Alex + Ada #6 – Review

By: Sarah Vaughn (story/script) and Jonathan Luna (story/art/letters)

The Story: As Alex and Ada start to settle into their lives, they come to grips with the fact that they are not normal.

Review (with SPOILERS): Even though this issue of Alex + Ada is (again) very high quality, it still hasn’t turned the corner into the bigger story that I am anticipating.  However, even in an issue where we’re still waiting for the shoe to drop, there are still some cunning and clever elements to this story.

The big thing that struck me was how quickly Ada is blasting through her learning phase.  She’s trying to experience and DO everything.  That’s going to lead to two things.  First, Ada will probably outgrow this phase where she is dependent on Alex pretty fast.  She needs him right now, but what about next week when she knows everything?  Is their relationship based on something “real”?  Or is it just based on the fact that Ada wants to learn about stuff and Alex is willing to indulge her?  Is she staying with him just because she needs him or does she really want to stay?  Right now, she needs to stay with Alex, but can you have a truly great relationship where one party is dependent upon the other?

Alex + Ada #5 – Review

By: Jonathan Luan (story/art/design) and Sarah Vaughn (story/script)

The Story: Having been freed from her restrictive programming, what will Ada do?

The Review (with SPOILERS): This has been a wonderful series so far and this issue mostly serves as the fulcrum from the beginning of the story toward its second chapter.

So far we have seen young Alex be given a super-fancy android named Ada.  The gift was from his wealthy grandmother who wanted him to have a friend/companion/sex-toy.  Alex never wanted Ada, but was too kind of a person to abuse her and he eventually became frustrated with her lack of self-determination and sought out a group that could remove the blocks in Ada’s programming allowing her to be fully aware.  That took us up through the last issue where Ada “woke up” and screamed her head off.

Alex + Ada #3 – Review

By: Sarah Vaughn (story/script) and Jonathan Luna (story/art/letters)

The Story: Alex introduces Ada to his friends.

Review (with SPOILERS): A bit of a transitional issue, this one.  But, that is okay and doesn’t really detract from my enjoyment of the series.  Sarah Vaughn and Jonathan Luna already established in the first two issues that they were interested in the sorts of deeper questions that I wanted to read about, so it’s okay for them to do a little of the necessary roadwork to get us from Point A to Point B.

This is the issue where Alex comes to grips with the fact that he owns an android (Ada).  She meets his friends and Alex starts to grapple with all the things that are normal when someone gets a new pet – because Ada is really just a pet at this point.  Much like a new dog owner needs to buy a few bowls and a leash, Alex needs to figure out what Ada will wear and how/when she needs to eat.  The question of whether she poops even came up.

But, the more interesting part is when Alex starts to wonder what to DO with Ada.  She’s remarkably compliant.  If he wants to dance, she’s happy to dance and she’ll happily watch whatever TV program he chooses.  But, by the end of the issue, we see that Alex is pretty disappointed because Ada doesn’t WANT anything on her own.  She’s just programmed to do whatever Alex wants.  In his frustration, he starts to explore getting her software upgraded to allow Ada to be more self-aware.

Alex + Ada #2 – Review

By: Sarah Vaughn (story/script) and Jonathan Luna (story/script assists, art, letters)

The Story: What will Alex do with his new android?

Review (with minor SPOILERS): This issue wasn’t quite as aces as the first, but that’s more a consequence of where it falls in the dramatic arc rather than any weakness in the issue itself.  The first issue showed tremendous promise that it wanted to tackle a LOT of the deep, thorny issues around ownership of sentient androids: How do we care for them?  What do we subject them to?  When does it veer into slavery?

That first issue also seemed willing to tackle many of the questions of perspective of the reader or the characters: Maybe we care more about the plight of an attractive android that looks like a young woman than we do about the boxy robot that fetches our slippers?  Maybe the only reason we care is that one is humanized and the other is a metal box?  Heck, do we care more for the plight of an android that looks like a demure young woman than an android that looks like a stripper?

Alex + Ada #1 – Review

By: Jonathan Luna (story, script, illustration, letters) and Sarah Vaughn (story, script)

The Story: In a technological near-future, a young man named Alex is given an android named Ada.

Review (with minor SPOILERS): I’m very glad I bought this comic.  Even though I’ve never loved previous comics from the Luna Brothers, I decided to give this a try and see what happens.

It turns out that what Jonathan Luna and Sarah Vaughn have created is a wonderful and classically-themed science-fiction story.  The sci-fi genre can get a bad rap sometimes, but it is almost without peer in its ability to make readers consider real-life social problems from a different point of view.  Sometimes just hitting us the in face with a story about slavery or exploitation would be blunt and direct, but when you use sci-fi to give us a glancing blow we actually think about what it all means.

The story set-up is pretty basic.  It is set in the near-future where day-to-day life is still mostly recognizable.  There are no spaceships; there is no traveling to terraformed Mars.  It’s just the same stuff we do every day, but with slightly better technology.  We meet Alex (the protagonist) and see him using this technology.  Basically, he has the uber smart house.  Everything is wired to react to his thoughts.  Nowadays, we can wire our homes to do most of these things, but we have to get out our smartphones to control the lights or coffee pot.  Alex just thinks “Lights” and the lights turn off/on.  We also meet some of Alex’s co-workers and learn that not everyone has this technology implanted in their brains.  In fact, lots of people are still managing household appliances the old-fashioned way and expressing mild concern for their friends who are too sucked in by technology.  We also learn that technology is starting to become sentient.  The AI isn’t at Terminator-levels, but it is becoming aware and isn’t always happy with the humans.  And we meet Alex’s grandmother who doesn’t have the thought-reading technology in her head, but has bought an android sex toy/household servant (Daniel).  Finally, along the way, we follow Alex’s sad love life: He’s been broken up with the girl of his dreams for a few months and just cannot get it into gear with the ladies.

The Sword #23 – Review

by Joshua Luna (writer, layouts, letters) and Jonathan Luna (art)

The Story: The battle between Malia and Dara comes to its bitter conclusion.

What’s Good: I usually don’t discuss an issue’s ending at the beginning of a review, but this month’s cliffhanger stands as one of the biggest twists in this series.   I haven’t been this stunned by a comic in quite a while.  I’d like to say “jaw-dropping,” but that just isn’t good enough.  This will absolutely blow your mind and have you rethinking past issues.  That the Lunas held off on this massive turn of events until the second to last issue is a huge gamble on their part, for which I can only respect them.  It would have been easy enough to cruise through to a formulaic ending, but now, I have no idea what to expect.  I need that last issue.

Big twist aside, this is a solid outing for the Lunas.  A particular highlight, however, is the flashback.  It’s been something a formula during these “boss battles” or particular hard times for Dara to have a flashback relating to some moral lesson taught to her by her family.  However, the last few outings, these flashbacks have fallen surprisingly flat.  Not this month, however, which sees the Lunas back in form.  The scene this month is well written, though kept simple, and is touching enough to hit all the right buttons.

Beyond that, the Malia/Dara dynamic remains strong and a bit more intriguing, and heated, than the dynamics Dara shared with Zathros and Knossos.  Malia feels more complex as an antagonist due to her relationship with Demetrios.  When she tries to goad Dara by calling him a liar, it’s hard not to think that she’s speaking from personal experience.

As far as the art goes, this is about as solid as you’re liable to get from the Lunas, though a bit more understated than might be expected, given the circumstances.  I didn’t have any problem with that, however, as the action still flowed well and I rarely have a problem with getting more dialogue than splash pages and am glad that the Lunas didn’t go as splash-heavy as they easily could have.

The Sword #20 – Review

by Joshua Luna (writer, layouts, letters) and Jonathan Luna (art)

The Story: Malia further manipulates the media and public opinion as Dara races to New York City to confront her.

What’s Good: It’s great to see an issue of the Sword on the racks again.

The opening scene may very well be the strongest bit of the book.  I enjoyed the Lunas’ putting Dara’s previously indisputable hero status into question.  It really adds a very unique tone to this final arc, while also encouraging the reader to look back on the rest of the series.  We’re forced to re-examine Dara’s progress, and it’s hard not to be struck by how much she’s changed and what she’s become.  That said, the Lunas leave much of this up to the reader, and I do feel some of their trademark flashbacks would have further augmented this element.

I also enjoyed Julie’s suggestions of the Sword almost being some sort of addiction.  It adds a darker feel that the book definitely benefits from.  Certainly, it adds another layer of complexity to the series.

On the action-front, there’s a scene involving Dara’s battle with a pair of fighter jets that’s a great deal of fun.  While I know not everyone is a fan of the Lunas’ work, they do know their way around an action scene.  It’s insane, bordering on over-the-top, but as with many of the Sword’s better action scenes, it works all the better for these reasons.

Justin’s dialogue was also particularly strong this month.  As the series grows darker, Justin provides that necessary comic relief, very effectively deadpanning the book’s grandstanding while highlighting many of the more impressive, super-powered moments.

What’s Not So Good: While the action sequence is good, there are a few botched faces on Jonathan Luna’s part.  One headshot of Julia crying out is unforgivably bad.  At other times, characters’ faces simply don’t carry the emotion they should.  When characters are caught in more rueful, subtle emotions, Luna often draws them far too close to a neutral expression.

Also, I can’t help but be irritated by Joshua Luna’s writing of the “crowd dialogue.”  Luna has opted to present the crowd noise around Malia in the form of a few select quotes being bubbled without a speaker.  This is already a bit ham-fisted on his part, but the actual content of this pseudo-dialogue can unfortunately only be described as moronic.  The quotes just sound far too stupid and thus expose themselves too fully for what they are: Luna’s method of capturing developments in public feeling regarding Malia and Dara.  This “crowd noise” is a weak method of accomplishing this as is, but Luna’s poor writing of these faceless characters doesn’t help any.  I wish he stuck purely to the newscasts.

That being said, Luna’s actual dialogue in this month’s newscasts isn’t great either.  As was the case with the crowd’s dialogue, the quotes are simply too obvious in their authorial purpose.  For this reason, they lack believability and the people speaking feel more like narrative tools than human beings.

Finally, while the Lunas have really done well with their use of flashbacks throughout the series, this is not one of those times.  The flashback isn’t bad, but it’s nowhere near the standards the Lunas have set for themselves.  The moral lesson is weak and uninspired, and the whole situation depicted feels clichéd.

Conclusion: An inoffensive issue that is a bit rough around the edges.

Grade: C+

-Alex Evans

The Sword #18 – Review

by Joshua Luna (writer & letterer) and Jonathan Luna (art)

The Story: Dara’s battle with the Earth god Knossos comes to its brutal and bloody conclusion.

What’s Good: Goddamn this was a brutal comic.  Once again, the Lunas prove that the Sword is sharp.  Damn sharp.  Limbs fly and people are gutted.  That said, it’s not brutal in a “random people exploding all over the place” sort of way.  It’s brutal because every single act of violence is loaded with emotional intent.  Every chopped limb actually means something.

The sheer scope and size of the battle is nothing short of ridiculous.  Its impossible to talk about the story of this issue without also mentioning the artwork, as the two go hand in hand in depicting the battle.  The Lunas do an amazing job of conveying the size of Knossos and the unbelievable odds against which Dara is fighting.  It’s the sort of awe-inspiring stuff  we’ve come to expect, and it leads to some unforgettable images.

I also loved the ending of the issue, which delivers a twist that provides the landscape for the coming battle with Malia.  It really is an unexpected turn that reshapes the world of the Sword.  It also guarantees that this series will have a very different feel as it heads into its last arc, and that the battle with Malia will be like none before; this time, with the world watching.  Not running the risk of repetition, the Lunas have changed the rules in shocking fashion.

What’s Not-So-Good: Unfortunately, the bottom-line is that this battle just wasn’t as fun as the one with Zakros.  In that battle, I marveled at the sheer creativity of the Lunas, giving the gods endless ways to use their powers.  Not so much in this issue, which sees Knossos stay in his rock man form.  It’s just a little more one dimensional than I’ve come to expect.

I also wasn’t a huge fan of Malia’s continued interference in Dara’s battle.  It made the conflict between Knossos and Dara feel less personal and less important.  The one-on-one dynamic was lost and thus so too was some of the impact.  I wanted Dara vs Knossos, and having it be Dara and Malia vs Knossos needlessly diluted the conflict.

The rock man form is also a bit of a double-edged sword as well.  While it provides some amazing visuals and an incredible obstacle for Dara, it also means that Knossos is encased in a giant suit of rock, unable to exchange banter with Dara while the fight goes on, which was part of what made the Zakros fight so awesome.  The one exchange of words at the end of the fight is perhaps the high point of the issue only serves to illustrate this fact.

Conclusion: By no means a bad conclusion, but it wasn’t quite as personal as we’ve come to expect.

Grade: B-

-Alex Evans