Jenny Sparks #7 – Tom King, Writer; Jeff Spokes, Artist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: Easily the strangest book Tom King has ever done, this title has played with time and perception in a way only Mister Miracle really has before. Each issue finds Jenny and Captain Atom locked in a complex battle of wills in a bar out of time, along with a small crop of ordinary people as hostages. Last issue ended with Captain Atom seemingly eliminating the rest of the universe leaving them the only living beings floating in a void – something that does not go over well with the hostages, given that they all had loved ones on the outside. This is enough to finally push some of them too far – and with nothing to lose, they rebel against their captor, turning the tables. With Atom not prepared, the issue takes a turn, with some of the densest storytelling of the run told in around 8 fractured panels per page. It’s an interesting experiment, and one that feels well-earned by this point.
Then things take another strange turn that finds Jenny and Atom alone, without the other characters, as Jenny tries to grapple with what it means to have outlived the 20th century by so much. It’s by far the most existential narrative Tom King has ever done, and it all seems to center around the never-ending barrage of chaos that the 21st century has felt like. King has used this book to exorcise a lot of the demons we’ve all got hanging over us. And then it all comes to an end – and circles around back in a way that makes the timeline of the series a little clearer. But only a little. That’s the thing – to go on this ride, you really need to be in sync both with what King is feeling about the world and with the strange cosmic vibe of the Wildstorm Universe. That makes it feel like by far the most personal book King has written since The Sherrif of Babylon, but it’s worth going along for the ride.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
