The first issue of Kinetic was a great setup, but I had some worries about whether or not the creators could follow up as strongly. As it turns out, they can, with a story that has some of the same mystery elements and much of the same strong characterization that made the first issue such a good read, along with some all-important movement toward some of the answers. Basically, it seems like Kinetic might be Unbreakable in reverse, showing what happens when a boy who was always sick suddenly becomes invincible. That's an interesting hook, but it's not what has me intrigued by Kinetic. Instead, I'm intrigued by the exceptional work that has gone into making Tom and his mother real characters with a real history, and in just two issues, we know these characters better than we know most mainstream superheroes after years. It's this kind of more realistic approach that will make Focus stand out if it's going to survive, and while there are touches of that in each of the Focus books, Kinetic is the one that got it right out of the starting gate.
It's easy to badmouth the "decompressed storytelling" trend, especially when it gives us six issue arcs that could have been done in two issues, a lot more effectively, a decade or two ago. However, there are definite upsides to the decompressed storytelling style in the hands of those who know how to use it, and Puckett is making great use of a slower pacing in these first couple issues of Kinetic. Most of this issue takes place in the space of a few seconds, but these are very important seconds. They say your life flashes before your eyes before you die, and that seems very much what Tom is getting here.
The result of these flashbacks is even more information about Tom and the unusual relationship he has with his mother and with his own body than we got in the first issue. While we could see his mother's love in the first issue, it came across as an annoying, overbearing sort of love. This issue, we see how deep the connection between mother and son runs, and it's one of the purest, most noble visions of familial love I've ever seen in comics. The way these characters connect seems so genuine (aside from one arguably Hollywood moment where the son gets wise beyond his years when his dad leaves), and the flashbacks really flesh out this all-important relationship. At the same time, they're telling us a lot about Tom, who is surprisingly upbeat and pleasant for someone whose life could easily induce moping and bitterness.
Then there's the actual meat of the story, plot-wise, which is a relatively small amount of the issue and is mostly in the hands of the artist. Warren Pleece gives us a terrific fake-out about what happens with the truck crash, and though I didn't really catch it on first reading, on the second read-through I realized what we were supposed to see, and it's a clever, darkly funny bit of storytelling. Pleece also does a fantastic job of conveying that mix of horror and wonder that comes from Tom's discovery of his new abilities, and the ambiguous feelings that result from this new awakening.
However, while the reader might be clued in to what's going on, for the characters, this is all still a mystery. Puckett and Pleece have done a terrific job here of showing how emerging superpowers might actually be greeted, with a mixture of shock and denial. And the cliffhanger ending, just like the shocker of the truck bearing down on Tom in the first issue, is guaranteed to bring me back for the next outing. I think I have sussed out what's going on with Tom, and maybe what role his medicine has actually been playing in life, but I'm anxious to see the story that Puckett is spinning at this point.
