Ether vol. 2: The Copper Golems

My traditional experience with the works of Matt Kindt is that the first volume of his creator-owned series disappoints, only for subsequent volumes to improve.  Vol. 2 of “Ether” sets up a dispiriting exception to that rule as the first volume was fantastic, with this new one being a letdown.  It starts off with a decent enough hook: Portals between Earth and the Ether have opened up and if they remain open long enough then bad things are going to happen to our world.  So it’s up to interdimensional adventurer and loquacious know-it-all Boone Dias to seal these portals along with the help of his burly gorilla-esque comrade Glum, and grumpy fairy and spell-writer Violet Belle.  They’re going to need some help, and that’s where spell-hacker Grandor comes in. They’ll just have to bust him out of fantasy jail first.

It’s not that there isn’t stuff to like about this volume.  Chief among its virtues is the superlative art from David Rubin, who clearly relished the freedom offered by the Ether’s fantasy setting.  From the fantasy jail and the over-dragon which guards it, to the intricate interiors of the copper golems, to a desolate and likely haunted fairy forest, Rubin delivers memorable visuals which never fail to impress on every page.  It’s also still fun to see Kindt apply logic and reason to this fantasy setting as Boone knows that even a magical setting such as this has rules underpinning how everything functions. I still see how his personality could be exasperating to some readers, but he still comes off as “annoying, but endearing” to me.

Where vol. 2 loses me is in the quest to stop the portals generated by the titular golems.  We’re simply told that these portals mean bad news for Earth and are not given any further evidence of exactly what that means.  So the emotional connection to Boone’s quest comes off as lacking in that regard. I was also hoping for more than we got from his family situation after the first volume indicated that he almost completely neglected them to go off and explore the Ether.  That’s touched upon here, but only in a perfunctory way that serves to drive the plot while also bumming the reader out at the same time. Vol. 2’s flaws aren’t enough to give up on the series, though I’m now thinking that it’d be for the best if the promised third volume winds up being the last.