Cave Carson Has an Interstellar Eye #2 – Jon Rivera, Writer; Michael Avon Oeming, Paul Maybury, Artists; Nick Filardi, Colorist
Ratings:
Ray – 9/10
Ray: As Cave Carson Has an Interstellar Eye #2, the second issue in the second volume of Cave Carson’s journey through space and time, continues, it becomes clear that this series will be far more surreal and cosmic than the previous one.
Highly inspired by the work of Jack Kirby as filtered through a psychedelic lens, this run seems to be focusing on the cosmic beings that inhabit the DCU and the way they interact with “lesser beings” both human and alien. The character of Star Adam, best described as Galactus meets Prince, is gone but not forgotten as the cosmic effects from his death spread out across the universe and send Cave and his allies’ ship into chaotic flux. The story then flashes to another world, where an endless war rages between two distinct groups. The Lazer Monks, samurai-like warriors, wage a battle against the Nejire, hideous and brutal ogres who seem to take joy in creating chaos and bloodshed. The introduction to these two groups is distinct if a bit abrupt.
Cave’s eye leads the ship on a course to the planet, where it proceeds to immediately kill a Nejire warrior upon impact and set Cave, Chloe, and their crew on a collision course with one of the warrior groups. Cave gets mistaken for someone known by the Lazer Monks as the Progenitor, who looks a lot like an elderly Cave with dark hair. However, after a flashback to the history of the Lazer Monks and their link to Star Adam, Cave proceeds to try to broker peace between the two sides with…mixed results. Oeming’s art is at its best this issue, with great designs especially for the monsters of the issue – the Nejire and a particularly dangerous pterodactyl-like monster that appears late in the issue. There’s some great development for Cave and Chloe’s family relationship, a clever last-page twist, and a backup focusing on Cave and Chloe’s podcast that delivers some funny lines. This remains one of the Young Animal line’s crown jewels.
Corrina: I was going to say that the first volume of Cave Carson’s journey was surreal too but between the Rock Star who became a god of the universe and the Lazer Monks, and the war, and the flux, well…
I mean, Kirby was trippin’ with his work but there’s trippin’ and there’s trippin’ and the creators of this series seem to want to double down on that. For me, they went a little too fast with this issue, threw so much at the reader that I wasn’s sure where to focus.
But, as always, Oeming seems to be having a blast drawing it all.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
