghettos are possibly worse than most of the ghettos in the U.S. (that is not saying any ghetto is good-trying to convey how bad Brazil's are).
The central plot point in some ways goes back to when the Committee was first formed in this series. The idea was not to stand bye and do good. And, Kate who has left the organization, is left wondering if the original goal was ever achieved at all.
February 2, 2025
WILD CARDS: NOW AND THEN is a really good comic that probably will make sense to people unfamiliar with INSIDE STRAIGHT or the larger WILD CARDS universe. It's close enough to a typical superhero world that you can jump in as your first Wild Cards story. Short version, an alien plague gave superpowers to people. Some people got lucky and other people were horribly deformed by it. This is about two supers, Curveball and Earth Witch, who go to Brazil to investigate a shady charity kidnapping children with Wild Card powers. It happened the previous year, though. In the present, they're being investigated by the UN for the fact some people died in the process. So it's one of those, "Tell us how we got there/Usual Suspects" things. I really liked it. I loved the art and the characters.
August 5, 2023
Enjoyable short story in the Wild Cards universe - it's been a while since I've been in that world! A bit of grit in an otherwise pretty classic superhero tale. Short story format means it's a bit difficult to actually gauge the stakes and how much threat is actually involved, especially as they've opted to make this a gritty ground-level tale. But overall quite solid tale about doing the right thing in a tough world, and hoping to make a difference.
November 9, 2023
A good solid story that you can see fitting in with the American Hero series of Wild Cards books. The art was workman-like I guess. Good but nothing to wow me, especially compared with the previous Wild Cards graphic novel.
Enjoyable and certainly recommended to fans of the novels.
Enjoyable and certainly recommended to fans of the novels.
January 27, 2024
Absolutely lovely
Great artwork, amazing story. People with super powers using them to help will always have my heart. This story takes place in Brazil with Hardball and Earth Witch. Carrie Vaughn's writing is fantastic!
Great artwork, amazing story. People with super powers using them to help will always have my heart. This story takes place in Brazil with Hardball and Earth Witch. Carrie Vaughn's writing is fantastic!
August 4, 2023
Great story. I'm always up for a Wild Cards story. The art and story work well together. I am looking forward to reading more Wild Cards graphic novels in the future.
February 18, 2024
3.5 *
Good story and beautiful art, but it almost felt like it was missing something. Like it was missing pages even though it wasn’t. I liked the ending. It felt true to real life in a way.
Good story and beautiful art, but it almost felt like it was missing something. Like it was missing pages even though it wasn’t. I liked the ending. It felt true to real life in a way.
March 17, 2024
It's a decent short Wild Cards story. The layouts and art are somewhat amateurish.
February 10, 2026
Nice Wild Cards story, with excellent art.
November 4, 2023
Always happy to see new material, even though I hate the new design for the series.
Good story, serviceable art.
I guess this is for those who already know their way around the Wild Cards universe, though.
Good story, serviceable art.
I guess this is for those who already know their way around the Wild Cards universe, though.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews