Black Betty #5by Sheena McNeilReviews may contain information that could be considered 'spoilers'. Readers should proceed at their own risk. Publisher
Credits Grade: 9 Betty gets a text from a child regarding the mysterious murder of his grandfather. Unfortunately, Betty falls prey to the mysterious force that has the whole town under control ... except for the kid, Noah, who is immune because he's deaf!This is a fantastic issue! It has a strong opening with the mysterious murder, and I especially love how it's framed to not let us realize Noah is deaf until it's too late for his grandpa! I love that Betty takes immediate action upon receiving the text from Noah, and I love how they use texting to quickly and efficiently communicate in person. I also like that Noah doesn't point out to her that he's deaf till she's there and he needs to for necessity. Color coding their text boxes, which appear like stylized narration boxes with very tiny word balloon tails, works well as a visual aid for following the conversation and indicating that it's text as opposed to narration or speaking. I also like that we can see them chilling on the couch, texting to catch Betty up to speed. It's a pacing that wouldn't work the same with speech balloons, and it also clues us in on the feel of the scene -- Betty's taking it seriously but questioning to get the details and make sure it's not just a scared kid's perspective. I like seeing Betty's casual process for scoping out the town, especially knowing the whole town is affected, possibly by mind-control. Her process of eliminating go-to possibilities is well done. I am a little disappointed that she doesn't take Noah's deafness into consideration given the whole mind-control thing. And she doesn't think it's strange that the town left the child on his own with no adult after his only living relative was killed. The issue ends on a seriously grisly cliffhanger! It's shocking and scary, which is only amped through Noah's reaction to seeing it and his panicked texts to Betty. Wow! Where's the next issue already? Written: July 29, 2018
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