Topsideby Sheena McNeilReviews may contain information that could be considered 'spoilers'. Readers should proceed at their own risk. Publisher
Credits Grade: 5 Jo is a talented repair technician, but she makes a little mistake that causes a big problem. Taking matters into her own hands, she goes topside, where she falls in with con artists and bounty hunters in a landscape that leaves her in awe. A couple of paper pushers and armed subordinates are sent after her ....There's a chase scene leading up to the ending, with the pursuers closing in faster than should be possible, and a unimaginably-large information dump on the characters in those final scenes. This means the ending is rushed. VERY rushed. There are worlds within worlds that we get tiny glimpses of as they literally run through them. And the book ends without really explaining how all this is even possible, just that Jo is some kind of chosen one who can fix the entire world. I have so many questions, but I'm ultimately left not caring. Interestingly the back cover says this is about "facing your mistakes and the friends you meet along the way", but Jo doesn't face her mistake. She does everything in her power to NOT face it! She breaks rules and even goes on a dangerous quest, all so she doesn't have to admit her mistake. She wants to SECRETLY make it right, but whether she does or not isn't shown and isn't even the point at the end. And what does she get in the end? A pass on all that and a cosmic promotion. Um ...? What? At least the friendship aspect is solid. I love that the "bad guys" Jo gets involved with show their humanity (they're not all human, but you know what I mean). Jo trusts them out of necessity, but eventually becomes friends and coworkers with them. We really get to see her persona growth in this regard, from loner ... to boss. Yeah, they're not equals at the end, Jo just said she needed help to do the job. That's a bit disappointing, especially given how much these travelling companions sacrifice and struggle through, albeit mostly for their own selfish reasons. These four "bad guys" that travel with Jo are the most interesting characters in the book. Much more interesting than Jo. Tenz is a hustler and a con artist, but despite her protests to the contrary, she does consider the shapeshifter Kevin to be like a son. She's a driving force, but we get to see her heart before the end. I wish we knew more about Kevin's past; he seems like such a tragic character, but at least he's found a home of some kind with Tenz. His powers are amazing! I've never seen a shapeshifter drawn so loosely either, like always in a partially liquid state around the edges; it's weird but neat. Karina is a giant iron body in a dress, with a shark head. She's a powerhouse and a total sweetheart. I love her toothy grins and puppy dog eyes. She's in a relationship with Lumi, who is electricity and light embodied. He's mostly contained in a robot-lightbulb suit of sorts, but can come out of the suit to act in many different electrical ways, which comes in very handy. He's amazingly versatile, with some unusual forms and skills that really carry a large part of the action in this comic. While I love all of Karina and Lumi's interactions, I especially liked seeing how her shark-ness lets her sense his electric field. They are an adorable couple that steal the show for sure! These two characters made the read worthwhile for me. Jo is self-important, selfish, headstrong, and, yes, talented at what she does, but it is her ego that causes her to mess up in the first place. She is working hard to help her family, but she puts them all at risk by her actions. I like seeing her in awe of topside, but I wish the experience humbled her more. And I don't like that she gets the ultimate ego boost at the end. It's unusual to have a main character that I don't like, but here she is. The humor with regard to the paper pushers and their pursuit of Jo is absurd in an eye-rolling way. It's clearly meant to be funny, but it's not quite, and then it keeps trying the same joke for a while. One of these characters is teased with some backstory that could have made for a great main character arc, but he just kind of fizzles out at the end. His involvement does add something to our understanding of the politics of the world as a whole, but we could have read this without that. The art is very nice. The roundish, cartoony features with large eyes are appealing most of the time, but sometimes the eyes are too dull for the energy of the scene. I love that most of the human cast are POC, and coloring is excellent, especially with skin tones in a variety of colored lights. Overall, I enjoyed the read, but mostly because of some supporting characters. And I clearly found aspects, including the main character, to be problematic. Too much is teased and not enough is fleshed out. Written: March 23, 2020
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