Deadly Class
Deadly Class is an action genre American comic book series written by Rick Remender, illustrated by Wes Craig, colored by Jason Wordie, and lettered by Rus Wooton. Deadly Class is set primarily in the 1980s and follows students enrolled at King's Dominion Atelier of the Deadly Arts, a secret boarding school in San Francisco, as they train to become the next generation of top assassins for crime families across the globe.
| Deadly Class | |
|---|---|
 Cover art for Deadly Class #1. Art by Wes Craig. | |
| Publication information | |
| Publisher | Image Comics |
| Schedule | Monthly |
| Format | Ongoing series |
| Genre | Action-thriller Period drama Teen drama |
| Publication date | January 22, 2014 – present |
| No. of issues | 44 |
| Creative team | |
| Created by | Rick Remender |
| Written by | Rick Remender |
| Artist(s) | Wes Craig |
| Letterer(s) | Rus Wooton |
| Colorist(s) | Lee Loughridge (#1-14) Jordan Boyd (#15-44) Jason Wordie (#45-present) |
| Editor(s) | Sebastian Girner (#1-37) Briah Skelly (#38-41) Will Dennis (#42-present) |
| Collected editions | |
| SC Vol. 1 | ISBN 978-1632150035 |
| SC Vol. 2 | ISBN 978-1632152220 |
| SC Vol. 3 | ISBN 978-1632154767 |
| SC Vol. 4 | ISBN 978-1632157188 |
| SC Vol. 5 | ISBN 978-1534300552 |
| SC Vol. 6 | ISBN 978-1534302471 |
| SC Vol. 7 | ISBN 978-1534306967 |
| SC Vol. 9 | ISBN 978-1534315686 |
| HC Vol. 1 | ISBN 978-1632156648 |
| HC Vol. 2 | ISBN 978-1534308411 |
Image Comics has published Deadly Class on a mostly monthly basis since the first issue was released on January 22, 2014.[1]
Plot
The first issues of Deadly Class focus on the story of teenage orphan Marcus Lopez Arguello as he transitions from living on the streets to being enrolled into a school of assassins. The academy, run by Master Lin, is composed of children of mob bosses and mass murderers, learning the same trade as their parents.[2]
Marcus's decision to attend the school is one of the only decisions he gets to make for himself throughout the arc and history. His entire life has been composed of unfortunate events, each leaving him further ostracized from humanity. Marcus is homeless largely because his parents died in a horrible accident when he was young, leaving him in an orphanage whose headmaster required his manual labor for him to retain residence. This continued degradation of his sanity through the abuse by the hands of his roommates and guardians eventually drives him to committing a massive act of violence.
Deadly Class then follows the students in the academy and many of their eventual downfalls.[3]
Characters
- Marcus Lopez Arguello is the newest addition to King's Dominion. Plagued by tragedy and trauma, Marcus still finds himself an outcast at the school in regards to both the students and the teachers.
- Saya Kuroki is the leader of the Kuroki Syndicate at King's Dominion. Her preferred weapon is a katana, which was passed down through her family.
- Willie Lewis is a member of the Final World Order (F.W.O.) at King's Dominion and is one of Marcus's best friends. Willie is a sharpshooter who specializes in firearms.
- Maria Esperanza Salazar is Marcus's girlfriend; a member of the Soto Vatos and Chico's former girlfriend. Maria's preferred weapons are bladed fans, and she is often seen adorned in Dia de Los Muertos attire.
- Master Lin is the ruthless headmaster of King's Dominion.
- Viktor is a Russian brute who is the son of Joseph Stalin's personal assassin. Viktor utilizes his brute strength to overwhelm his opponents.
- Petra Yolga is a goth girl who comes from a death cult. Petra specializes in poison, and gained honors in a class because of this.
- Shabnam is a portly, nerdy boy who is Marcus's former roommate. Being the son of a wealthy banker, Shabnam uses his intellect and wit to strategically win battles.
- Brandy Lynn is a Southern belle, and is known as the daughter of a famous neo-Nazi that assassinated dozens of civil rights activists. She is considered loud, racist, and a generic Confederate redneck. Brandy is adept at hand-to-hand combat, and has been seen utilizing various throws and grapples that make her a deadly opponent.
- Billy Bennett is one of Marcus's best friends. He is kindly and soft, and needed help to kill his father. He seems friendly and funny, and he likes to skate.
- Kelly "Grogda" is Shabnam's girlfriend who seduced Marcus at one point.
- Shawn Parcel
- Chico Salazar is the leader of the Soto Vatos, Maria's former boyfriend.
- Kendall is Stephen's former boyfriend. He is one of the students who helped Marcus in the first issue.
- Stephen is Kendall's former boyfriend. All he wants is to be one of the top students at King's Dominion.
- Tosawhi is one of the new students. The others do not really like him but he does not seem to care. Like Billy, he is a skater.
- Quan is one of the new students. He is both proud and arrogant. He attempted to hook up with Saya but finally gave up.
- Helmut is one of the new students. He is German, loves metal, and also loves other "hardcore" things.
- Zenzele is one of the new students. She is a bit weird and Brandy does not like her at all. She writes a lot of letters to her parents.
Collected editions
| Trade paperbacks | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Material collected | Publication date | ISBN |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 1: Reagan Youth | Deadly Class #1–6 | July 16, 2014 | 978-1632150035 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 2: Kids of the Black Hole | Deadly Class #7–11 | March 18, 2015 | 978-1632152220 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 3: Snake Pit | Deadly Class #12–16 | October 7, 2015 | 978-1632154767 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 4: Die for Me | Deadly Class #17–21 | August 3, 2016 | 978-1632157188 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 5: Carousel | Deadly Class #22–26 | March 15, 2017 | 978-1534300552 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 6: This Is Not the End | Deadly Class #27–31 | December 26, 2017 | 978-1534302471 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 7: Love Like Blood | Deadly Class #32–35 | August 28, 2018 | 978-1534306967 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 8: Never Go Back | Deadly Class #36–39 | July 31, 2019 | 978-1534310636 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 9: Bone Machine | Deadly Class #40–44 | June 17, 2020 | 978-1534315686 |
| Deadly Class – Vol. 10: TBA | Deadly Class #45–TBA | TBA | |
| Deluxe hardcovers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title | Material collected | Additional material | Publication date | ISBN |
| Deadly Class – Book One: Noise Noise Noise | Deadly Class #1–16 | November 19, 2014 | 978-1632156648 | |
| Deadly Class – Book Two: The Funeral Party | Deadly Class #17–31 | October 23, 2018 | 978-1534308411 | |
| Deadly Class – Book Three: TBA | Deadly Class #32–TBA | TBA | ||
Television adaptation
Directors Anthony and Joe Russo have signed on to produce a television series based on Deadly Class. The Sony Pictures Television-produced adaptation has been optioned as a pilot for the Syfy channel.[4] Benedict Wong, Benjamin Wadsworth, Lana Condor, Michel Duval and María Gabriela de Faría are among the actors cast in main roles for the series.[5] On April 18, 2018, Syfy picked up the pilot to series.[6] The first episode aired on January 16, 2019 on SyFy. After first season ending on a cliffhanger, the second season was cancelled due to small audience and high production costs.
References
- "Deadly Class #1". Image Comics. June 15, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
- Danoff, Mara (April 20, 2017). "DEADLY CLASS: The Making of a Murderer". Comicverse. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
- Richards, Dave (June 6, 2016). "Remender Breaks Down the Aftermath of "Deadly Class'" Freshmen Finals". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
- Melrose, Kevin (July 21, 2016). "SDCC: Russo Brothers to Produce "Deadly Class" TV Series". Comic Book Resources. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
- Petski, Denise (November 9, 2017). "'Deadly Class': Syfy Sets Full Cast For Comic-Based Drama Pilot". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved November 9, 2017.
- Petski, Denise; Andreeva, Nellie (April 18, 2018). "Syfy Picks Up To Series 'Deadly Class' Drama Based On Graphic Novel From The Russo Brothers". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 19, 2018.