Writer: Brian K. Vaughan
Artists: Pia Guerra (p), Jose Marzan, Jr. (i)
Publisher: DC
Plot:
The book opens where we left off last month with Yorick pointing a loaded gun at his sister, as she has just murdered a woman that Yorick cared a great deal for, and one gets the sense that Yorick is prepared to kill her for this misdeed. However, after a rather humorous exchange where we see Hero is still able to get under her brother's skin, we see Yorick hands the gun to one of the woman of Marrisville, and basically tells these woman to lock his sister and the rest of the Amazons up in the nearby penitentiary & throw away the key. He then wanders off into the woods to be alone, and later that night we see it is the recovered Agent 355 that comes out to see if he's all right. As these two manage to hold a civil conversation where Yorick makes it clear he's not ready to forgive his sister for what she did, the book moves to the Massachusetts Air National Guard Base, where a group that is tracking Yorick has stolen a Blackhawk helicopter, and they speed their way toward Marrisville, Ohio. We then look in on Hero in her cell as we see she managed to pick up at least one escape artist trick from Yorick. As Yorick & company board a train headed to California, the book moves into orbit, where we see the crew of the space station have decide to return to Earth, and its crew includes two plague free men.
Comments:
The big show down between Hero & Yorick was somewhat undercut by this month's cover, as it clearly shows Hero locked in a cell, which in turn pretty much tells one the decision that Yorick makes, well before he makes it. Now the scene it still enjoyable enough as Brian K. Vaughan has some fun playing with the idea that these two are siblings. As such even within the highly charged confines of this issue's opening scene, the two manage to engage in some petty squabbling, as Yorick makes a literary reference, and Hero is quick to jump on the fact that he doesn't know the meaning behind it. It's not a huge detail, but it's an important one, as it instantly establishes that these two are siblings, and there is a unique quality to sibling relationships that many writers simply don't manage to capture. Now I still find Hero's behavior a bit too far gone, but on this front we do get a fairly nice scene between Yorick & Agent 355, where the idea that Hero is brainwashed is discussed, and Yorick's reluctance to accept what Agent 355 is saying makes his behavior just as disheartening, as we see he's too angry to even consider making an effort, to see if the relationship can be salvaged. If nothing else keeping the bridges burned does act to create a fairly powerful rivalry, and I can't wait for the next encounter.
In fact if nothing else this issue acts as a pretty good look at Yorick's character, as it becoming rather clear that he does have a very black & white method of viewing the world, which is quite common among young adults. I mean while his behavior could be influenced by the anger of seeing someone he cared for murdered, and the sense of betrayal that it was his sister who pulled the trigger, the ease at which he condemns his sister's actions is really quite unsettling. I mean it may sound harsh but the person who was killed was someone Yorick was just getting to know, while his sister is someone he's known all his life, but after she commits murder Yorick is ready and willing to toss her in a cell & throw away the key. There's no sense that he's trying to understand why she did what she did, nor does he make an attempt to learn how his sister came to be his enemy. On the other side of the equation though we also get a rather nice look at why he wasn't willing to pull the trigger, and there's also a wonderful quiet moment between Yorick & the Dr. Mann, where we see the gender roles are reversed, as Yorick offers up the overly sentimental view of the night, while Dr. Mann manages to ruin it with the injection of some reality. A very funny little moment, and one that perfectly captures this relationship.
Pia Guerra's work is very strong when it comes to its storytelling sense as the first page does an absolutely wonderful job of visually bringing the readers up to speed on the situation. The art also does some nice work on the scene where Yorick finds his sister is still able to deflate his ego, as one has to love how his confidence is visually expressed by how he's pointing the gun at her. I also enjoyed the almost annoyed expression that Hero has on her face when Yorick decides not to put a bullet in her. The art also does some nice work on the quieter moments, as when Yorick & Agent 355 have their little discussion, one has to notice the almost casual way these two are interacting, which is in stark contrast with the way these two had been treating each other before her accident. The art also does some nice work on the big action scene in this issue, as we see Yorick has another group on his tail, which is far more heavily armed than the Amazons, as they have themselves an attack helicopter, and look to be armed to the teeth. However, the highlight of this issue is the impact of the final page, as that is a truly wonderful reveal shot, that gets the next story arc started off with a bang. Also while the cover does act as a bit of a spoiler, it looks fantastic, and its design sense is near perfect.
Final Word:
Not really an action packed issue, and the tension between Yorick & Hero wasn't as intense as I expected it to be. Still, Brian K. Vaughan does some very nice work establishing the idea that these characters are siblings, as I rather enjoyed how the tension was sidetracked by Hero's decision to pick at an old wound. Now I must confess I'm a little concerned that Brian K. Vaughan has made Yorick a little too quick to judge & condemn the actions of others, but this is a personality type that many people possess so if this is the direction he wants to take the character, I can't very well say it's wrong. Still, it's not a personality type that lends itself to character development, as he doesn't really mull over ideas, or take the time to look deeper into the problems he comes up against. Still, overall this was a very enjoyable issue, and the last page of this issue certainly sets the stage for what looks like a promising story arc, that should answer some questions about the plague (e.g. is it still active?).
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