I loved the first issue of Paradigm, and I see the same imagination and weirdness that drew me in with this second issue, but I found myself wishing for a clearer structure this time out. Cashel and Haun have a cast of characters from several walks of life, and this story flips between them with little warning or transition. It's a fascinating method of telling a story, and it really allows Cashel to do the strong characterization that I enjoyed so much in the first issue, but it also means there's plenty of room for confusion.
When you read Paradigm, be prepared to immerse yourself in the world that Cashel and Haun have created. While there are recognizable elements of the real world in the book, there's a definite sense of magic reality that drives the book. However, while the fantastic elements and weirdness drive the story, the fact that the reality is so well-established is actually what makes these strange elements stand out so strongly. The conversation that Zeke and the woman have in the bar in the beginning establishes the tone of the book, in that her outgoing nature with the most personal of subjects is rather unusual, but her dialogue is completely believable.
This mixture of reality and weirdness continues throughout. Chris's argument with the woman could almost be an argument with a friend or girlfriend, if it weren't for the nature of their conversation, which includes a fair amount of reality bending. And while the reflections of Zeke as he walks down the street are not exactly normal thoughts, they are normal thought patterns. Cashel's writing style reminds me of Grant Morrison crossed with Brian Michael Bendis, drawing on the strengths of both.
There's also an element of a weakness that I've found in some of Morrison's work, namely so many weird and out-there concepts and disconnected story points that the book doesn't always make sense. There are numerous shifts of scene in this issue, usually without warning, and I didn't always find Haun's characters distinctive enough to adjust to the shifts immediately. Leaving aside the occasional confusion, though, I really love Haun's artwork. The level of shading and photorealism reminds me of early Bendis work, and the layouts are very unusual and stylish. The style of storytelling shifts here as well, from standard panel-to-panel to illustrated prose to a newspaper mock-up, and Haun makes those transitions smoothly and easily.
This is a book that requires re-reading to understand, and even then I'm left with quite a few questions. However, despite wishing for just a little bit more clarity, I can't deny that the confusion and level of strangeness is a big appeal of the book. Paradigm feels like a book with a distinctive artistic vision and plenty to say, and fans of off-beat fare like Twin Peaks or The Invisibles should definitely check it out.
