Undiscovered Country #18 (January 12): Holy fucking shit. I have so many thoughts about this issue that I don't know where to start.
[Deep breath.]
OK, I'll start with the end of the Possibility chapter. Drumkit leads the team from the scene of battle as the team's doppelgängers (that Ace created last issue) fight Possibility's denizens. Ace gives Drumkit the song that it wants from him (a lullaby that his mother used to sing him), and Drumkit lets them go. Valentina calls her superheroic doppelgänger for help, and Captain Valentine takes the team and the Anything Engine to the Yearning. Of course, it turns out Uncle Sam is one of the Crossroad Devil's minions and makes it clear that the team either helps the Devil or dies. Chang notes that, in diplomacy, when you can't strengthen your position you remove the other side's leverage, so he destroys the Anything Engine.
At this point, I really had no idea where we were going. A disheartened Devil leaves, his minions retreat, and the team is left alone on the boat. The best part of this development is that everyone acknowledges that it was ridiculous to assume that they could create a masterpiece in the first place. (Ace admits that he was just going to rip off "Hamilton.") It's rare to see a comic acknowledge that a premise was flawed from the start without drifting into pet peeve #3 territory. Here, the flaw was the plan, not the excuse. Ace also acknowledges to Valentina that he was distracted while trying to write his masterpiece and kisses her. Seconds later, the ocean opens and they fall into another interstitial place.
Before we worry that Snyder and Soule got sappy and love was the key, a new Uncle Sam explains that Aurora intentionally had no control over Possibility, since art needs freedom. But, Aurora and he acknowledged that it all got too wild in there, so they rescued the team without the key. (Or, Ace and Valentina's kiss was an American masterpiece, and, for some reason, Aurora is too afraid to admit that.) At this point, I was worried that we were going to continue along our previous path, moving to another zone, la la la. Instead, shit gets real.
A newly costumed Destiny Man arrives and murders Uncle Sam. He explains that he saved the team from Aurora, and, given what they learned in Possibility about Aurora's machinations, it's hard to dismiss that possibility immediately. But, Charlotte is emphatic in reminding everyone that Destiny Man is a monster, and he acknowledges as much, saying that destiny changes a man. He then removes his helmet to reveal a handsome young man on one side of his face and a monster on the other one. Charlotte and Daniel (who gets hotter and hotter the fuller his beard gets) are shocked to see that he looks like their father, and he reveals that he is their younger brother, Alexander Graves. Dun-dun-DUN!
Alex makes it pretty clear that he's nuts ("And when two people love each other very much...") and claims that America is his birthright, that he was literally bred to rule it. He's been trying to work with Aurora, but he's done with that now. Before he can continue, a tornado arrives ("Just like 'The Wizard of Oz,'" Alex quips), and the party is split: Charlotte and Valentina find themselves in History; Ace, Chang, and Janet are in Hegemony; and Alex and Daniel seem set for some quality bro time in an unrevealed place.
Honestly, this issue really helps to move us to where I hoped we were going. We've spent too much time just traipsing through zones. Splitting the party and introducing a new Graves sibling aren't just wise plot moves: they're also symbolic of American storytelling tropes, from Dungeons & Dragons ("Don't split the party!") to Star Wars. It also speeds up the series' timeframe, as we seem to be approaching some sort of denouement. Snyder and Soule are getting us there organically, as it feels like the team's arrival has set off a series of events that Aurora increasingly can't control. We still don't know whether she was the one who arranged for the team to come to America, but, if she did, she might be regretting that decision about now.
Star Wars: Bounty Hunters #20 (January 12): The plot involving the Mourner's Wail and the Unbroken Clan is getting almost ridiculously complicated. In fact, it's getting hard to believe that T'onga is going through all this effort for no personal gain, as far as I can tell. Unbeknownst to her, her job is even more difficult now that Vukorah has killed Cadeliah's grandfather and taken over the Unbroken Clan, aligning it fully with Crimson Dawn. Vukorah's bodyguards inform her that the only people left in the Unbroken Clan's fortress as people loyal to her, so I'm not sure that Cadeliah is going to be able to just waltz into the place and unify the syndicates in the way that T'onga hopes. All that said, the best part of this series is Bossk and Tasu Leech's interactions, particularly as Tasu's brutality shocks even Bossk. ("You're starting to worry me, kid.") I'd be fine if we ditched Losha, T'onga, and Zuckuss and focused on these two nutjobs for a while. Speaking of Zuckuss, I'm relieved that he finally rescued 4-LOM. Sure, he has to cut off 4-LOM's head to do so, and I'm not really sure how he reprogrammed 4-LOM not to kill him simply by doing so. But, details, details. 4-LOM's response is great: "May I assume from my condition that we did not collect on the Boba Fett bounty?" It's nice that not every love story in Star Wars ends badly.
Star Wars: Crimson Reign #2 (February 2): Soule reveals Deathstick and Ochi's targets in this issue, and they're doozies. Deathstick arranges for the Empire to storm the Rebel bas where Cadeliah is hiding and kidnaps her in the ensuing chaos. Meanwhile, Ochi uses poison to take out all of Palapatine's Imperial Guard soldiers all at the same time. I'll be honest that I've lost track of how and when everyone learned about Cadeliah's existence. I think that Vukorah initially learned of Cadeliah because Nakano Lash tried to negotiate her surrender, but I can't remember if Lash informed her that Cadeliah was the Mourner's Wail and Unbroken Clan heir. Also, assuming that Vukorah knew, I assume that Vukorah is the one who told Qi'ra. Given all the crosses and double-crosses, I need some sort of chart at this point. At any rate, I actually think Qi'ra's strike against the Emperor is the most interesting development, since I'm betting it's also what precipitates her fall.
Also Read: Star Wars #20 (January 12); Dungeons & Dragons: Mindbreaker #4 (January 19); Newburn #3 (February 2)
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