Mind the Gap #17 – Review

By: Jim McCann (story), Rodin Esquejo (art), Jessica Kholinne (colors)

The Story: Elle wakes up from the longest, least refreshing nap in history.

The Review: Talk about hiatuses, Mind the Gap has been on a doozy of one since December, clocking in at almost exactly five months of break time. It got to the point that I nearly feared the title cancelled after so long not seeing it show up on my comic book shop’s shelves. While it may not have the razzle-dazzle appeal of Saga, its stifling suspense and classic whodunit elements give it a special place in my heart, specifically the place that loves a good, old-fashioned conspiracy.

Unlike Saga, however, Mind the Gap‘s return issue doesn’t put any of its hard-earned strengths front and center for anyone who might be new to the series. Only the most intimate fans will recognize the some of the title’s most appealing features from this issue: its psychological deviousness and almost palpable sense of paranoia, such that no one, not even the ones we consider antagonists, feel safe. For the newbies, who haven’t spent months following the drama of Elle’s comatose hauntings, deaths, and resurrections, I’m sure they’re just wondering what all the fuss is about.

Even for loyalists, there’s one feature missing from this issue that’s kept us interested in all its predecessors: the interplay of the cast. The most McCann manages to give us is a short, hostile exchange between Eddie and Dane, and that’s only a rerun of past tensions. Everyone else is occupied with their own affairs, some by necessity (i.e., the Hoodie gang, under threat of Min) and some because that’s just how they roll (i.e., Min), and it’s not you see them up to anything new. Things are pretty much as they always are here, and that’s a somewhat dull place to kick off a series new “season.”

Maybe the added presence of Elle—living, breathing, physically moving Elle, as opposed to zonked-out Elle—has something to do with it. We’ve grown so used to watching the Hoodie gang and their opponents maneuver around her, while she reacts on the spiritual plane, that seeing her now is almost like being introduced to a new character. And actually, that’s kind of how she feels herself. After freaking out from a vision (?) of herself reaching towards her through a mirror, she murmurs, “I’m not dead…but I think…I’m missing… I know I’ve seen this a thousand times. The dawn. The sun coming up. But it’s like I’m just now feeling it.”

That’s all very intriguing, and so is her growing connection to Regan, a former Jairus experimentee, but none of that gives us much to work with now. As it so often does, the real excitement comes from the characters who’ve been awake and active all along. Sure, you want to know what’s happening to Elle and whether this will do anything to bridge her experiences in the Garden with the waking world, but you’re probably more hyped to see what’s going to happen now that Min has discovered Eddie’s secret wall and he knows about it.

It’s been so long that I’ve nearly forgotten how nice it was to get a regular dose of Esquejo’s art each month. Most art these days, even the very best of them, emphasizes line above all else, creating figures that the colorists simply fill in. Esquejo’s art melds with Kholinne’s colors so seamless to almost appear painted. You’re also struck by how dimensional the visuals seem. A lot of other artists deliver a good impression of characters existing in a 3D world, but I think Esquejo is one of the few who does it in such an immersive way that you’re always convinced by the visual reality of the series.

Conclusion: The pacing is a double-edged sword, stretching out the suspense at the same time that it frustratingly avoids forward movement.

Grade: B

– Minhquan Nguyen

Some Musings: – “And I’m the drama queen?” Eddie remarks, looking at Miles’ five missed calls. I kind of like the idea of anyone having the impudence to call Eddie a drama queen—and that Eddie would just accept it.

– This may be wrong of me, but I was sixty-percent sure that Eddie was going to molest Dane at some point as they crashed at Elle’s place.