Leave It To Chance: Is There a Last Chance

Welcome back netizens. After quite a while, it’s time to reintroduce Diamond in the Rough. This segment on the blog delves into comics that are under the radar. Today we will be discussing Leave It To Chance.

At the convention I frequent, Lehigh Valley Comic Con, I found this series I couldn’t find digitally. Curious and after reading the Goodreads.com page, I was intrigued by this series. I bought the book at a fair price and decided to delve into it to cover later on this blog and I had to say, I was impressed.

Spoilers ahead for the debut volume.

Leave It To Chance: The Debut

Title character Chance Falconer is a 14-year old girl dreaming of inheriting her family’s legacy as a paranormal detective. Her father Lucas however refuses to train Chance and wants the tradition to skip her generation; all so that Chance can have a son who would take the role. Despite the words, it’s not so much misogyny as much as being an overly concerned and protective parent. But after losing Chase’s mother and his own deformation, Lucas has a right to worry. Doesn’t make it any less patronizing; especially after reading the first chapter where Chance has to leave behind her fairy friend after promising to come back.

But with Lucas out of town, something stirs in the city of Devil’s Echo. Chance takes the opportunity to investigate while making allegiances; including Margo Vela a cop unlucky with men and disenfranchised newspaper reporter Will Bendix. A shaman and his daughter are under threat by a mob boss. He plans on taking revenge on Devil’s Echo and Lucas for his brother’s death. With everything set, the mob boss causes the appearance of an indigenous demon… toad? Weird but terrifying at the same time. Chance however uses her resourcefulness to stop the threat and win the respect of the city. Even Lucas still being against Chance taking over is impressed with her.

The Themes of Leave It To Chance

Leave it to Chance is a more lighthearted detective story contrasting the dark and more “realistic” approach of comics in the era. Lucas himself shows how once great heroes change and become driven by burdens rather than hopes. Chance meanwhile represents the need to come back to the times when dangerous subjects need to be approached with optimism.

The difference between Chance and her father is shown with how she handles a dragon that follows her home. Forcing the dragon back had a chance of getting it killed with Lucas acknowledging the loss but not seeming to care. Chance however decides to show kindness by taking the risk of training him and names the dragon St. George in irony. As a result St. George turned into a good companion for Chance. The series doesn’t even stray away from the dark realities of urban fantasies, in fact it enriches Chance’s adventures.

Recognition Awards

First appearing in Wildstorm, the series stunning artwork reminiscent of both Franco-Belgian and Argentine comics and themes of coming of age and defying expectations resonated well with young and older audiences. In just two years, it even won awards such as the Harvey and Eisner for Best New Series in 1997.

Leave it to Chance caught on so well, the series continued with more adventures. Some not as good as others since they mainly just introduce more characters and villains rather than building on Chance. Others such as Monster Madness bring on some more fun but deep introspective stories about Devil’s Echo; and making it open ended with larger behind the scenes villains. Yet by Wildstorm’s acquisition by DC, its twelfth issue seemed to be its last. Maybe the creators just couldn’t deal with not being able to play by their own creative rules anymore. Yet it also helps bring events full circle such as Chance reuniting with her fairy friend Dash; all the while foreshadowing a major shift in status quo coming in the form of Lucas’ murder.

Rebirth and Death

I wonder if that tombstone is actually how the creators feel.

Robinson and Smith manage to publish Chance’s thirteenth issue in Image Comics. After a recap its shift occurs with Chance now the undisputed Falconer. But she is left to wonder if her position is worth losing her father over. Yet it’s a supernatural detective story; readers question if Lucas is really dead or if he faked it to conspire/confront returning villains. Regardless, Chance is made protector of the city and was ready to unveil the plot taking place in the shadows.

Unfortunately after nearly 20 years, this never went into fruition. The last issues are never even collected into trades.

A Mystery Chance Can’t Solve

While the exact cause is never elaborated on, James Robinson had since worked on his Starman series; and kept working on other series for DC (well mostly). Paul Smith meanwhile has largely disappeared from the scene; sometimes being mistaken for a novelist or a life coach. Whatever occurred, the series was left on a cliffhanger; and it is not on many people’s radar anymore because of how it disappeared from sight. Which is a shame because despite at how the series aged in terms of dialogue; it still follows examples of young adult content that can be shared with the whole family especially with overarching plots that have built up overtime.

Is there a way that Chance will ever come back and solve mysteries that have plagued readers minds? The ink’s not dry yet, so only time will tell. Thanks for coming and as always remember to look between the panels.