Review: Cave Carson Has A Cybernetic Eye #8

[Editor’s Note: This review may contain spoilers]

Written by: Jon Rivera
Story by: Gerard Way & Jon Rivera
Art by: Michael Avon Oeming
Colors: Nick Filardi

Summary

So, apparently, Cave and his team have been shunted off to a parallel Earth.  Didn’t see that coming.  The bad news is that The Whisperer is there too and causing all kinds of havoc.  Cave stumbles across this Earth’s version of his old mentor, Dr. Marc Bartow.  With Bartow’s helpful analysis of their predicament, they are able to get together a game plan.  Unfortunately, Cave’s missing cybernetic eye is causing him problems, or perhaps they are warnings.  Whatever the case, his eye is communicating with him and Cave is able to tell just before The Whisperer/Borsten attacks.

On the other side of things, Borsten has figured out that they have the power to travel between parallel worlds and plans on doing their evil thing on as many worlds as possible, but not before giving a proper “goodbye” to Cave.  This assault leaves Cave’s team with some casualties, some fatal.  But, most importantly, it also leaves Cave with the resolve to stop Borsten on EVERY Earth, not just the one they are currently on.

Positives

As always, the theme of family comes up and this time it is not as central.  However, the notion that Cave’s wife/Chloe’s mother could still be alive on this alternate Earth is an interesting twist. What would Cave and Chloe do if they found her alive?  Cave really steps up as a leader in this issue and builds on the boost he got from Superman last issue.  The one has a more traditional action/adventure feel and plays heavily on that even though the characters and milieu are still the unique Young Animal approach we are familiar with.

From  a technical aspect, this issue has a flow to it that moves the story along and hits the right emotional notes along the way.  Additionally, the action is portrayed and described more clearly so that a new reader would not have too many questions about what’s going on.  Lastly, the back up story, like last week’s Shade the Changing Girl is used to better effect in this issue.  While not a story per se, the professional geological article does more to enhance the main tale than what we’ve seen previously.

Negatives

Besides the initial alternate Earth shock on the first page, this issue offers perhaps the most accessible entry point to the series since issue #1.  It’s tough to find fault with this issue, even for a reader not attuned to Young Animal Comics.

Verdict

This is a strong issue that may actually have a broader appeal than some of the quirkier issues in the series.  This is despite the fact that Cave Carson Has A Cybernetic Eye #8 follows directly from issue #7’s finale and throws the alternate Earth thing at the reader on the very first page.  The more traditional action/adventure feel of this issue may be a good jumping on point for new readers even though Cave and his team are in the middle of a protracted battle with The Whisperer and Borsten.