This issue is really brilliant. It's still somewhat confusing, so I'm only giving it four stars, but Moore brings to fruition the story that he's been building in the previous issues, that the unbelievable origin of Miracleman was unbelievable exactly because it wasn't real.
Moore somewhat unexpectedly divulges the secret history of Miracleman here, and it's as crazy as you'd expect it to be. Apparently, the British government was able to use technology discovered from an alien "visitor" to do two things that created Miracleman and his "sons." First, the government could now replicate a human being from a single cell with an altered D.N.A. structure, giving it super-powers. Mick, Young Miracleman, and Kid Miracleman were chosen as the cell donors, since they were the orphaned children of R.A.F. soldiers. Second, it could connect the cell donor (Mick) with the replicated being (Miracleman). Allegedly, Mick's consciousness would be transferred to Miracleman's body while Mick's body would trade spaces with Miracleman's in "infra-space," all by uttering the magic word, "Kimota." The government intended to use the Miraclemen as its version of the atomic bombs that the U.S., China, and Russia had or would soon have. To explain the powers that the Miraclemen had, the government had them "dreaming" for eight years, embedding the memories of "Guntag Borghelm" and the like. This part of the programming was run by none other than Dr. Emil Gargunza.
Not surprisingly, Moore leaves us with more questions than answers. Although the hypnotic-suggestion part of the story makes sense, I've still unclear on the nature of Miracleman. For example, theoretically, he should have Mick's consciousness. However, in this issue, we see him refer to "Moran" as if he's a different person. So, although Mick and Miracleman seem to share memories, they may not actually share a consciousness. Maybe they did at the start, but I don't think that they do now. Second, I'm not sure what's real and what's not real when it comes to Mick's history (though, to be fair, nor does he at this point). Were his adventures as Miracleman all imaginary? Or, did he start living his real life -- including as Miracleman -- again once the programming was complete? After all, they had to send them on a real mission to the atomic bomb that was supposed to kill them, at the very least. Also, when Kid Miracleman appeared alive, wouldn't the government have known? Wasn't he going by his original name?
Beyond Miracleman's origin, we also have questions in the present. Why did Cream turn against the government? It couldn't just be because it was doing something evil in not telling Mick the truth; Cream doesn't exactly seem like a stalwart of truth and justice. Also, if Miracleman is the father of Mick's child, then is it really Mick's, since they have different bodies? Moreover, is Liz right to worry that it's going to be "different?"
Even with the questions, it's pretty extraordinary to read the events as they unfold here. I'm just increasingly glad I decided to dive into this series.
**** (four of five stars)
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