Crush & Lobo #6 – Mariko Tamaki, Writer; Amancay Nahuelpan, Artist; Tamra Bonvillain, Nick Filardi, Colorists
Ray – 8.5/10
Ray: As usual, Crush’s grand tour through space provides a lot of interesting visuals, but it also delivers some unique introspection into our title character. Lobo, once again, barely appears in this issue, but he’s not missed. Crush is a better character, even when she seems a little lost in her own story. This issue, she’s in Space Vegas and is searching for her dad before her explosive wristband kills her, but she gets derailed while trying to get information. Turns out she’s been mistaken for a blind date of a space alien who is just looking for a casual night out—and either out of trying to get answers or just looking for a break, she plays along. The next thing she knows, she’s accompanying a strange, nerdy fish-like alien to a stand-up comedy show, and like usual with Crush, things take a bad turn when the stand-up comedian makes a few nasty jokes too many.
One of the best things about this book is the way it takes us inside Crush’s mind as she figures out the right decision—and then makes the wrong decision almost every single time. It’s a great look at someone trying to unlearn toxic decision-making skills taught by a corrupt or abusive parent, and what makes it frustrating—in a good way—is that you can see her getting this close to taking a big step and then pulling back. This issue sort of seems to repeat some of those lessons—something Crush herself lampshades at one point—but it does work to advance her character growth. With only two episodes left, it feels like there’s a lot still to go before Crush confronts Lobo and settles that part of her past. I’m hoping that we’ll see the character left in a place where she can be a major player in the DCU going forward, but this mini has been a huge step up for a character who was mostly a throwaway Titan until now.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
