Morning Glories #25

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

I definitely think it might be time to re-read Morning Glories from the beginning.  Nick Spencer's series has always been a little confusing, as his story has circled back in on itself numerous times, adding layers of complexity to his plot, but this issue really takes that to a new level.  Over the last bunch of issues, Spencer has checked in on small groups or individual characters, leaving them in a number of different situations.  With this issue, almost every plotline converges, although strangely, more questions are raised than are answered.

Ike is holding Abraham, his father and the central force behind the whole series, at gunpoint, demanding answers.  Abraham wants Ike to leave before Irina shows up, because he knows that she will kill him.  The rest of Irina's group, who treat Abraham as if he is their father, don't really know what is happening, while Hunter is wandering through the woods with Jade, except it's Jade from the future.  Yes, it really is all that confusing.

At the same time, it's wonderful.  This issue is twice the size of a normal comic, and the whole book is taut with tension.  There is a strong sense of this being the last episode of a TV season, and I was once again struck with the similarity between this series and the TV show Lost, except that this book really does have a plan, no matter how strange it is.

As always with this book, I can't even try to make a prediction of where the book is going next, and I am very happy to just stick around for the ride.  Great stuff.

Morning Glories #24

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

This issue of Morning Glories has forty-four pages of story, and while it is priced at $3.99, that is more than twice what you would get from a similarly-priced Marvel comic, like say Secret Avengers #1, written by the same man.  I enjoyed that book, but I loved this one, even before considering the difference in quantity that my money bought me, because it also bought me the quality that comes with a creator-owned title.  Sure, this book is hella late, but when it's this good, and this fat, I don't mind at all.

In this issue, we finally return to Ike and Jade, who are the only students of Morning Glory Academy who have been left with the faculty when the rest of the school time-jumped away, or whatever that was.  They've been captured by Gribbs, who wants Ike to kill his father (again).

Now, perhaps I'm a little dense, but until this issue, I hadn't realized that Ike's father is the same Abraham that has visited each of the other students at some key point in their past, and who raised Jun's  friends, and trained them to infiltrate the Academy.  Maybe that was obvious before this point, but if it was, I never caught on.  Sometimes I don't notice things...

Anyway, this issue gives us a good amount of insight into Ike's personality.  He's always been portrayed as a hedonistic little creep who is only interested in looking after himself, and while that portrayal is accurate, it is also coloured a little by the experiences he's had, effectively growing up fatherless and ignored.

He's also the one member of the book's cast who always appears to have an exit strategy worked out, and this issue is no different.  Morning Glories is consistently an excellent read, in addition to giving good value for money.  Spencer and artist Joe Eisma have created a very unique book, that I always enjoy.  I'm pleased to see that Spencer is gaining acclaim for his Marvel work, and for his other Image title Bedlam (this really is Nick Spencer week), but I'm more pleased to see that it's not taking his attention away from this title.

Morning Glories #23

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

I'm not uncomfortable admitting that I no longer have much of a clue as to what's going on in Morning Glories.  Nick Spencer's excellent series about a group of children who have been sent to a very strange, probably evil, secret school, has become very convoluted and confusing, especially for someone who is reading it in it's (not quite) monthly comics form, as there are way too many plot threads to keep track of from issue to issue.

I don't care though, because this book is still great, even when it's just way too confusing.

Hisao (who we know as Jun) is angry with Irina for her treatment of Hunter and her decision to leave his brother Jun (who we know as Hisao) to be a sacrifice to something.  We have learned that Hisao/Jun used to be a part of Irina's group, but we're still not very clear as to what their mission is.  Meanwhile, Fortunato and Akiko, other members of Irina's group, have made their way to Jun/Hisao's sacrifice, and witness first hand what goes on there (the cover is a hint).

We are also shown some flashbacks to a point two years previous when Irina's group made their first move against the Headmaster of the Academy.  It's these scenes that are among the most confusing, as it's hard to be clear on just what the kids are trying to accomplish (and because I have a hard time distinguishing between Akiko and Irina).  Also, we check in on Ike and Jade, who were last seen still playing the Woodrun game (I think - it's been a while).

This is a very solid issue, despite all the confusion.  Spencer has a great handle on each kid's personality and character, and in a lot of ways, it's just fun to sit back and watch them all interact.  Joe Eisma's art is always wonderful.

Morning Glories #22

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

Things take a turn or two to the even weirder in the latest issue of Morning Glories.  Almost since this excellent title began, I've been comparing it to the TV show Lost, in its themes, structure, and execution.

If you accept that comparison as being valid, then we are at the point where people showed up at the base of the three-toed statue.  Irina and the group of students who we met over the last few issues (Jun's former classmates at Abraham's school in the desert) reveal that everyone has moved through time to some point after ancient Sumeria fell to ruins, and that their mission is to rescue Abraham from some sort of threat that is never really made clear.  Hunter continues to be our point-of-view character through this arc, and he's confused as hell, despite having spent his entire life steeped in movies that have similar plots.

Things get very strange in the ruins of a Sumerian temple, as the students all suddenly speak different languages, and it becomes clear that Irina is working her own plan, that has nothing to do with Abraham's original intention for these kids.

This issue is shot through with flashbacks to two years previous, when this new group of students arrived at the Morning Glory Academy.  Their experiences closely mirror what the students we know went through in the early issues of this book, with some differences.  Instead of almost being drowned in a classroom, they were almost burned alive.

This continues to be a very compelling read, although I'm getting a little confused as to just where everything and everyone stands.  The latest solicitation in Previews (for issue 25) claims that it will be the end of the 'first season' of the series.  That means that either a lot has to get resolved in a short space of time, or that Spencer is building towards one hell of a cliffhanger.  I hope there isn't a long hiatus between 'seasons', as I really enjoy reading this book semi-monthly.

Morning Glories #21

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

One thing that can kind of annoy about Morning Glories, Nick Spencer and Joe Eisma's brilliant series about students involved in a Lost-like story about a strange school that kidnaps its students and manipulates their lives for unseen ends, and that is that the series often waits a few issues before addressing cliffhangers.

A couple of issues back, Hunter, one of the core group of characters we as readers have been following since the series began, was at the mercy of another character, who was prepared to kill him.  He was suddenly, and violently, rescued by a girl we hadn't seen before.  Then Spencer moved the story to other places for a while.  Finally, with this issue, we get to see what happened next.

It turns out that Hunter's rescuers were part of the same group as Guillaume, Jun's old friend and lover, who we met a while back.  They'd all been studying under the mysterious Abraham before being sent to the Morning Glory Academy to carry out some kind of mission.

Most of this issue is given over to introducing these new characters - we see in flashbacks that they went through the same events as our heroes did when they first came to the school, and we learn that they all knew Jun from back in the day.  We also get a slight sense of their mission, but Spencer plays that part pretty close to the vest, choosing instead to add to the high number of unknowns currently gathering throughout this series.

Spencer's work here has always impressed me in terms of character and his ability to effectively use the individual issue to tell part of a larger story (really, this is a dying art in this day and age).  Eisma is equally adept at crafting a strong sense of atmosphere and dread in this comic.  Together, they give jsut enough information each issue to make me anticipate the next without frustration setting in.

Morning Glories #20

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

Twenty issues in, and the mysteries still keep piling up, but now Nick Spencer has decided to share a little about two members of the faculty at Morning Glory Academy.  During the Woodrun, a school-wide game of Capture the Flag (more or less), all of the students vanished.  We have been following some of them, and it looks to them like all the adults in the Academy have disappeared, but the opposite seems true to the faculty.

This has led to some problems for Georgina, the head teacher.  Her father, the Headmaster (who we have never laid eyes on yet) takes his anger out on her physically, and her sister Lara, the kindly guidance counsellor comes to comfort her.  Lara is a relatively new member of the cast, and we know her as the woman who helped Casey escape MGA.  This issue paints her in a very different light.

We learn that Lara and Georgina have different mothers (not surprising, seeing as they look so different), and that both of them never met their mothers.  The two girls competed for their father's attentions throughout their childhoods, and Lara's extra-sensory abilities made her seem the favourite, although it is eventually Georgina who gains control of the school.  We learn a few odd things over the course of the book - there are people kept prisoner under the ground, for one.  We also learn the story behind the cave that Lara used to help Casey escape, but we end up seeing this kind and caring woman as someone very different from what we'd thought.

This book is never dull, even though each new issue makes the series more complicated and obtuse.  I really admire the way that Spencer is spinning out such a strange story, yet still gripping my interest with each new instalment.  From almost the beginning, I'd been comparing this comic to Lost, but this has exceeded that flawed TV show in almost every way.

Morning Glories #19

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

I don't understand why I don't hear a lot more buzz for this comic.  Nick Spencer's story, complex and secretive as it is, is very exciting.  This issue picks up on the events of a few months back.  The students of Morning Glory Academy have been participating in Woodrun, a kind of cross between a scavenger hunt and Capture the Flag. 

Hunter, the nice kid and sort of secondary point-of-view character for this series has been partnered with Zoe.  They were actually talking to each other a little, but then Zoe suddenly killed a girl that had been talking to Hunter.  Now she's chasing him, and he doesn't really know what's going on.

While he's running, the audience is given a series of flashbacks to Hunter's life before coming to the school.  We learn that his mother is in the hospital with a terminal illness, and that she is pressuring him to apply to MGA.  The scenes between them are touching, and also suggestive of the idea that Hunter's mom knows something about how the school operates, since she is certain that he'd be accepted, despite his average grades and test scores.

The story notes of this issue are all a little predictable (except for Hunter's weird inability to tell time - that's just odd), but Spencer and Eisma handle them with enough sensitivity to make them work very well.  The last couple of pages, once again, raise a bunch of questions, but that's just become par for the course with this series.  That's a big part of the draw for me, really.

Morning Glories #18

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

If there's one thing about Nick Spencer's terrific series Morning Glories that you can always count on, it's that there is always another layer to the story waiting to be uncovered.  And it seems that each new layer adds new intrigue and mystery to the title.

This month, instead of the conclusion to the P.E. arc that we were expecting, we receive an issue that focuses on Jun, the quietest and most enigmatic of the main characters.  It's worth remembering that Jun's name is really Hisao, and that he switched names with his brother Jun, who is also a student at Morning Glories Academy.  Hisao has been thoroughly brainwashed by the faculty at the school, and it's been very unclear as to just what Jun's role in this series was going to be.

This issue begins a few years before the start of the series, where Jun (still called Hisao at that point) is being trained at an MGA-like facility.  We see him shooting a rifle, and then getting into a fight with his rival, a boy named Guillaume when he tries to take his target to Abraham, who appears to run this facility.  At that point, we see a glimpse of Ms. Darabont, the head teacher at MGA negotiating with Abraham for six students, one of whom is Guillaume.

In the present, Jun gets into a fight with Hisao, who believes that the strange events of a few issues back, which resulted in all the faculty and guards vanishing from the school, is his fault.  They fight, before Jun is rescued by Guillaume. 

Apparently, Guillaume and Jun are there on some kind of mission to rescue Abraham.  It's all a little complicated (not this series!), but also very interesting.  I would need to go back through some back issues, but I'm pretty sure that we saw Abraham visit each of the core cast members in flashbacks, but I'd assumed that he was recruiting them for the MGA, not for something else.  Also of interest is the relationship between Jun and Guillaume, which I'm sure could get the book banned in South Carolina...

Once again, Spencer delivers a compelling and mysterious book that raises more questions than it answers, but that is also a master class in character writing.

Morning Glories #17

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

A few months ago, Casey (who is more or less the star of this series) and Ms. Hodge, the guidance counselor at Morning Glories Academy used a strange method of escaping the schoolgrounds, which we later discovered led to their being tossed back in time a ways.  In order for their escape to work, they needed two people to sit in front of some flames and cast a shadow on the opposite wall of a cavern.  These two people were Jade and Ike (who was himself a stand-in for the more amicable Hunter).

This issue returns to that scene, and shows us what happened between these two as they sat around waiting for Casey to disappear.  Jade has been the suicidal, tragic figure in this series since it began.  She's constantly needed Casey to bail her out of trouble or to save her life, and she's happy to be doing something to help her, even though by doing it, she expects Casey to rescue her.  Ike is the group sociopath, who has been giving everyone a hard time since the first issue, and has been quick to turn on his peer group (I can't really use the word friends).

Jade has easily been the most irritating character in this comic, but through this issue, Spencer explores her in such a way as to make her a little more sympathetic.  We learn about her mother's death, and some of the ways in which she chose to express her grief and frustration after it.  We also see her prevaricate on issues like the existence of God, and just what is going to happen to the students at the school.  Ike, on the other hand, is often fascinating, as he continues to put Jade down and mess with her head, but also sticks around to help Casey despite himself.

Spencer uses a few other scenes in this comic to help continue advancing some of the mysteries of this series, especially the one concerning Ike's father.  Every month I try to avoid speaking of this comic in terms of the TV show Lost, but really, there is no other long-narrative story I can think of that comes closest to the same formula of revelation followed by more mystery than that.  I just keep hoping that Spencer's big finish is nowhere near as lame.

Morning Glories #16

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

Once again, Morning Glories is an excellent value, giving us 32 pages of comics for only $3.  That alone endears me to the title, even before starting to read its wonderfully complex story.

This issue features Casey Blevins, who is more or less the main character in this comic.  A little while ago, Casey and the Morning Glories Academy guidance counselor, Ms. Hodges, made their escape from the mysterious school.  When we last saw them, they were being surrounded by soldiers, including Casey's young father.  This issue opens with them in custody, as Casey is waterboarded as part of her interrogation.  The soldiers believe she's been sent by the Chinese, since it's not likely that anyone in the military is willing to believe that the teenage girl has simply traveled back in time.

As with many issues of Morning Glories (and the TV show Lost, which it resembles so much), the issue is split between Casey's adventure in the past, and scenes leading up to her leaving home to attend MGA, which happened in the series's first issue.  Along the way, we learn a great deal about Casey's parents.

We are also given some hints as to the bigger picture, as Ms. Hodges gifts Casey with a duffel bag full of documents, cash, and instructions.  She also gives her a Jedi mind trick ability, so that people will do what she tells them to.  It's clear now that Casey won't be returning to the school as a student, and I wonder just how and when her story is going to intersect with the other students again.

Morning Glories is an incredibly cool comic, and as I said, one of the best bargains on the stands.  I'm consistently intrigued by it, and continue to look forward to learning more about the secrets of the school.

Morning Glories #15

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

This issue of Morning Glories has thirty pages of story in it, for $2.99.  That alone should be enough of a reason to make it my favourite comic this week, and if this week's issue of Wasteland wasn't only $1, it would be the best deal.  Still, let's look at this in perspective.  This issue is like getting one and a half issues of The Avengers, for half the price.  And then, when you factor in  the fact that there aren't three or four splash pages, you realize you get even more value.

We don't read comics for the value though, do we?  At least I don't - I read them for some excellent character work and visuals, and that's exactly what Nick Spencer and Joe Eisma give us with this issue.  The Woodrun (whatever that really is) is taking place at Morning Glory Academy still, and Hunter, Zoe, and Jun are on a team together, arguing as they wander the woods looking for a set of flags. 

Early on in the issue, Jun is taken prisoner by a rival team, leaving Hunter and Zoe, who just had a huge argument at the beginning of this arc, alone together as night approaches.  They eventually stop taking shots at each other after Zoe rescues Hunter from a death trap in a Darma Station (oh wait, I thought I was watching Lost again - I don't know what the bunker-like room they ended up in was; this is a comic that likes its mysteries) and engage in a meaningful conversation about Hunter's pursuit of Casey that is both funny and a little sad.

The issue is sprinkled with flashbacks to Zoe's past, specifically the time period after she killed a teacher at her school (which we saw a few months back in another issue).  Zoe is an interesting character - it's been hard to tell if she is as tough and cold as she seems, or if she's just fronting, although this issue, with it's surprise ending, helps clarify things a great deal.

Spencer's been doing some very interesting work on this comic, and as his output at Marvel appears to be scaling back a little (Iron Man 2.0 cancelled, Victor Von Doom stillborn), I hope that we will see more of this series being published on time.

Morning Glories #14

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

Ah, Morning Glories, what are we to do with you?  With each issue, I expect to finally get some clues as to what is going on in this comic, but by the end of it, I'm always more confused and lost (perhaps I should say Lost).  This issue runs simultaneously with the previous issue, which showed us some of the 'Woodrun', a school-wide event about which we knew no more than the name.

This issue is focused on Hunter, Zoe, and Jun, who are put on a team for the run.  We still don't know the rules of the game, but we do know that the prize is 'stuff' that Zoe wants, and so she forces the others into being involved.  There are plenty of great moments between Hunter and Zoe, whose animosity towards each other has reached new levels.

While this is going on, we see more of the growing tensions between the senior staff at the Morning Glories Academy, but still learn very little about their true purposes.  There's also a strange flashback set in late 17th century New England that doesn't explain anything, but instead opens up even more questions.

This comic is a really fun read.  I think I'm getting past caring about how little information we really have, and prefer to read each issue looking for clues, knowing that I'm either a) never going to find out the whole story, or b) be totally disappointed in the ending.  Either way, when the book is this good, I'm just enjoying the ride.

Morning Glories #13

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

I was going to try to talk about this issue without referencing the TV show Lost, but I don't think it's possible, because this is basically the comic book teenage version of that show, as I, and others, have said many times.  It's not just because of the almost utter incomprehensibility of the plot, but also because of the stellar character work that makes each issue, as strange as it often is, completely compelling.

This month, a recent scene between Casey and Hunter is repeated, as Casey breaks off their budding romance.  Almost immediately after that, she receives a note from Ms. Hodge, the guidance counselor, and goes running off to find Hunter.  Just as she does this, an announcement over the Morning Glory Academy PA claims that classes are canceled, in favour of a Woodrun.

Once outside, Casey and Jade are put into a team with Ike, and sent to compete in some mysterious game.  We don't learn what this is though, as Casey has other plans, which include Ms. Hodge, a gigantic underground chamber, and possible escape.

Spencer continues to let information come at us in a slow drip, and so the more we think we learn about the academy, the less we know.  What makes this series such a success is the characters.  I love scenes where Casey has to put up with Ike, and I feel for Hunter, who is clearly devastated that Casey is not interested in him.   Once again, Spencer ends the issue with a good twist.

Morning Glories #12

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

Now that this comic has reached the twelve-issue mark, it's time for Spencer to start bringing some of the story elements together, but instead, he's tossing us new characters and new complications.

This issue opens with Lara Hodge being dropped off for work.  From the way she's dressed, she looks like a park ranger (or zoo keeper), but she takes an elevator deep underground (in a hazmat suit), and then rides a golf cart down a long tunnel, before arriving at the Morning Glory Academy (which I did not previously realize was underground).

From there, we learn that she is the Guidance Counselor for the school, and is very popular with the student body.  Spencer establishes that she is often at odds with the people we've come to think are running the place, and she clearly has her own agenda.

It's an interesting element to toss into the book - someone that the usual cast of kids may be able to trust, but we've learned not to trust anything in this book.  I like how this series has been shaping up, but after a year, I do wonder when we're going to get a little more solid indication of what is really going on.

Morning Glories #11

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

It's about time that the most interesting member of the Morning Glories crew gets his own issue.  Ike has been the smarmiest, cruelest, funniest, and most selfish character in this book since it started, playing first season Sawyer to Casey's Jack at every turn.  I was worried that as his back story became more clear, he would become a more sympathetic, perhaps just 'misunderstood' character.

Thankfully, the more we learn about him, the worse he seems.  Gribbs, the sadistic enforcer of the Morning Glory Academy wants to recruit Ike to kill someone for him, and think he knows what to offer to get his cooperation, although he's wrong.

These scenes are cut with flashbacks to Ike's life before the school.  He is just as manipulative and mean-spirited as we have been led to believe.  Of course, there is an appearance by the mysterious Abraham, who has shown up throughout this arc (and is, perhaps, the model for Ike's scarf-wearing aesthetic?), and an unexpected twist at the end.

As much as I enjoy this series, I am concerned that the sheer weight of the constant twists and turns will erode any structural foundation, and make this story impossible to resolve.  This is the longest and most complex story we've seen from Spencer so far, so I have a slight fear that he may not be able to pull it all off.  But it's a fun rides, so it's all good for now.

Morning Glories #10

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

If there's one thing you can count on Morning Glories for, it's that you aren't going to see where things are going.  Lately, each issue of the book has been focusing on one particular character, and like an episode of Lost, filling in their back story through flashbacks while still moving the main plot of the series forward.  The Lost comparison seems so apt, as lately there's been a Jacob-like character who we've learned has visited most of our 'Glories' when they were younger.

This issue though, focuses on Jade, the least well adjusted of our cast (and that's saying a lot).  From the start, Jade has had the most difficulty with the whole 'stuck in a school where the teachers are trying to kill you' weirdness of this book (which perhaps makes her the most normal).  In this issue, it is a little hard to distinguish between what is happening in reality and what Jade is dreaming, as she makes a couple of odd decisions, and perhaps meets her future self (instead of Jacob?).

I feel like, by now, we should have a clearer image of what is going on in this comic, but as long as Spencer uses words like 'Plathesque', I'm not going to complain about anything.  This book is bizarre and wicked fun.

Morning Glories #9

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

Since this series started, one of the supposed main characters has remained in the background, little more than a cipher until this issue.  Now Spencer has shone the spotlight on Jun, the quiet Japanese student at Morning Glory Academy, and there are a few surprises for the reader.

The book opens with a scene that we have seen before (around about the fourth issue I think), but which was never resolved.  Jun had tried to escape the school shortly after he and his classmates arrived, and was stopped by someone, although we never knew who it was.  Last issue, we discovered that Jun had either a twin brother or a double roaming the school, and now all of these things are explained.  Okay, maybe not completely explained, but definitely hinted at, as some aspects of the book continue to become ever more confusing.  Really, it's impossible to discuss this without spoiling a ton of good comics.

What I will say is that Spencer is spinning a very complicated and interesting tale with this series.  I've mentioned before how much this comic reminds me of Lost, and now I seem to be constantly looking for parallels when I read it (Jun = Jin?).  The character of Abraham, who I see as taking on a "Jacob-like" role here has his relationship with the Academy somewhat clarified, and we get a really strong sense of Jun's character.  This is a pretty harsh issue, but quite illuminating.  People really need to be checking out Morning Glories.

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.

Morning Glories #7

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

Now that the first story arc is out of the way, Spencer's taking a little more time to delve into his lesser-developed characters and their pasts.  From the beginning, this series has kept reminding me of the TV show Lost, and this issue is a perfect illustration of why.

The focus is on Zoe, as she pretends to be angry with Riley for not telling her what was going on a couple of issues back, and storms out to wander the halls of the school.  She discovers a cheerleading team, and makes a new friend.  Of course, this is Morning Glories, so there is more going on than what we see on the surface.  Throughout her story, we see some flashbacks to her days as a cheerleader at her previous school, and her friendship with a girl who was being abused by one of the teachers.  Also, there is some stuff showing her early childhood in India which is a little difficult to process with the information we have so far.  So basically, this issue was like any of the character-based Lost episodes.

I enjoy the way that Spencer is slowly portioning out hints and clues as to the purpose of Morning Glory Academy, but I am having a hard time accepting that so many students would just passively allow all that is going on to happen.  I know that teenagers are highly adaptive, but there is a false note ringing quietly in the background that is starting to bother me.  I hope this is addressed soon.

Morning Glories #6

Written by Nick Spencer
Art by Joe Eisma

I guess Nick Spencer got worried that his book was becoming a little too clear, as relationships between characters were getting established, and a lot of hints were being dropped as to what all is going on in this comic.  So, the natural thing to do would be to have a one-off issue that is set in the future, and revolves around a young female physicist who is on the run from negligible homicide charges.

The issue opens on this physicist, Julie Hayes, arriving at what we presume is the Morning Glory Academy, although it looks like it's seen better days.  Through layered flashback sequences, we puzzle together her life story, and see that she was working on a spinning conical thing that looks like the one discovered by some of the students last month.

There is a surprise revelation at the end of the issue, when the identity of her recruiter is revealed, although it's pretty much telegraphed throughout the whole book, and therefore isn't much of a surprise.  I'm not sure how to incorporate what we learn with what I already know about this series, and I'm curious to see where Spencer goes next.  I do have a nagging voice in the back of my head though, which is warning me that this might all end as badly as Lost did, as I find myself making more and more comparisons to that show.