Morning Glories #8

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

I've mentioned before that this series reminds me of Lost more than anything else, but before the last two issues, I was at a loss to explain exactly what it was that triggered that association.  As of last issue though, Spencer decided to borrow some narrative devices and some themes from Lost.

Both of the last two issues have opened with some 'Jacob' figure visiting one of the main characters when they were children.  From there, both issues have focused on one particular character, and the issue is split between current plotlines and flashbacks showing that character's childhood.  It's very Lostian.  Now, I don't have a problem with this - Lost was my favourite show until somewhere into the third season, and part of why I thought it was good had to do with its episodic structure.  I also think there's a huge caveat in this comparison as well; like with Lost, Spencer has thrown out a vast array of weirdness in these first half-dozen issues of this series, and as it is the longest run he's written, he has not proven that he knows how to tie it all together in the end (hopefully more masterly than the makers of Lost did).

This issue works really well, as we explore the character of Hunter and his bizarre handicap when it comes to reading the time.  This has caused him to lose out on a number of jobs (apparently he worked for Hurley at the Clucking Chicken- another Lost connection), and on other gigantic life events.  It's a strange one.  Also, Hunter gets up the nerve to ask the blond (her name's not in the book) on a date, and then goes careening down the halls singing in a scene that belongs more in a John Hughes movie than in a comic like this (unless the school really isn't a torture prison).  That goofy scene marred an otherwise very tight comic.

I like that Eisma's art is getting better, although I would prefer to see more detail in the backgrounds.  I'm enjoying this title a fair amount, and am very intrigued by the next issue, considering the last page of this one.