Jinny Hex Special #1 – Mags Visaggio, Writer; Gleb Melnikov, Artist; Luis Guerrero, Colorist
Ray – 8/.5/10
Ray: Jinny Hex was a fun addition to the new Young Justice team and a nice dose of diversity in the DCU as a new lesbian superhero, but we knew very little about her by the time the book ended. Wonder Comics is giving us an unexpected epilogue with this oversized done-in-one by guest writer Mags Visaggio, as we head back to Jinny’s hometown as she stumbles through a post-high school ennui and helps to run the family garage in her deceased mother’s honor. We’re introduced to her friends, including her BFF—an eccentric Jewish goth who calls herself Lady Bird. It’s a fun dynamic—that’s completely upended when a mysterious stranger comes by, claiming to be Jinny’s long-lost father.
Lady Bird immediately suspects the charming cowboy isn’t on the level, but Jinny is taken in and they spend a few days bonding. To no one’s surprise, he turns out to have his eye on her chest of magical artifacts and robs the garage. While Jinny at first treats it as a standard robbery, it becomes clear it’s anything but when he nabs the mysterious metal eye in the chest and gains reality-warping powers. The next thing she knows, she’s waking up in a mysterious wild-west reimagining of her hometown, surrounded by alternative versions of her friends—including her mother, mysteriously resurrected. It’s a compelling, mind-bending setup for Jinny’s first solo adventure, and bigger in stakes than her namesake usually got up to.
While her father Jack—or Three-Eyed Jack—at first seemed like a pretty generic scoundrel, he turns out to have a backstory that makes him something close to a cosmic villain and a particularly loathsome one. Despite the scale of this story, though, it’s a compelling story of a young woman grappling with grief and being rootless in a world that expects young people to hit the ground running. I’m not sure when the character will show up again, but I’m hoping she finds a landing place. Melnikov’s art is strong as usual, as he can shift environments pretty seamlessly, but the real star is Visaggio’s compelling writing of Jinny and her supporting cast. It’s very different from her past DC work, but no less strong.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
