Shade the Changing Girl #9
"In the City, Part Two: Band on the Run"Written By: Cecil Castellucci
Illustrated By: Marley Zarcone
Inks By: Ande Parks
Colors By: Kelly Fitzpatrick
Letters By: Saida Temofonte
Cover Price: $3.99
On Sale Date: June 7, 2017
Anybody who follows what I do online, which I realize is a silly egotistical thing to say, knows that I'm a really big fan of old comics... the comics from my youth... and the youth of my parents. Can't get enough of 'em! Even with that said, there are a handful that I have a bit of trouble returning to... and that's not an indictment on their quality.
There are certain books that literally take me back to the past. I can remember exactly where I was when I read them. These vivid memories, the sights, the smells, the tastes... they're sometimes too much for me. I lose myself in a memory, rather than in the story.
Now what in the hell am I talking about? Glad you asked... this issue of Shade the Changing Girl features a similar theme. We'll talk about it more after the jump... but it was a powerful bit which immediately made me think of my childhood... guess I'm a soft touch.
Now will it give a normal person "the feels"? Let's find out...
What Happened?
Picking up where we left off, Shade is about to take in a show at The Gotham Embassy. The Sonic Booms are playing! Who? Oh c'mon, don't mess around, I'm a Boomie, you're a Boomie... we're all Boomies! For the tragically uncool among us... the Sonic Booms got their big break appearing on Life With Honey. Ohhhh, now you remember... likely story.
Shade mobs the tchotchke stand and is taken aback by the fact that the members of the band... and audience are, ya know, really old. In order to remedy this, she uses her powers... in a way I wasn't aware she could! She appears to give everybody present their youth back! Oh, if it were only that easy. The former oldsters react... well, appropriately, in that they run amok... or "go feral".
Back home in Valley Ville (which I didn't know was two words) River and Teacup scour Shade's room to see if they might find any hint of where their ol' third-wheel might've gone off to. At this point we learn that those drippy "paisleys" that seem to follow Shade around are in fact, visible... at least to these two. They find one remaining in the room and attempt to communicate through it... whether or not they are successful remains to be seen.
Later, Shade visits the Gotham Library to see if she can locate Life With Honey star, Honey Rich. With a little help from a patient librarian she is able to suss out Honey's location... (scenic) Los Alamos, New Mexico. She's so happy with this discovery she is... arrested? Believed to be one of those "feral teenagers", she is dragged out to the paddy wagon, which is already loaded with former oldsters.
At this point the sixty-something years young set decide they might be better off in their more mature state... and are changed back. Shade remains... along with one other, and lemme tell ya, this other is weird. A black hole is dropped, which Shade jumps in... and when she jumps out, she's in... Los Alamos! Score!
Throughout the issue we get a few scenes on Meta wherein it would appear that Rac's boyfriend whatshisface and Hellboy's sister now realize that Shade is on Earth.
What I Dug?
Shade not having any concept of the passage of time. This was really quite heartbreaking... watching as she comes to grips with the fact that people age, she literally needs to sit down to take it all in. It's not something I'd ever considered, and I was actually a bit taken aback myself by the revelation.
Shade giving the oldsters another "go at it"... was, I dunno... difficult? At the risk of making this entire review disgustingly self-indulgent, this is one of those things I think about a lot. I doubt I'm unique in any way... but, my mind does often wander... I do think about what I would or could do if I was given another chance... and I say this as nowhere near as old as the concert-goers in this issue. It's just such a human concept... and it is explored here in all its psychedelic glory. Really great stuff.
We finally know that the "paisleys" that Shade seems to drip everywhere are visible! At least to River and Teacup anyway. That answers that!
The idea that Shade is about to meet Honey is rather intriguing. There's that old saying, "Never meet your heroes". I gotta wonder if that's about to come into play here.
I should also mention that I really dug Shade being drawn to the band's merch table. I like how that plays off her Avian "collector" genetics.
What I Didn't?
No complaints... however, I will say that the "Life With Honey" back-up strip joke is wearing extremely thin.
Bits and Pieces:
Heartbreaking and beautiful at the start, with a nice amount of story progression throughout. This story feels like it's happening on several fronts, all of which receive just the right amount of "screen time". All told, another wonderful issue of Shade.
8.5/10
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