Week of 4/3 Comics Reviews: Spoilers! Comics are Good!
The One Hand #3 written by Ram V with art by Laurence Campbell
Issue three (but also fi— look, you get it. There’re two books telling one larger story) picks up with Detective Ari Nassar and his partner Mac checking in on the chemical spill that had occurred at the end of the previous issue. By all accounts, the incident should have no relation to the murder which had taken place at the same time on the opposite end of town, but as Detective Nassar’s reality folds in like a paper airplane, distance no longer seems to mean as much as it used to. After a brief talk with the investigators there, Ari and his partner head over to the local prison to speak with Odell Watts, the man Ari had put away for murders just like the ones happening in the present. As to be expected, Watts is less than forthcoming, taunting Ari with cryptic hints that it would be easy to imagine any killer with a deluded sense of grandeur giving. However, as he leaves the room, the situation suddenly escalates and the cryptic hints become reframed as what could be a desperate cry for help. Ari is left with a haunting clue and the most devastating blow to his career yet.
Facing the possibility of retirement whether he wants it or not, Ari resumes a personal investigation which the reader has seen throughout the first two issues. The mystery of Nemone has been on the backburner throughout the book. She seemed to be mechanical, but no one ever uses the word “robot”. In this issue, the word “cog” is thrown around and there are enough hints for sci-fi fans to fill in the blanks, but it is never explicitly stated what exactly they are. Ari’s pursuit of his lost lover offers an answer to at least a few of those questions when he finds her, now called Helene, working at an assembly line in a job she’s supposedly had for the last twelve years. He probes her for any hint of recognition, but she seems to be a completely different person, at least until she makes a comment calling back to the first issue. Her words crystallize something in Ari’s mind and he rushes to speak with Odell Watts one last time, only to witness another shocking scene of violence. However, unlike the last time, this issue ends with Ari finally getting a potential opportunity to speak with his foe.
This issue was a wild ride from start to finish. The case is ramping up and the action along with it. Ram V continues to be a master at telling character-driven stories while drip-feeding the reader just enough world-building to keep them from getting lost along the journey. It’s a strange feeling to finish a book and feel like you’ve gained both a wider and narrower view of the story. On one hand (get it?), the new information in this issue broadens the world and gives the reader a better sense of what is possible, but it also draws the story into tighter focus as we gain an understanding of just what Ari could be facing. Of course, even that understanding is countered by all of it’s possible implications. Laurence Campbell’s art continues to be stellar. The issues seem to be becoming more stylized as they go and seem to represent Ari’s own reality slowly unraveling. The scene of violence in the middle of the book is especially stylized enough to let the reader know just how brutal it is, while also being vague enough for the reader to have to fill in the blanks with the worst they can imagine. I ended up going through those pages three times before moving on because I just needed to process what was happening. It’s rare to find a comic that conveys the action with so much immediacy that my heart actually starts to pound, but Campbell pulls it off.
Not only am I excited for the next issue of The One Hand, I’m dying to read The Six Fingers. Seeing this chaos unfold with the knowledge of who Johannes is only serves to enhance the tension. The cryptic line at the end of the issue makes it sound like he’s also gone through quite the change and I can’t wait to see how it shapes their seemingly inevitable confrontation. Seriously, go read this book. Last time, I recommended it for anyone who enjoys noir and sci-fi, but I think anyone who loves stories and comics and wants to see what a team of masters can do as they bend the form will enjoy this. The next issue cannot come fast enough.
The Immortal Thor #9 written by Al Ewing with art by Ibraim Roberson
Hot off his confrontation with the elder gods, including his own mother, Thor has set his sights on another foe. He charges headlong into the headquarters of the Roxxon energy corporation and comes face-to-face with Dario Agger, the Minotaur. Roxxon has been around in Marvel comics for a number of years and Agger has been a personal enemy of Thor since Jason Aaron’s run in the early 2010’s. While he is strong enough to duke it out with Thor, Agger’s real threat is that nothing he does is illegal. He runs his corporation, buys land to pillage its resources, and donates money to politicians who advocate for a “free market”. All of which is completely legal in America for someone with enough wealth to cover their tracks. Agger is death by capitalism and that isn’t something Thor can beat just by hitting it with his hammer.
Thor poses a question to Agger, asking how he can continue his business, knowing what he does is actively killing the Earth. Agger’s answer is simple and tragically believable: “I like it when the numbers go up. That’s all. Because that means I win.” Agger is the epitome of human evil, not the broad ideas of our worse aspects, but the fundamental selfishness that drives a society that seeks to commodify everything, to turn art into “content” and stories into profit machines. Al Ewing doesn’t hold back in his indictments either, as Agger points out that Thor has become a device for churning out products. He’s a movie, his face is on lunchboxes, toothbrushes, and toasters. Thor is bound to the machine, and as Agger says, he’s the one who owns the machine.
As they talk, Agger takes Thor on a tour through a vision of his dystopian hellscape where a ruling class lives in domes while waited on by their servants. While Thor is distracted, the real trap is sprung and longtime foes Skurge the Executioner and Amora the Enchantress make their appearances and reveal the true scope of their plans. Roxxon has published it’s own Thor comic, repurposing his story for themselves and, as we’ve seen throughout the run and Ewing’s other work, the gods are defined by their stories. Thor now finds himself at the risk of being consumed by his own story and turned into a corporate entity.
After an epic celebration of Thor as an inspiring hero that brings out the best in us, it’s interesting to see him coming into conflict with the worst. From the beginning, he’s at a clear disadvantage and it remains to be seen how he’ll pull victory away from Agger, or for that matter, what victory there is to be gained against capitalist entropy in the first place. The story paints a bleak picture of the world, and it’s clear that Thor isn’t going to simply be able to wave his hammer and make the monster go away. It will likely require the help of everyone fighting against our own complacency to make a difference. But for now, Thor is alone and deep in the clutches of his foes.
Ibraim Roberson’s art does a perfect job setting the tone of the story, Thor charges into Agger’s office wrapped in lightning, an angry storm god in full, while Agger is a hulking monster whose flesh has been ripped from his bull head (as seen in the pages of Al Ewing’s Immortal Hulk!) leaving only bone and sinew, yet also clothed in a fine suit and sitting in a well-decorated office. The contrast makes it clear that these are two different worlds colliding with one another. The action scenes also look great, from Thor throwing down with another Asgardian warrior to being blasted by evil magic. Thor’s own discomfort with the situation and the toll Enchantress’s magic is taking can be seen on every panel as he becomes increasingly tired and worn down by battles both physical and metaphysical.
This issue was yet another great entry in this new saga of Thor. The thematic link to Ewing’s previous work on The Immortal Hulk are becoming clearer while also building on ideas established in Loki: Agent of Asgard and Defenders: Beyond. If comics are the modern mythology, then this book is a case study in how that mythology affects the world and vice versa. This book is an easy recommendation for anyone looking for an epic tale full of big ideas and tons of heart. This new arc is off to a strong start and I can’t wait to see where this team takes the story next!