The first issue of this series was entertaining, featuring some solid and capable storytelling. But the second sets this series apart as something more than a typical villain origin story. This character study delves into the fractured mind of a genius. Otto Octavius is portrayed as a creepy, even intimidating figure, but he's also pitiable. The character is ultimately portrayed as a victim of his parents and those around him who think they can use him like a tool. The art captures the dark psychological mood of the script and plot perfectly, and it reminds me more than a little of the much lauded and thoroughly effective style of a certain artist who's forged a solid reputation with limited series about the history of super-hero characters.
Otto Octavius is busy working away for the Department of Defense, with unlimited funds and resources. He does have a problem, though, and that's his perception of his colleagues' incompetence. Otto is so far ahead of all of them that they can't keep up with him during experiments, and the young scientist also perceives what the new arms race isn't going to be about: superhumans. Meanwhile, Otto finds himself torn between two women: Alice, another nuclear physicist, and his seemingly prudish mother.
Andrews seems to be channelling Tim Sale here. His approach to the subject matter, with the heavy use of shadow to establish mood and exaggerated figures, is reminiscent of Sale's work on such books as Batman: The Long Halloween, Batman: Dark Victory and Daredevil: Yellow. Simpelr shapes converge to form a twisted vision of life. I love how Andrews uses one image to convey two ideas: Otto's tentacle and the symbol for radiation. Andrews's line art here also reminds me a little of Sam (Scratch) Kieth's dark, quirky and extreme style.
Otto's devotion to his mother and subsequent resentment and rage rings true thanks to Wells's characterization of the woman. He believes her to be the only person to ever treat him as a human being, and that's why he heeds her advice and turns on Alice. When Otto discovers her hypocrisy, his emotional explosion is completely understandable.
There's also a disturbing quality to Otto. He's self-destructive and filled with such anger, and he ends up rejecting the one person who could serve as the key to diffusing the ticking bomb within him. His obsession with nuclear power and destruction borders on religious fanaticism. The awe with which he beholds his experiments is chilling, and I love the cynicism of so many people turning a blind eye to his emotional instability.
