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Deadly Class #10-12
Deadly Class Deluxe Edition Book Four
RICK REMENDER and WES CRAIG reunite one last time to bring everyone's favorite assassin undergrads into a new era, but old habits die hard, and old grudges die even harder. Festering rivalries come to a head, dark secrets are revealed, and sins must be atoned for—and few have as many sins as the students of Kings Dominion. Can the latchkey kids of Generation X find a place to belong in a world that doesn't understand them, or will they drift too far into an unknown future and watch themselves fade away?
Collects DEADLY CLASS #45-56
Collects DEADLY CLASS #45-56
402 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 28, 2023
3 people are currently reading
200 people want to read
About the author
Rick Remender
1,237 books1,413 followersRick Remender is an American comic book writer and artist who resides in Los Angeles, California. He is the writer/co-creator of many independent comic books like Black Science, Deadly Class, LOW, Fear Agent and Seven to Eternity. Previously, he wrote The Punisher, Uncanny X-Force, Captain America and Uncanny Avengers for Marvel Comics.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
August 9, 2023
(B+) 79% | Good
Notes: Review pending re-read. Individual reviews for included volumes can be found here:
- Deadly Class, Volume 10: Save Your Generation
- Deadly Class, Volume 11: A Fond Farewell, Part One
- Deadly Class, Volume 12: A Fond Farewell, Part Two
Notes: Review pending re-read. Individual reviews for included volumes can be found here:
- Deadly Class, Volume 10: Save Your Generation
- Deadly Class, Volume 11: A Fond Farewell, Part One
- Deadly Class, Volume 12: A Fond Farewell, Part Two
April 13, 2024
The first half of this whole entire story was better than the back half but not by any sort of exponential amount. This fourth and final installment was better than the third though so that’s really good as endings are hard and this ending really really worked for me. Each of these deluxe hardcovers was 3 volumes in one so the last volume or two did the same thing that Fonda Lee did in Jade Legacy where we start to get large time jumps over and over and each point in time that we stop is an important life event for our main characters. This style works for me, it makes the scope of the whole story feel massive and very personal to the main character(s) as we see the span of their lives not just a blip in time.
Deadly Class has always been fun but there has also always been a melancholy undertone even in those wild times. The ending had the melancholy more toward the forefront especially in the last handful of issues so that part was a little hard to read but I also tend to agree with some of those blue outlooks on life than Remender throws at us so I could also commiserate.
As I’ve said over and over this story has a large cast of characters but each also has a loving amount of character development behind them which really made me care and kept me invested. For those of them who made it to the final chapters of this story we did get an ending (good, bad or ugly) for each which was great. Nobody was left off in the wings like whatever happened them? This gave the series a lot of closure as a whole in the ending. I personally am also happy with how things turned out for our most main of characters. Revenge is always best served cold and the revenge was so so so sweet in this ending.
One more quick highlight reel of this series for the road:
If you like a long running comic book series with high action and high drama, great character development, epic moments/revelations and just enough philosophy as well then Deadly Class will probably be for you.
I didn’t give each volume 5 stars but this series has had a very large impact on me while reading it. I read each volume back to back and so this whole time that I’ve been reading it it’s like it has become my personality. Lots of books and series are really good but it’s not as often that a series sinks into my soul like this so despite not getting glowing 5’s across the board I can still say that I have found a new favorite comic series that has bumped a lot of others out of its way. Deadly Class y’all, read it!
Deadly Class has always been fun but there has also always been a melancholy undertone even in those wild times. The ending had the melancholy more toward the forefront especially in the last handful of issues so that part was a little hard to read but I also tend to agree with some of those blue outlooks on life than Remender throws at us so I could also commiserate.
As I’ve said over and over this story has a large cast of characters but each also has a loving amount of character development behind them which really made me care and kept me invested. For those of them who made it to the final chapters of this story we did get an ending (good, bad or ugly) for each which was great. Nobody was left off in the wings like whatever happened them? This gave the series a lot of closure as a whole in the ending. I personally am also happy with how things turned out for our most main of characters. Revenge is always best served cold and the revenge was so so so sweet in this ending.
One more quick highlight reel of this series for the road:
If you like a long running comic book series with high action and high drama, great character development, epic moments/revelations and just enough philosophy as well then Deadly Class will probably be for you.
I didn’t give each volume 5 stars but this series has had a very large impact on me while reading it. I read each volume back to back and so this whole time that I’ve been reading it it’s like it has become my personality. Lots of books and series are really good but it’s not as often that a series sinks into my soul like this so despite not getting glowing 5’s across the board I can still say that I have found a new favorite comic series that has bumped a lot of others out of its way. Deadly Class y’all, read it!
October 8, 2023
Vol. 2 was the best. I have to say I didn't like the ending. I understand why people seem to love it but I don't share the feeling.
All in all, it's a solid series.
All in all, it's a solid series.
September 30, 2023
(Zero spoiler review) 3.75/5
So there you have it. Another very good series done and dusted. One less title in the 'to be read' pile. One less very good series I haven't read, has now been read. And how was it? It was alright.
Volume three wasn't as good as one or two. Volume four is probably better than three, but still nowhere near as good as volume one and two. It was all going along rather smoothly until we hit the final couple of issues, and Mr. Remender felt the need to shift from dishing out his dime store philosophy (mostly about music and underground culture in the previous millennium) and give us a steaming big helping of all the shit nobody wants in their comics in 2023. Granted, the internal monologue (whining) of the major character, which certainly seems to be Remender's self-insert did grate a little at times, though was mostly harmless when eschewing on what was punk and what wasn't. It sticks out like a sore thumb when all of a sudden it's no longer the 1980's and it's climate change and covid. A sore thumb that was dusted with cayenne pepper and shoved where the sun don't shine.
Seriously, it was all going so well, and then within a couple of pages and a few dialogue boxes, it all went south very, very quickly. That, and the final resolution seemed rushed, unearned and unappealing. I won't spoil it obviously, but nothing in the last two issues, save a few pages here or there, in anyway did justice to the greatness, or at least the very goodness that came before it. And the meta commentary on changing the ending was so obvious (probably intentionally so), but did little if anything to wash the taste of bland and disappointment from my mouth. It really was going pretty darn well up until this point.
So did the ending break the series? Well... no, not really. It certainly tarnished it a bit, however. The flat and frustrating conclusion aside, this was still a very good series. Wes Craig's artwork throughout was mostly stellar, with some of the best modern colouration I've seen in a comic book this millennium. If Remender could have reigned in his distemper for the modern world long enough to end the book without any histrionics, it certainly wouldn't sting quite as much as it does right now. Oh well... So close. 3.75/5
OmniBen.
So there you have it. Another very good series done and dusted. One less title in the 'to be read' pile. One less very good series I haven't read, has now been read. And how was it? It was alright.
Volume three wasn't as good as one or two. Volume four is probably better than three, but still nowhere near as good as volume one and two. It was all going along rather smoothly until we hit the final couple of issues, and Mr. Remender felt the need to shift from dishing out his dime store philosophy (mostly about music and underground culture in the previous millennium) and give us a steaming big helping of all the shit nobody wants in their comics in 2023. Granted, the internal monologue (whining) of the major character, which certainly seems to be Remender's self-insert did grate a little at times, though was mostly harmless when eschewing on what was punk and what wasn't. It sticks out like a sore thumb when all of a sudden it's no longer the 1980's and it's climate change and covid. A sore thumb that was dusted with cayenne pepper and shoved where the sun don't shine.
Seriously, it was all going so well, and then within a couple of pages and a few dialogue boxes, it all went south very, very quickly. That, and the final resolution seemed rushed, unearned and unappealing. I won't spoil it obviously, but nothing in the last two issues, save a few pages here or there, in anyway did justice to the greatness, or at least the very goodness that came before it. And the meta commentary on changing the ending was so obvious (probably intentionally so), but did little if anything to wash the taste of bland and disappointment from my mouth. It really was going pretty darn well up until this point.
So did the ending break the series? Well... no, not really. It certainly tarnished it a bit, however. The flat and frustrating conclusion aside, this was still a very good series. Wes Craig's artwork throughout was mostly stellar, with some of the best modern colouration I've seen in a comic book this millennium. If Remender could have reigned in his distemper for the modern world long enough to end the book without any histrionics, it certainly wouldn't sting quite as much as it does right now. Oh well... So close. 3.75/5
OmniBen.
March 10, 2024
Tore through this one. What a run!
June 3, 2024
"When you're down, take note of who sticks around."
This is a complicated one for me, such incredible highs and when it's good, it's near perfect. But not everything works for me, the strongest moments of deadly class are those where the characters are speaking with their own voices and are surrounded by enough plot to keep things moving. Where I lose interest is when the writer takes over his own characters and uses them like puppets to preach his own views, rather than letting them be themselves. The moments he does this the most are points when major plot lines are tying up and it's the in-between moments, it doesn't ruin the story, but it doesn't always feel like the characters are speaking with their own voices, and ironically, the characters are always more interesting than the writer and his preachy moments.
It does stick the ending thankfully, no matter how much it baits you that it won't, and I don't mean that in a character or plot manner whatsoever, I mean that the writer almost entirely forgets his plot and characters and goes into full preaching mode near the end. Out of nowhere we're forced to read what is clearly the writers thoughts on current events and climate change out of the mouths of characters we've spent so much time with, it's a bit of a slap in the face to the readers to expect us to agree that this is where the characters we've been getting to know for so long would end up and say things they're saying.
As I say though, for all its flaws, it's definitely worth owning and definitely worth reading, some of these characters will stick with me forever. More than once I've found myself so greatly enthralled in their lives and so deeply worried for their outcomes, all in all I'm satisfied with the conclusion we're given, especially considering how mean this comic is to its readers, I had to change my favorite characters like a hundred times because they kept dying. It's a story that's kept me on my toes more than most and I can guarantee I'll find myself returning to it periodically throughout my life, it's special to me as the first longer comic series I've ever read from start to finish, also the first comic to get me into comics in the first place.
This is a complicated one for me, such incredible highs and when it's good, it's near perfect. But not everything works for me, the strongest moments of deadly class are those where the characters are speaking with their own voices and are surrounded by enough plot to keep things moving. Where I lose interest is when the writer takes over his own characters and uses them like puppets to preach his own views, rather than letting them be themselves. The moments he does this the most are points when major plot lines are tying up and it's the in-between moments, it doesn't ruin the story, but it doesn't always feel like the characters are speaking with their own voices, and ironically, the characters are always more interesting than the writer and his preachy moments.
It does stick the ending thankfully, no matter how much it baits you that it won't, and I don't mean that in a character or plot manner whatsoever, I mean that the writer almost entirely forgets his plot and characters and goes into full preaching mode near the end. Out of nowhere we're forced to read what is clearly the writers thoughts on current events and climate change out of the mouths of characters we've spent so much time with, it's a bit of a slap in the face to the readers to expect us to agree that this is where the characters we've been getting to know for so long would end up and say things they're saying.
As I say though, for all its flaws, it's definitely worth owning and definitely worth reading, some of these characters will stick with me forever. More than once I've found myself so greatly enthralled in their lives and so deeply worried for their outcomes, all in all I'm satisfied with the conclusion we're given, especially considering how mean this comic is to its readers, I had to change my favorite characters like a hundred times because they kept dying. It's a story that's kept me on my toes more than most and I can guarantee I'll find myself returning to it periodically throughout my life, it's special to me as the first longer comic series I've ever read from start to finish, also the first comic to get me into comics in the first place.
August 7, 2023
A fitting end, even if not the one I expected. I’m not a huge fan of the speeding through time to end a story but overall this worked pretty well. There are some pretty obvious political views of the creators that briefly came through but they didn’t detract from the overall round up.
I would agree with others that this ended back on form, it’s just a shame vol 3 let us down. I feel it could have been much better focused.
I would agree with others that this ended back on form, it’s just a shame vol 3 let us down. I feel it could have been much better focused.
January 19, 2024
‘Sticking the landing’ to any comic series, that’s lasted years, is tough but Remender and Craig manage to pull it off. The time jumps were a decent way to wrap up everyone’s stories and the ways in which the need for revenge and the problems it creates was handled was solid. Not everyone had a happy ending but I wouldn’t have wanted it that way.
I didn’t enjoy the self insert RE Marcus’ show, but it was a bit of a given.
Overall a fantastic series.
I didn’t enjoy the self insert RE Marcus’ show, but it was a bit of a given.
Overall a fantastic series.
December 4, 2023
This volume:
It didn't go the way I expected, but that's a good thing. The most obvious conclusion to the series IS there, but it's downplayed in favor of a more poignant ending. The story jumps backwards and forwards for awhile as you get to see who ends up sticking around, who makes it, and who remains friends. The art is consistent, same as the rest of the series. It's an outstanding ending, surprising, thought-provoking and entertaining. It is now my favorite series from Remender.
Overall series:
Like Remender, I also grew up in the 80's, and as he points out in the story (through Marcus) we're a cynical, skeptical bunch. It's hard to see the bright side of life, especially fast-forwarding to today's society and all of our current problems. I went through much of what Remender apparently went through and I was also fortunate enough to meet someone who had completely the opposite viewpoint, just like Maria. So this story hits home on a few different levels, and was very much worth the time.
It didn't go the way I expected, but that's a good thing. The most obvious conclusion to the series IS there, but it's downplayed in favor of a more poignant ending. The story jumps backwards and forwards for awhile as you get to see who ends up sticking around, who makes it, and who remains friends. The art is consistent, same as the rest of the series. It's an outstanding ending, surprising, thought-provoking and entertaining. It is now my favorite series from Remender.
Overall series:
Like Remender, I also grew up in the 80's, and as he points out in the story (through Marcus) we're a cynical, skeptical bunch. It's hard to see the bright side of life, especially fast-forwarding to today's society and all of our current problems. I went through much of what Remender apparently went through and I was also fortunate enough to meet someone who had completely the opposite viewpoint, just like Maria. So this story hits home on a few different levels, and was very much worth the time.
August 14, 2023
Finished book four of Deadly Class, the final hardcover, and my favorite series from Rick Remender. This is clearly his most personal title, its a story about assasins on a school but at the heart its so much more. Teenage angst, coming of age, acting a fool and doing dumb shit. This was a beautifull goodby, but boy got it dark in the end. This series could have go one for more and more time as i really loved this one, but its ok that it ends when the story of Marcus and his friends was still super good instead of it fizzling out. Again this was very bittersweet in any way !!
August 20, 2023
What a ride this has been with the characters from Kings Dominion. For nine years I have been reading this series and the past year I am been waiting for the final hardcover to come to experience the ending of the series. Remender and Craig do not disappoint and manage to weave together a satisfying ending to this fantastic series. This remains my favorite Rick Remender series and I enjoyed the subtle nods to another of his series.
July 23, 2024
What a beautiful ending to a very long and highly enjoyable acid trip!
This fourth volume presents snippets of the future, while matters weren't yet done in the third book. But the future is damn worth reading, so many satisfying moments and reveals and most importantly closure. Some moments felt like a punch in the gut, some made me cheer 'let's go'.
This is easily my favourite Rick Remender book and I'm thinking one of my favourite comic books period. Perfection!
This fourth volume presents snippets of the future, while matters weren't yet done in the third book. But the future is damn worth reading, so many satisfying moments and reveals and most importantly closure. Some moments felt like a punch in the gut, some made me cheer 'let's go'.
This is easily my favourite Rick Remender book and I'm thinking one of my favourite comic books period. Perfection!
November 16, 2022
end of an era fr
July 12, 2023
Loved the way this story wrapped up.
What a run this was.
What a run this was.
May 28, 2024
Consider this a review for the whole series. Overall, the art, story, direction etc were good. I genuinely enjoyed reading it, almost in it's entirety (we'll get to that). The characters are developed decently, though occasionally make slightly out of character decisions to move the plot forward imo. The story being told through years, and in the last few issues, decades, was intriguing and it was interesting to watch the characters grow up from teenage killers and turn into regular people (ish).
However.... (spoilers ahead)
The last few issues were a paper thin veneer of neoliberal Gen X simpering for the establishment. The idea that after all of this punk rock/shitty childhood/teenage angst/assassin school buildup we essentially get a "and then everything was good because our ghoulishly evil standin for conservatism and racism was arrested" is just so incredibly toothless I found it laughable. A weird dig about "post-liberals" online, hamfisted "orange man bad" political analysis, the last few issues just felt forced and weak. It's clear that for Remender, its easy for him to look back and decry Reagan and the conservative movements of the 80s, but the whole thing just feels depressing and like the message is "eventually you grow up". With the amount of anger the characters start out with, it feels like a betrayal to turn them into people who let the system decide what justice is, and more importantly, to allow them to embrace the system as it is, without making any meaningful difference.
However.... (spoilers ahead)
The last few issues were a paper thin veneer of neoliberal Gen X simpering for the establishment. The idea that after all of this punk rock/shitty childhood/teenage angst/assassin school buildup we essentially get a "and then everything was good because our ghoulishly evil standin for conservatism and racism was arrested" is just so incredibly toothless I found it laughable. A weird dig about "post-liberals" online, hamfisted "orange man bad" political analysis, the last few issues just felt forced and weak. It's clear that for Remender, its easy for him to look back and decry Reagan and the conservative movements of the 80s, but the whole thing just feels depressing and like the message is "eventually you grow up". With the amount of anger the characters start out with, it feels like a betrayal to turn them into people who let the system decide what justice is, and more importantly, to allow them to embrace the system as it is, without making any meaningful difference.
May 31, 2024
*3.5
This volume was kind of boring to me, and the pace was slow.
Some things I liked were that we got to see Marcus grow up and his life after KD, especially his relationship with Maria (even though I don't really like her). I also really liked the art choices for the different years (i.e., 1991 being a Nirvana reference).
I really liked Marcus's development, especially him going to revenge-stricken to forgoing it.
I'm really glad that Shab and Brandy are gone!!! FINALLY!!
However, I'm really sad that Helmut, Saya, and Stephen died. Especially Saya cause she was my fav.
Also, the end was super bittersweet.
To me, the ending with the gang all going to Denny's felt like Marcus on his death bed, seeing his friends again. And Denny's is Heaven. But, I could be reading too much into it.
Anyways, the series is really good overall.
SLAY!!!
This volume was kind of boring to me, and the pace was slow.
Some things I liked were that we got to see Marcus grow up and his life after KD, especially his relationship with Maria (even though I don't really like her). I also really liked the art choices for the different years (i.e., 1991 being a Nirvana reference).
I really liked Marcus's development, especially him going to revenge-stricken to forgoing it.
I'm really glad that Shab and Brandy are gone!!! FINALLY!!
However, I'm really sad that Helmut, Saya, and Stephen died. Especially Saya cause she was my fav.
Also, the end was super bittersweet.
To me, the ending with the gang all going to Denny's felt like Marcus on his death bed, seeing his friends again. And Denny's is Heaven. But, I could be reading too much into it.
Anyways, the series is really good overall.
SLAY!!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 13, 2023
Grade: A-. The non-linear storytelling in the first few issues is confusing as hell, not to mention completely unnecessary. I also felt a bit disconnected from the characters as the story goes on: with so many time-skips, we are covering a huge amount of ground.
Still, the message about letting go of revenge is beautiful, and – in the context of this story, after all of the suffering we’ve seen – incredibly poignant. Plus the ending is brilliant. It is complex in a way that perfectly caps off the story: there is a lot of sweetness, but enough bitterness to make that feel completely earned.
Still, the message about letting go of revenge is beautiful, and – in the context of this story, after all of the suffering we’ve seen – incredibly poignant. Plus the ending is brilliant. It is complex in a way that perfectly caps off the story: there is a lot of sweetness, but enough bitterness to make that feel completely earned.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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November 6, 2025me siento en conflicto, hay capítulos del final que me encantan y hay otros que me tiran para abajo todo
lo que pasa con Saya me parece injusto(?)
el build up del asesino de los estudiantes creo que era más fuerte cuando lo leí en grapas, aunque es muy obvio de quién se trata
el número meta está de más creo yo
el final, como ellos dicen, simplemente corta aquí antes de que llegue otra cosa
después de 56 números, no sé si esperaba algo más explosivo, más satisfactorio
es un final feliz, pero sigo en shock
lo que pasa con Saya me parece injusto(?)
el build up del asesino de los estudiantes creo que era más fuerte cuando lo leí en grapas, aunque es muy obvio de quién se trata
el número meta está de más creo yo
el final, como ellos dicen, simplemente corta aquí antes de que llegue otra cosa
después de 56 números, no sé si esperaba algo más explosivo, más satisfactorio
es un final feliz, pero sigo en shock
November 18, 2023
I won’t spoil it but I will say I enjoyed the ending and the very different pacing of this book. I still have trouble swallowing Marcus’ self pitying nature, but I have come to really care about these characters over these collected books (the hardcovers are amazing, I highly recommend you buy them).
July 20, 2024
This collects issues 45-56 and they were my favorite in terms of Deadly Class. I enjoyed reading the later years of the main characters and what they became or had hoped to have become. With that being said, the ending was a bit lazy. Overall, this doesn’t come close to Remender’s best work for me (Fear Agent) but it was worth the read. 3.2/5
August 20, 2023
Excellent ending to a great series. My only complaint is that it felt a little rushed by the end for me, especially Saya's story. That said, I really love the deluxe hardcovers as I find the story reads very well in that format. Really happy to get a satisfying ending to Marcus's journey.
December 12, 2023
I wanted something dark and depressing from this ending, a story of teenage assassins surrounded by betrayal, hurt, and death. But instead this story got a happy ending that just didn't seem to fit. And a very rushed one at that.
March 24, 2024
This is the end of the series and it was…fine. I loved the beginning of the series maybe partly because I discovered it from the tv show and was looking for more after the show got canceled. This last volume brings us finally from the 1980’s into modern day and hoo boy is it bleak.
July 16, 2023
The end of an era. A good finale, one that Marcus (kind of) deserved.
I will miss these characters for sure.
Thank you, Rick!
PS - Poor Saya :(
I will miss these characters for sure.
Thank you, Rick!
PS - Poor Saya :(
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 5, 2023
It was an okay ending.If this series would have ended with this book as third book, I might have gave it 4 stars. Third book really ruined this series for me.
May 14, 2024
good end to a good series 👍
November 5, 2025
Rick Remender thank-you for giving my goat a happy ending
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 22, 2024
This was such a great follow up to what happened to the teens. Probably the best and most satisfying comic series I have ever read. The art was beautiful
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews