Deadly Class vol. 11: A Fond Farewell, Part One

Contrary to what I thought last time, the previous volume was not the penultimate volume…

Saya was not in a good place when we last saw her.  The good news is that Marcus showed up to not just nurse her back to health, but to also finally help her get revenge on her dirtbag yakuza brother.  This leads to some well-delivered recriminations, bonding, “Good to See You Again” sex, and plans for the perfect penthouse massacre.  It’s the latter that also gives artist Wes Craig the chance to show off a few more kick-ass action scenes before the end of the series.  They’re not the best part of this introductory storyline, however.  That would be the revelation at the end regarding why Marcus was doing all this in the first place.  It’s surprising and heartfelt, and very much in line with his character arc over the course of the series, which is why he then heads south of the border to meet up with the other person who he thinks can give him what he wants.

After that, “Deadly Class” takes a hard turn into adulthood maturity.  There’s precious little action here as Marcus and his significant other quit the killing business and get normal jobs and deal with everyday tribulations while also trying to wring whatever happiness they can get from life.  No, really.  Writer Rick Remender has always said that “Deadly Class”  has had an autobiographical component here and you really get the sense that he’s drawing on that moreso than usual here.  It works because the struggles here feel real and lived-in, as does the happiness.  It’s still a very unusual turn for a series that used to be about a school for teenage assassins underneath San Francisco.  You do get the feeling that Remender and Craig are going to bring things full circle in the end as violence creeps back into the story via the shadowy appearance of someone who should’ve been killed a while back.  

This all takes place in the final issue which leaves me feeling that “A Fond Farewell” doesn’t quite set up the series finale in the best way possible.  It does bring a lot of things into focus, however, which ultimately leaves me feeling better about said finale than what we got last time.