What a difference more than five months make. The previous issue of this series -- released Dec. 10 -- was my pick for the Best of the Week. Now, after so long a hiatus, I feel distanced from the unusual story and the sad characters who exist within it. Understandably, this is an exposition-heavy issue, but as a result, the plot advance little and what few answers we find here are eclipsed by the plethora of new questions that arise. Middleton's art is still quite lovely, but his slow pace is no doubt connected to the far too irregular schedule of this title and therefore the loss of momentum in the plot.
Kiden, Cameron and the seemingly catatonic young prostitute they rushed to help hie away to a diner, where Kiden fills her former teacher in on what's been going on with her since the school shooting incident. For a time, Kiden lost herself in her time-delay powers and the city, exploring the world in an effort to forget her past. Soon, somethign else strange happened, though, as she began to get messages and warnings from an unlikely source. Meanwhile, we meet a girl named Tatiana, whose affinity for animals borders on the supernatural.
The sketchier tone to the flashback sequences helped to distinguish them quite well, but at first, I thought it was the result of a rushed effort on Middleton's part. I was relieved to discover that wasn't the case. The opening scene featuring Tatiana is a lovely one, but the character design was a little too close to that of X-23. I thought we were visiting that character's past instead of exploring a new character's present circumstances.
Given how thoroughly the script addresses previous events in this series, I suspect Quesada adjusted the original script to acknowledge the lengthy delay between issues. It was a smart and necessary move on his part, but smart or not, I still came away with the impression that this story grinded to a halt. Cameron's matter of fact reactions to Kiden's story and X-23's unusual behavior and seemingly culpability for murder don't sit well with me either. Before this point, she demonstrated a lack of ability to deal with traumatic or unusual events, and what we see here is a complete turnaround for the character.
Kiden's story about "dancing through the raindrops" is oddly compelling, and the notion that she gives up a world in which she is in control for a connection with another human being is heartening. Tatiana is an attractive character as well; her kindness and empathy shine through. The problem is that we once again meet a teenage girl whose home life leaves a lot to be desired. That's essentially true of Kiden and X-23 as well, and it seems as though the characterization is bordering on the repetitive.
