Geiger vol. 3

Tariq Geiger, his two-headed dog Barry, and Nate the Nuclear Knight continue their trek across the wasteland, only now they’ve got a destination.  They’re headed to Lewistown to find a man named Ash Arden who apparently had the same kind of radioactive affliction as Geiger, but was able to cure it.  But why would he want to get rid of these cool radioactive powers that make him a nigh-invulnerable powerhouse in this post-apocalyptic wasteland?  Maybe we’ll get an answer after he saves some kids and they take him to their home of Grover’s Corners where the adults maintain strict discipline to keep them safe from the outside world.  Additionally, have you ever wondered what Geiger’s life was like before the bombs dropped and how he became the Glowing Man?  The answers lie with a Russian scientist by the name of Molotov who helped make the monster back into something resembling a man.

Vol. 3 of “Geiger” is still written entirely by Geoff Johns, but it’s also the first one not illustrated entirely by series co-creator Gary Frank.  Paul Pelletier takes over for the first three issues which tell the story of Grover’s Corners, which kind of winds up being a downbeat riff on “Fahrenheit 451.”  That’s not a bad thing as the story plays out in some unexpected ways that make a certain amount of sense, and even wind up paying off on the cover to issue #9 which initially came off like clear misdirection for me.  As for Pelletier’s art?  It lacks Frank’s detailed precision and gives everything a looser appearance that isn’t quite as attractive.  Still, Pelletier’s storytelling instincts are sound and he invests the story’s big moments with the drama they deserve.

This volume is rounded out with the collection of the two-issue “Ground Zero” miniseries that could’ve also been called “The Secret Origin of Tariq Geiger.”  The actual means by which he became the Glowing Man is handwaved away as “experimental cancer treatment plus nuclear fission,” but everything surrounding it is pretty solid in that it provides a decent enough explanation as to how Geiger became the surly solo wanderer we know from the main series.  Frank delivers the expected quality with the art here, and the two-parter mirrors the end of the previous arc in the volume by trailing future storylines.  Though I can’t say that I’m absolutely dying to read what happens in vol. 4, the explanations and unexpected story directions here are ensuring that I’ll be sticking around to see what happens next.