Comic Review: Wasted Space #13

Wasted Space #13

Vault Comics

Writer: Michael Moreci

Artist: Hayden Sherman

Back to Michael Moreci’s nihilistic, pessimistic, cynical, space opera. Join Billy Bane and his jaded crew as they take on The Creator and kill the dreams of billions who believe in. . . well, believe in God. But things are changing for Billy, and not in a good way–or that is, not in a way Billy would like. With the arrival of some new and squeaky clean (and good) heroes on the scene Billy’s crew peaces-out to actually try to do what’s right, not just convenient. But how did it go? Well–pretty good.

Without a doubt, one of the most compelling plots of this comic so far. Dust, Rex, and Molly go off to be heroes, while Billy is. . . is Billy. He says f*ck it and goes on his cynical way. That is until he is forced to crashland on an unknown planet where he is captured by spa owners. However, there’s something sister about his spa. Similarly, the heroes Dust, Rex, and Molly joined up with–they seem too good to be true.

With everything that happens in this issue, most readers wouldn’t expect a heap of character development. But this issue delivers on every level. There is a ton of introspection and philosophizing–which is my favorite part of this comice–about human nature. The question is asked: are people who they are, or are they who they choose to be? You’ll find no answer here. But the question acts as a platform for some deep discussion on the meaning of happiness, and who or what owns the power to make someone happy. It’s not an original thought–but it’s certainly one worth pondering.

There are some great artistic variations in this issue. Sherman has long been the perfect artist for this comic due to his hard edges and thick style. But for the first time, I categorize an issue of this series as beautiful. The hard lines and contradictory colors are there, of course. But the panels and white space between them create an intuitive reading experience. Furthermore, the way in which panels overlap and show interruptions in scenes and actions also add verisimilitude. I find myself wondering how much work Sherman did that readers aren’t seeing in this issue.

In the end, the art, the writing (story and characters) provide readers with the best issue of Wasted Space yet.