By: Brian K. Vaughan (story), Fiona Staples (art)
The Story: Perfect timing—Marko and Alana could really use some spiritual help right now.
The Review: We talk a lot about “twists” in fiction, but what are they, really? They can’t be just surprises, because there are plenty of things that surprise you, but you wouldn’t call them twists—like when your pals throw you a birthday party three weeks before your birthday because they forgot exactly when your birthday is. Same thing with things that shock you; you wouldn’t exactly call a disastrous car accident a twist either.
My theory: a fictional twist, particularly a good one, is when the writer upsets expectations you didn’t even know you had. So really, the impact of the unexpected event comes not from the occurrence itself, but from a lot of purposeful groundwork beforehand.
This issue doesn’t offer much forward movement in the plot. When you step back, you realize none of the characters get all that further than where they left off last time, whether it’s Alana and Marko in their quest for the Rocketship Forest (though they’re admittedly slowed down by Marko’s near-fatal wounding), Prince Robot IV in his investigation of Alana’s going rogue, or the Stalk and the Will in their efforts to capture the little family on the run.
With things going as slowly as they are, it’s a good thing Vaughan keeps you entertained with a series of twists, big and small. For example, those Horrors everyone keeps talking about turn out a lot more manageable than expected. One of them, Izabel, is downright good-natured, which is surprising for someone missing everything below her torso. If you expected these ghostly kids to dwell in the tragedy of their situations, guess again: “They can’t hurt us, you big babies! We’re intangible! Why are you guys acting like you just died yesterday?”
The addition of Izabel seems perfectly appropriate, since she shares the same weariness of war and the same desire to leave it all behind as our protagonists. Although Cleave gave her a second life after her gruesome death, presumably to avenge herself or to help defend the planet, it also gave her enough free will so she knows either option is an unattractive (read: boring) deal. Why not make the best of her situation and see what the rest of the galaxy has to offer?
The big twist of the issue is not the kind you’d expect from a sci-fi story, and that’s what’s so delightful about it. It takes a certain amount of craft to make you reel back in amazement at what would be, in any other circumstance, a revelation fit for a Korean drama. That comparison seems particularly appropriate here given that it connects back to Alana’s apparent taste for trashy romance novels (A Night Time Smoke). We’ve always assumed her and Marko’s love was a beautiful thing of fate, but the last couple pages hint that a bit of blind faith and imagination went into the affair as well.
Staples once again gets to show off her ability to draw anything convincingly. It’s the little touches which make it: the way the Stalk primly lifts up her skirt as she leaps over a log (chased by some of Cleave’s boar creatures, if you’re wondering), the cartoon character mascot stamped onto the cereal box the Will eats from, the shamelessly daring poses of the figures on A Night Time Smoke’s cover. A treat for the eyes, always.
Conclusion: If not for Vaughan’s sense of humor and depth of character work, you’d be less inclined to overlook the creeping pace, but his writing keeps you well entertained despite the deficiency in plot.
Grade: B+
– Minhquan Nguyen
Some Musings: – I particularly love the unexpected twists in character. Prince Robot IV has no problem giving way to his feelings, be they irritation or PTS-induced rage, which goes against type for robotic characters.
– It’s also quite endearing that the Will, despite being a professional killer, does nothing (including killing) needlessly, and he has a romantic streak, considering how seriously he took a one-night stand with a certain fellow Freelancer.
Grade
Conclusion