“Welcome to the trip, man…”

One of the most contradictory elements of my reading life is my love for comics and my inability to calmly and peacefully wait for the next issue of said comics. Their episodic nature is frustrating to my inherent need to binge-read an entire story-line. For example, I subscribe to a favorite author’s entire series (Gail Simone’s recent run on Batgirl, for example), then let them pile up till I have the complete story, and read them all at once. I don’t have a problem (usually, if the author is prompt-ish) waiting for sequels when it comes to other forms of books, but there’s something about the shortness of graphic novels – the fact that I could read an issue in 15 minutes and then be stuck waiting a month for my next fifteen minute dose – that makes us not a really great fit.

I didn’t even know that it was all that unusual to read comics this way, since, as a kid, I mostly picked up my issues from the library, and they’d have weeks or months of back issues for me to work my way through before I caught up to the current one. It was only once I started connecting with other comic readers online that I realized I was a bit outside of the norm, what with the having to avoid spoilers and wanting to talk about a book/issue months after everyone else had already been done with it. Still, it’s not a huge deal. Until I agree to review comics from Netgalley, before the issue even comes out, not remembering that it will end somewhere in the middle of a complex plot, and I will not be able to see the resolution of the plot for quite some time. Then, it’s a little bit frustrating.

Still, I tried not to let it warp my enjoyment of Orphan Black: Helsinki by Graeme Manson, John Fawcett, Heli Kennedy, & Denton J Tipton.  The blurb refers to it as a “special event miniseries,” but since it’s set in 2001, I’m going to go ahead and call it a prequel.

The book opens with a teenage girl who wakes from a disturbing dream to find that her ‘uncle’ has been secretly spying on her – and two other girls.  She runs away to look for answers… and finds a lot more questions.  From the outset, Veera’s socially awkward – and not just in a cute-made-for-TV-kind-of-way, but in a ‘can’t-remember-how-to-have-conversations-with-actual-people, have-never-set-foot-in-a-school-or-at-a-party-before-at-17 way – but that’s nothing compared to the fact that the girl she finds has her exact same face.  And she’s not the only one.

As a member of the Clone Club, and a huge fan of the work Tatiana Maslany does on that show (Seriously: How are you so good at your job?), I thought it was very interesting to see how a younger generation of clones was approached. I mean, if you’re an adult, maybe, just maybe you can wrap your head around this kind of nonsense, but as a teenager? Some of whom are already dealing with serious issues in their lives? Yeah, that’s going to be a whole new level of hot mess.

And it is: Complete with character cameos from the show and some intensely draw action sequences, there’s a lot going on as a bunch of teenagers try to figure out how the hell they’re all connected, and who’s started killing girls with their face.

Of course now I have to wait however long for the final installment -“The Fiery finale!”, the book promises- but I suppose I can exercise my patience just this once.