Zeb Larson reviews Black Science #11…
As the Pillar counts down towards its next jump the Dimensionauts are besieged by an endless wave of horrors. Can they hold out long enough to escape, or will one of them have to remain behind and pay the ultimate price? Join RICK REMENDER, MATTEO SCALERA, & DEAN WHITE, as they bring the second chapter of the smash sci-fi hit series to a close!
Black Science’s second story arc comes to an explosive finish in this issue as multiple characters converge from different dimensions on our protagonists. This was a really solid finale issue, as the action was consistently high-stakes, and the intersection of previously disparate plot threads brings the story together like it hasn’t been in a while. I’m going to stay away from any major spoilers, so read on without fear.
Kadir and the Shaman volunteer to buy time for the others to escape with the Pillar. Kadir’s mind appears to be elsewhere as he goes to fight the Millipedes, his thoughts mostly consisting of reflections on his own hypocrisy and his unrequited love for Sara. Meanwhile, Grant Prime is racing to catch up with the group before the Pillar jumps, while alternate Grant and alternate Sara have caught up with the Prime group yet again and want to rescue the children. The reason for Chandra’s mysterious writing is revealed, and it’s not good. While the issue ends with the groups being forced to work together, they’re also jumping into a profoundly worse situation than they were coming from.
In many ways, the Pillar Group is in the exact same position that they were before: stuck together, mutually distrustful, and destabilizing everything they come in contact with. Grant’s apparent revival is a bit frustrating in this regard, as the shock of his death at the end of the first issue is totally erased. Yet, for all the conflict that they’re going to face, it’s sort of weirdly comforting to see so many of them together again. Things are at least somewhat better than they were in the middle of this arc, when everybody was split up across creation.
The action in this issue is reminiscent of the book’s first issue in that it keeps going through virtually the whole book. Unlike the first book though, the jumps between Kadir, Grant Prime, Alternate Grant, and the Pillar Group help to sustain the action by breaking it up. Rather than one long chase scene or battle during which tension can flag, the shifts sustain it. Just about everything is strong in this issue. My only complaint is that we still haven’t seen a lot from Shawn, although Remender’s notes in the back material of the issue say that Chandra and Shawn will have a lot more to do in the next arc. Once they’re fully fleshed out, the cast will finally feel complete.
The next issue is going to have to be one with a lot of talking, because the group is going to have a great many issues to figure out. And seeing as how Grant wants to take them even deeper into the Onion, their problems are going just going to keep increasing. We’ll see you when we see you, Black Science.
Zeb Larson
Originally published December 24, 2014. Updated April 13, 2018.
