Black Science vol. 3: Vanishing Pattern
I think I’m about done with Rick Remender.
His tendency for grinding down characters was what got me to stop reading “Fear Agent” a few years back, and it’s become more prevalent in his recent work from Marvel. Granted, the writer has written some great stories for that company, and the first volume of this series looked like it was going to break that trend in that building up/redeeming that scumbag Kadir. Two volumes since and that thread appears to have fallen by the wayside if that was even the direction Remender was going to go with it at all. With the surprise return of series protagonist Grant McKay at the end of the previous volume, “Black Science” is more or less back to the status quo it established at the beginning as the cast finds themselves in a world where the Roman Empire survived long enough to get some cool sci-fi toys. To what should be no one’s great surprise, this dimension’s Anarchist League of Scientists has royally screwed it by unleashing a deadly plague. Rather than simply wait around for the Pillar to ‘port everyone out, Grant decides that he’s tired of all the chaos being left in their wake and makes a vow to leave each world they come to better off than when they arrived — starting with this one.
So the series is fully embracing its similarities to the 90’s series “Sliders, but only in the most downbeat way possible. Not only is Grant set upon from all sides by this world’s armed forces as he tries to eradicate the plague, but all sorts of personal drama erupts between the members of the cast who are left behind. People die as a result of this, all because they try to do the right thing. Kadir does too and he gets stabbed through the heart for his trouble. By the end of the volume we’re left with a significantly reduced cast that has bred even more betrayal, distrust, and sadness between it. If that wasn’t enough, Remender throws in a final twist which reveals that Grant’s efforts were all for nothing! It comes off about as well as a kick in the crotch.
The worst part about all this is that it’s executed extremely well. Remender kicks things off at a fast pace from the beginning and keeps the momentum going throughout. Matteo Scalera’s art is incredibly energetic and does great justice to the script with his action scenes and designs for this world. (Even if Dean White’s colors are missed in this volume.) It’s quality work from both creators, all done in the service of a story that does nothing but grind its characters down and set them up so that all of their actions end in failure. This may be someone’s idea of a good time, but not mine. Maybe I’d be more into this series if it felt like this was part of its plan, or if it started to embrace the chaos and despair it was fostering. I can only hope that changes for the next volume.