Adventure Science!
Creative Staff:
Story and Art: Matt Kindt
Colors: Sharlene Kindt
Letters: Not listed
What They Say:
Matt Kindt’s survival sci-fi series continues!
Mia’s investigation into the sabotage of an underwater station becomes complicated by the disappearance of a loved one, the loss of communications with the world above, and a confrontation with a giant squid and other strange creatures of the deep.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Although both adventure scientists, Mia and her father didn’t get along. Mia blamed him and her brother for quitting a deep space exploration she had dedicated her life to and refused to speak to either of them after. If not for her father’s death deep down under the ocean, she would be preparing for another trip to outer space. Instead, she insisted on investigating the circumstances of her father’s accident. Her conclusion—despite a clear lack of evidence—is that her father was murdered, and the only possible culprits were the crew of Dept. H. A crew that includes her brother.
A locked room mystery is complicated enough, but the complications multiply exponentially when that locked room is a deep-sea underwater research facility isolated from everything and everyone. If the murderer doesn’t get her—assuming that there is a murderer at all—the ocean might.
This issue does a good job of fleshing out Mia’s character and casting doubts on her conclusions. The majority of the story alternates between flashbacks of the deep-space mission and her arguing with her brother in Dept. H. Mia’s inner monologue mainly focuses on how she can never forget, and how that’s both a benefit and a curse to her. After all, if you can’t forget the thousand little disagreements, slights, and painful moments, how can you forgive?
Her inner monologue about her memory does a nice job of putting her argument with her brother into a larger context. She still feels the betrayal of her family abandoning the deep-space mission and resents the harsh way her brother treated her. Her feelings cast doubt on her ability to objectively analyze the situation, and Matt Kindt plays that up beautifully. Right now, it’s unclear if Mia is right, or is just acting paranoid—perhaps projecting the guilt and anger she felt over her perceived betrayal to the current situation.
Mia’s brother, Raj, doesn’t buy her interpretation of the situation. It could be, though, that he’s just being blind. He sees accident and coincidence where Mia sees plot and motive, and their differing points of view become fueled by past wounds that never truly healed.
Regardless of whether Mia is being paranoid or Raj is being obtuse, the two—along with the rest of the group—find themselves in a difficult situation. The antenna that connects Dept. H with the surface world becomes damaged, and the siblings go out to assess the damage. Again, Raj sees only an unfortunate incident while Mia sees sabotage. While they’re out there, Raj takes Mia to a special place down in a nearby trench. The trench teems with life—exotic and miraculous—and for the first time Mia begins to feel the same sense of awe and insignificance she felt when she was in outer space. Unfortunately, they wake up a particularly dangerous creature in the trench and Mia’s investigation may end before it starts.
The real question of the hour, though, is whether this was an accident, or something premeditated on Raj’s part.
Matt Kindt does a fantastic job of writing and drawing this piece. As I said in my previous review, his style is very interesting. It’s very rough, and almost ugly, but purposefully so. The roughness fits the situation, and it highlights the dangerous, precarious situation Mia and the rest are in.
Sharlene Kindt’s colors bring a life and vibrancy to his art. Just like the previous issue, she uses washed-out blues to indicate the past, and a richer palette for scenes taking place in the present. Her colors, more than anything, help capture the beauty, the danger, and the awe of being so far under the water.
In Summary:
Dept. H issue 2 introduces some interesting new wrinkles into this already compelling story. Is Mia being paranoid and projecting her own feelings of guilt and anger on her father, or is she right and someone killed him? The answers won’t come easy, and the ocean is a dangerous enough place without a killer. This comic does a great job of mixing hard science fiction with mystery and survival fiction, and it keeps you on your toes. I’m not sure where it’s heading, but I’m certainly along for the ride. Dr. Josh gives this an….
Grade: A+
Age Rating: N/A
Released By: Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: May 18th, 2016
MSRP: $3.99
