In this issue, Tom Beland really explores the pain of a long-distance relationship. Though I can't relate to the extreme pressures and challenges of a coast-to-coast romance such as the one that's unfolded in this title, I do know where he's coming from. My girlfriend lives in a city about an hour away from where I live. We spend our weekends together, and they're glorious. But it's not enough. Not even close. Tom Beland faced an even greater impediment. Normally, I'd say I can't imagine what that would be like, but after reading this issue, I can easily imagine it. Beland conveys the pain of separation incredibly clearly with a vivid script that brings his agonizing thoughts to life.
As Tom deals with minor headaches at work, Lily boards a flight, beginning a nine-hour trek from Puerto Rico to the Napa Valley region in California. There's a bit of a problem, though. Lily has to make a connecting flight in Dallas, a city that's enveloped by an inhospitable weather front. Lily loses a day in the process, and it forces Tom to really reflect on how the relationship is working and where it's headed.
The most powerful visual component of this issue is Beland's depiction of Lily. Her fatigue, desperation and sadness are plain to see on her face; the simpler tone of Beland's linework doesn't hold him back. He captures the hustle and cramped nature of an airplane cabin and the uninviting, hard qualities of the terminal. I also love how Beland uses silhouette as a means to isolate characters in emotional moments, separating them from those around them and where they are.
Last summer, I attended the Comic-Con International in San Diego. My flight back to the East Coast required a connection in Pittsburgh... one that some ugly weather precluded. I spent 24 hours alternating between downtime in airports and time in the air. It's what Purgatory is like, I would imagine, only it hurts a little too. Beland nails the horror of that empty experience in this issue. Anyone who's flown can relate to Lily's fears and frustrations, and we wince as we recall our own versions of the scenario.
Of course, Beland makes the experience all the more gut-wrenching by throwing in the emotional turmoil the travel delays cause. Time is an unusual entity in a long-distance relationship. When you're together, there's not enough of it, and when you're apart, there's too much. Tom's inner conflict in this issue -- his love and his future versus his home and his past -- is articulated so well. When someone you love is in pain, you want to take responsibility for it, because if you're responsible for it, there must be a way for you to fix it. I know how Tom feels here, and it's yet another example of the touching honesty that makes this book so wonderful and powerful.
