I wrote something toward the end of my review of Beyond Real #1 about how high expectations can sometimes lead to big disappointment. Unfortunately, that’s exactly what happened when I read Beyond Real #2. A good comic on its own, it just doesn’t live up to the fantastic standard set by the first issue. That said, I’ve enjoyed it more with each re-read, as I continue to find new elements within the art.
It doesn’t help Beyond Real #2 that Vault Comics twice pushed back the release date – a month each time. The amazing first issue – which Vault gave retailers for free in order to drive up sales – came out nearly three months ago. I can only imagine that most interest generated back then has long been forgotten. And, unfortunately, I don’t think this issue is strong enough to pull those readers back. But please keep up with this series; I’ve already read issue #3 and it’s an absolute visual delight.
Vault Comics
Generally, Beyond Real #2 gets away from the elements of the first issue I loved the most. I didn’t find any musings on the thought-provoking questions about reality which naturally arise when writing about simulation theory. Accordingly, the comic didn’t give me enough deep ideas to think about after I put it down.
And although the protagonist, June, mentions that she’s on a quest to save her lover, Eli, from death, he never appears. In fact, he is mostly forgotten in this issue. Without that relational basis or the theme of grief and suffering that arise out of it, Beyond Real #2 lacks the emotional core of the first issue.
Instead, writer Zack Kaplan gives us a fast-paced tale of survival set in an alien wasteland. After June discovers that reality is actually a computer simulation and she has somehow gained the power to manipulate the simulation’s code, she now finds herself in a spirit-like state on a new plane of existence. June and all the characters she meets appear somewhat transparent or translucent. Maybe they’re in some sort of afterlife or a state of Limbo between life, death and the afterlife.
In any case, she and the other characters are constantly on the run from monsters whose sole purpose is to catch corrupted code and reformat it. These monstrous bots remind us in a very clever way about the simulation theory upon which the narrative is based. But not much more about simulation theory comes up in this issue.
Which is unfortunate, because the world that Kaplan and artist Toni Fejzula have built here is really quite interesting – especially when June meets the other occupants of this realm. They all look really cool – human, but also surreal and alien – with certain body parts being replaced with mechanical parts or other contraptions. It gives off a strange sci-fi punk feel.
Vault Comics
I also found it unfortunate that the creators leave so much of the potential of this new world untouched. I guess Kaplan and Fejzula are just too constrained by external decisions. At this point it’s obvious that June will be traveling to a new layer of reality in each issue. And the story is limited to a mini-series. As a result, one issue is all this realm gets and that just doesn’t provide enough space or time to explore it in more depth.
For example, we never find out what this plane of reality has to do with simulation theory. What part of the code creates this realm? What is its purpose? What does a “normal” day here look like? How does time or biology or physics work here? Maybe these questions will be answered in future issues, but I kind of doubt it.
Vault Comics
As its main theme, Beyond Real #2 presents a commentary on the artistic process. We often find the dichotomy of the head versus the heart – thinking about the creative process rationally versus being led by feelings. It breaks down to the struggle between following a well-known structure versus breaking the rules – with the later seeming to be the preferred choice. At least in this issue, artistic freedom wins out over scientific explanation. In exploring this theme, Beyond Real #2 is a nice self-contained issue, as both June and Rishi – one of the survivors she meets – make a realization about what guides their paths.
And it’s also this theme which we find symbolically visualized in Toni Fejzula’s art. He often uses very asymmetric page layouts, panels with weird shapes or one rounded corner, some panels without and others with borderlines. And the artistic style of the images within the panels is definitely nontraditional, at times very abstract.
Unfortunately, compared to Fabiana Mascolo and Jordie Bellaire’s style from the first issue, Fejzula’s style is just not my favorite. For example, the wasteland setting is often too abstract; I sometimes don’t really know what I’m looking at. And too much of it looks the same.
That said, some of the images are truly fantastic. One panel depicting the confrontation between June and Rishi could be a shot from a beautiful, martial-arts film. And two of the double-page spreads are great. One provides a breathtaking wide view of the wasteland. The other – at the climax of the issue – marries the art to the narrative theme in a wonderfully creative way, which I don’t want to spoil.
In conclusion, Beyond Real #2 is certainly a good comic, but it’s missing the elements of the first issue that I really wanted to see explored in more depth. To its credit, the writing, themes and art once again work together in perfect harmony. The world-building also shows great potential that just doesn’t get fully realized in this one issue. So, although this issue is a bit of a disappointment compared to the first, I’m holding on to hope, knowing the next issue provides more of what I’m longing for.
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