To say that this issue was everything that I wanted and expected from this issue is a lie… it was so much more. The best way to look at this book is like a massive connect the dots drawing; only we’re working from the inside out and we’ll only begin to fully understand the complete picture at the very end. The reveals in this issue are incredible and for those that haven’t been paying attention to the backup story are going to wish that they had. Also I wanted to point out that I find it very impressive that Kindt has managed to work the cover of the previous issue into the new cover each month since this story arc kicked off. It’s incredibly clever and I’m sure there’s some hidden correlation that I’m missing, but I’ll keep looking until it becomes clear. We begin with Meru meeting with Duncan on her own. She wants to convince him to come with them, which leads to him telling her why he doesn’t want to go. It’s simple; he doesn’t trust anyone that’s ever been associated with Mind MGMT. He goes through a bit more of his backstory and his start with the agency. He talks about his mission to prove himself in which he was sent to test his ability of killing someone with just his finger. He walks into a prison and kills a death row inmate, but that’s only half of his task. Little did Duncan know that the second half of his task would change everyone’s future.
There is this building plot that I can only describe in the vein of “My Two Dads.” Meru hasn’t a clue that both Lyme and Duncan are her guardians and that both of them look at her like a daughter. The difference is Meru is beginning to look at Lyme like a father figure. To me, this plays a part in why he doesn’t want to help the others. He doesn’t want to butt heads with Lyme over Meru and even more importantly… he doesn’t want to see her get hurt.
There is plenty more I could talk about that isn’t that revealing, but because the reveals in this issue are huge I’d rather you read it. The read is so immersive that you’re likely to forget to blink a few times while you stare at the page wondering if what you just read really happened. Did the story really just go there? Yes, yes it did those two dots that were sitting next to each other this entire time that you thought couldn’t possibly be connected… were already joined. This issue is also scary in a lot of ways because if Kindt is revealing this much now… what else does he have in store for us? How much bigger is this about to get?
It really looks as if Kindt’s art style is growing. He’s always had a simplistic style that plays to the strengths of the story and personally looks fantastic, but there are little things in this issue that are incredibly detailed. When Duncan looks at his finger like it’s a weapon for the first time or when he outlines a car and gives it the appearance of disappearing or being fuzzy from Duncan’s mind. It’s incredible. There is still the close attention to details in the layout as well. When Duncan’s visiting the prison the people he visits are always in the black and even when Duncan is draped with shadows, he’s still standing in the light which is a nice touch. Kindt’s layouts and artistic style continues to appease the comic reader that doesn’t want their comics full of beef and cheese cake and can appreciate the art form.
The last bit of this issue is killer, it makes my heart ache it’s so tragic. Once again I find myself wanting to tell you everything I saw or experienced in this issue, but perhaps I’ll save it for the podcast. I said on my review for Revival, that I save this series for last. It’s because of issue like this were the excitement is too much; it’s too much to read and be forced to wait another month. I’ll tell you right now when the completed series is collected into an omnibus; I will be the first in line to buy it. If you’re still not reading this series then that’s fine… you’re only missing out on comic history in the making. I guarantee that by the end of this series it will be on everyone’s must read list.
Lastly, a huge thank you to Matt Kindt and Dark Horse… they know why.
Score: 5/5
Writer/Artist/Creator: Matt Kindt Publisher: Dark Horse Comics Price: $3.99 Release Date: 5/22/13