Originally published on Patreon
The second issue of this team-up comic begins to explain just what the hell is going on when giant alien ships descend from space and turn everyone but Flash and Aquaman into frozen people singing a creepy song. It's weird to say the least, and this issue does begin to clear some thing up for us.
Barry and Arthur actually come face to face with one of the aliens, and thanks to some experimental combat from Barry we learn that the creatures aren't effected by the laws of physics. It also turns out that they have a connection to the Speed Force somehow.
When the two heroes are able to damage one of the floating ships it disrupts the signal enough to allow some of the inhabitants of Atlantis to come out of their strange state, and we learn from Mera that the Atlanteans were working on their own space programme. In order to launch craft capable of reaching space from the depths of the oceans, they found a way of tapping into the Speed Force. And these experiments have drawn the attention of these otherworldly beings.
Barry is justifiably furious at the idea, and wants nothing more to do with Arthur, especially as he stole Barry's medical data in order to experiment with the Speed Force. Unfortunately, the threat isn't gone yet, and the two of them will have to keep working together, especially now that another, gigantic ship has arrived; a ship that dwarfs the entire planet.
Voidsong is a story that feels very complex, and has some interesting ideas that haven't yet been fully explained. This was a big problem I had with the first issue, where it felt like I had no idea what was going on, and whilst I know a little more at the end of issue two I still couldn't tell you how it all works and fits together.
This is one of the biggest problems I have with comic stories where there are big sci-fi concepts and complex plots, reading it once it's all done is fine, but month to month can sometimes feel like a mixed bag. This issue is a definite improvement over the first, but whether the quality gets worse, stays the same, or improves remains to be seen.
One of the better parts of this issue was the change in dynamic between the two heroes. They had some snipey comments and were a bit dickish towards each other in the first issue, which I didn't really like that that much. They didn't feel like two people who were friends who'd gone into battle with each other in life and death situations before, but two folks who have to pretend to get along at work because they've got no other choice.
They felt more natural this issue, and more like the Barry and Arthur I'm used to seeing in their various Justice League books. However, the discovery that Arthur stole Barry's medical records injects some justified anger, and a reason for the two of them to be having a go at each other whilst trying to save the world. Whilst I am expecting the two of them to end up being okay come the end, I do like the fallout that they're having here because it's actually earned.
It still feels like this mini series could end up being a bit of a disappointing mess, but at least now there seems to be promise of something better too. I hope that the series continues to improve like this as it goes on, and that it can stick a decent landing.
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