(I said I was doing a page-by-page review, but I’m obsessive in that I would rather not stop reading when a page ends in the middle of a sentence. So this is why you’re getting three pages today. And two next week.)
Okay, this Michael Jan Friedman is actually a pretty decent writer. Apparently he really knows his way around the Star Trek universe. He does a pretty good job of painting a picture here.
Page two starts off at a similar pace to the first page - that is, pretty slow and not quite clear what’s going on. Apparently Erid Sovar wants someone to be there with him, who may or may not be his gay lover (or simply a close friend). All that is known really is that Sovar has to climb something called “Otros Paar, the legendary Field of Heaven” without any food or water.
You’d think he would be a little concerned about this predicament (that he willingly submits himself to), but instead he sits down and starts to sing! Apparently this is supposed to initiate whatever transformation he’s expecting to undergo. I hate to break it to you, Erid, but it sounds like more of a spiritual transformation than a REAL transformation.
OH WAIT NO I WAS COMPLETELY WRONG ABOUT THAT. Shortly after he finishes singing he starts seeing the world differently - he sees it as beautiful, even if it is full of rocks (so I guess NOT Space Scotland?). And then this happens:
“...One of his feet slipped and missed its niche, and the rest of Erid followed it with amazing quickness. The next thing he knew, he was lying on the ground, the side of his head feeling raw and bludgeoned.”
Yeah, he totally fell and possibly cracked his head opened, but LOLZ it’s no biggie for Erid, he just rolls around on his belly and laughs. And then he actually does start changing:
“...He realized it wasn’t just his legs that felt heavy. His arms felt that way too.
Weighted down. And thick. Swollen, somehow. And their veins were popping out as if they wanted to burst through his smooth bronze skin.”
OKAY I GOT IT he’s turning into THE HULK! The back cover copy guys fooled us all and left out that there was also going to be a rad HULK crossover involved.
“And yet, his veins and arteries were swelling before his eyes, standing out under his flesh like metal cables.”
Dude is totally turning into The Hulk. He’s all bulked out, repulsed by his own reflection in the water, and realizes that only his fingertips have remained normal. OR HAVE THEY? (Protip: no they haven’t!)
TUNE IN FOR PAGES 6-7!
