Oni Press 2014
Written by Joshua Hale Fialkov
Illustrated by Joe Infurnari
Flatted by Jason Fischer
In case you’ve forgotten, at the end of #9, our dear Billy was taken into custody while Grady hid like a coward. And the bomb turned out to be a dud!
There’s something incredibly unique and special about this series. Granted the whole thing started off with this unimaginable discovery that a group of recent college graduates had discovered something already done they were setting out actually do. Then they discovered that the future they help create is the same one they need to fix by not doing things the same way. Something of a time paradox really that their future selves would send information back to alter the course of the future which would then make the instructions not necessary in the first place. It’s almost enough to make your head spin uncontrollably.
Then to complicate matters even more the future President of the United States and one of the gang Grady returned to present as well. So while Billy wouldn’t talk to anyone while in jail Grady is ready to go to a debate for an election. Only his future self gets involved to tell him to miss this debate because it never happened for him.
Ah Daniel has known for a long time what happened to his future self when they all read their letters to begin with. He’s been the odd man out as it were from the get go so it’s with a surprise what happens with him here. I love that even with all the elements that should send the brain into a tailspin all Joshua is doing is telling one hell of an emotional drama. As he fully explores these characters fleshing them out more and more it seems to become less and less about the future and them figuring out who they are today.
So after striking out talking to Billy Heidi goes to Natasha to talk and get stoned. Some revelations need a little extra help in being told. Again the revelations are what define these characters and they’ve been coming fast and furious here. How all this plays into their future selves and helps define them as they move forward remains to be seen but it’s interesting stuff. I do want to see more of what they are supposed to have done to create the world of the future that is so in need of fixing. So far it seems they’ve done things that both have helped prevent and also ensure that these things happen. Just how does this affect the status quo?
I love Joe’s interiors too they just have this quality to them you don’t expect to see in a book of this nature but somehow adds this almost dreamlike quality to it. My only real question mark here is Heidi on page five because she looks like a little person it just seems off to me as we see her standing and walking away the proportions just seem weird.
I have to say Joshua is an amazing writer and his ability to create such a massive and unique concept and turn it into what it’s become is one of those wonderfully rare journey’s that just envelope the reader and draw you into their world so completely.