The Wake #3 – Review

By: Scott Snyder (story), Sean Murphy (art), Matt Hollingsworth (colors)

I have a bad habit to confess.  I’m one of those jerks who like to flip to the end of a book to see what happens.  It’s wrong, I know, but I can’t help myself.  The good thing is this doesn’t really harm my enjoyment of a story because then I get so eager to see how it winds up where it does.  Spoilers actually have the opposite effect on me than it does for many other folks.  It’s just one of the many things that make me dysfunctional.

Consequently, serial fiction is a really good medicine for me because it forces me to anticipate and speculate like everyone else.  There’s no skipping ahead with comics.*  This can be quite frustrating when you have a writer like Snyder, who revels in dragging out the suspense, adding one mysterious layer on top of the other in such a way that you can’t see the entire cake until he’s finished with it.  You know it’ll be a treat when he gets there; that’s what makes it so delightfully painful to be patient.

Thus far, Snyder’s skipped us around several periods, going as far back as the earliest points of human (rudimentarily speaking) history.  Here, he goes beyond that, suggesting our origins, and the origins of these aquatic creatures, began outside of Earth.  We see, 3.8 billion years ago, a pristine Mars, lush, verdant, covered with oceans.  Snyder gives us only a single hint as to how it goes from this to its current deserted state, and how this might tie into the development of life on Earth: a smoking, flashing, unidentifiable celestial object, striking Mars in an explosive way.

WCBR’s Top Picks

Dean’s Picks

Best From The Past Week: Lazarus #2 – It wasn’t a perfect issue, but it was a light week and it was the best issue in my stack.  What strikes me about Lazarus is how quickly Greg Rucka and Michael Lark have begun telling a real story.  Most series set in some sort of fictitious future will spend 4-5 issues just rolling around in the cool new world they have created and not even attempt a real story at first.  It isn’t as if Lazarus is going to neglect playing with the cool new world, but we already have a sense of what this story will be about.  There is little not to enjoy about this series.

Most Anticipated: 

1. The Wake #3 – I’ve loved the first two issues and that was to be expected.  Scott Snyder is one of my favorite writers and artists don’t come any better than Sean Murphy.  If you haven’t done so already, check out some of the commissions that Murphy has been doing and posting on Twitter.  Just go to Twitter and search “Sean Murphy commission” and you’ll see them.  They’re insane.  I’m just glad I got a few pieces of original art from the guy before he blew up.  But, regarding The Wake….I’m really enjoying the mystery of this weird mer-man and the whole who/what/why/how of this underwater horror adventure.

2. Collider #1 – Yippie!  A new series from Vertigo!  That’s enough to get me off the couch and get me excited.  It isn’t that I don’t read superhero comics, but I’ve lost the ability to get very excited about them anymore because nothing of consequence happens that isn’t undone within a few issues.  What does excite me is getting a shot at something NEW.  It sounds like the series is about a near-future where things like time-hopping, gravity manipulation and what-not become standard…and of course things go horribly wrong.  The art is from Robbie Rodriguez and he’s really talented.  It should be great.

3. Transformers: More that Meets the Eye #19 – This is a great, great, GREAT series.  It reminds me so much of the comics of my youth from a pacing standpoint.  Almost every issue features a central theme that is usually resolved within an issue or two, while also allowing bigger picture storylines to continually develop in the background.  It’s so refreshing in this era of 6-issue storyarcs that are fun to read in collected formats, but pretty miserable in single-issues.  Transformers: MtMtE avoids that typical, three-act structure by always having something at the beginning, middle and end.  It’s also very new reader friendly.  Just dive in.  You’ll love it and it’ll have you rummaging up old Transformers comics to read.

4. Batman Annual #2 – I’m not loving Batman: Zero Year yet.  It isn’t bad, but it just doesn’t seem quite up to the standard of Snyder’s other Bat-stories.  Maybe this Annual that is a “tie in” to Zero Year will light the fuse?  The art is by Wes Craig and I kinda like what I’ve seen of him (from a quick Google search).

5. Morning Glories #29 – Even though I “retired” from reviewing the series because I was confused, I still enjoy MG a lot.  It’s also easier to enjoy a series when you aren’t thinking, “Holy crap.  I don’t understand what is going on.  How am I going to write 1000 words about this?”  Now I just enjoy the parts that I DO understand and let the rest wash over me…which is kinda how comics should be.  Even when MG is confusing, I really respect the dedication to long-form storytelling.

Hugo’s Picks

Best From The Past Week: Lazarus #2 – There were some very good issues this week, but I’d have to give the top mark to Greg Rucka and Michael Lark over their new series. The first issue didn’t really impress me, but the inclusion of some more nuance in some characters as well as the exploration of this new world they are trying to show us makes for a pretty great read.

Most Anticipated:

1. Batman Incorporated #13 – This is both sad and exciting, as the finale issue, the grand conclusion to Grant Morrison big Batman story is here. As I loved a lot of what it did and what it introduced in terms of concepts, I am really curious to see just how he can possibly close things up. Even if it might disappoint me, I know that it will at least look great thanks to Chris Burnham and his wonderfully experimental touch in terms of panelling.

2. Transformers: More Than Meets The Eye #19 – This series has always managed to keep up its humor, characters and neat concepts in order to make for a satisfying read each time. With the way the latest issue concluded, I am sure we are in for some neat exploration about a character I grew up to love in the comic and just how his return was possible. With the very expressive and energetic art of Alex Milne, it will also be a visual treat.

3. Ultimate Comics: The Ultimates #28 – This title has been renewed in term of concepts and excitation, as the new storyline by Joshua Hale Fialkov brought some of the very best aspects of Jonathan Hickman’s run and continued them in a way that really take advantage of the Ultimate universe. The latest issues were full of surprises and I expect this one to be as well, which makes for a very anticipated read from my part.

4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #24 – This series has been consistently surprising on many levels, bringing the best of many incarnations of a rather silly concept and mixing those elements together to make a fun read. With the big storyline underway and how things are shaping up, I have to admit that I’m eager to know what will soon follow in the adventures of those amphibian ninjutsu adept.

5. The Wake #3 – This comic has been written in an interesting way, yet it’s really Sean Murphy who’s making me anticipating this title. He seems really at home drawing monstrosities from the depth and I am curious to see him unleash those beasts in ways that I am sure will be memorable.