Valiant Entertainment 2016
Written by Fred Van Lente
Illustrated by Derek Charm
Real World Sequences by Portela & Dalhouse
Lettered by Dave Sharpe
Gen Zero sends the Zygos twins, James and Katy, to go undercover into Keisha’s
school. They confront Adele Poole, leader of the Keys Club - the most popular club in school - and suspect that, since her father is the town emergency manager, she may know more about Rook’s evil underbelly than she lets on. Much to Keisha’s dismay, the Zeroes kidnapped Adele to interrogate her. But their means of interrogation are...unconventional
I never know what to expect from Fred and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Most of this issue takes place inside Adele’s mind as we see from her point of view what her life’s like. While yes it’s very much an homage to the Archie ways it’s important to the story that we see her life kind of unfold. It’s got the whole typical stiving and overachieving to be the best thing going on here but there’s more to it than that as well. It’s pretty interesting to see how Fred’s able to layer the story so that at some point the reader should pretend to be an amateur detective to spot the clues that are strewn throughout.
I have to say I do so enjoy Keisha’s reaction to what’s happening here. She’s all about ethics and the like. She called in teenage psiot renegades to help her figure out what happened to her boyfriend and well this is what she got. So perhaps be careful what you wish for and all that jazz. Then again with the way this series has been going issue to issue perhaps Chronus did the right thing after all this will have to be up to you to judge. Regardless the way the banter goes back and forth and how the dialogue flows their personalities are really coming together and forming a stronger picture.
Derek’s take on this was absolutely delightful. I really like the Archie/cartoon stylings he brought to the interiors. It really brought out the way Adele sees herself and it was really fun. While we only got a peek at the contrasting style from Francis and Andrew it was enough to really showcase the difference. The way the book flows through the page layouts with angles and perspective was nicely done.
Whether or not Adele is truly the enemy is up for grabs but she’s involved on at least some level. I’ve a feeling we’ll learn the truth coming up next issue but so far the way the kids are learning what is truly happening in this town is great to see. They are still learning as they go honing their skills and trying to do the best they can. It’s clear though they need someone as smart as Keisha to help guide them and be the voice of reason if they decide to do something that may seem a tad extreme.
So far Fred’s been able to bring us something a little different with each issue here that keeps the story moving forward and shows us that there’s still a lot to be left explored. We’re getting the tip of the iceberg and we all know what’s hidden under the water is vast and unknown. Can’t wait to see some of that!