Split Personality
Eternity Girl kicked off its first issue in a new 12 issue run and aims to show the struggle of an eternal goddess wishing only for death. While this doesn’t sound the normal DC fare of Batman and The Flash, this new comic is instead being released in DC’s imprint, Young Animal. Young Animal was started back in late 2016, created by Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance fame. It was designed to introduce new characters with existing DC characters with an aim to bring stories that that are more experimental in nature and more mature.
The story begins with our lead character, Caroline Sharp, talking to her therapist about all of her previous suicide attempts. The issue, however, is that Sharp, through vague experiments by the secretive “Alpha 13”, now has the powers and eternal life of a Sumerian element goddess. After being put on leave for “the incident,” Sharp, known previously as Crysalis, finds it hard to retain her powers of shapeshifting and meaning in life.
The start of it all
What really stands out when reading this first issue is the magnificent art by Eisner-Award winner Sonny Liew, and the candid way in which weaves adult themes into the narrative of the story. While suicide can be a sensitive topic for some, the story integrates it into the narrative in a way where it makes you really feel what the character is going through. It is never insensitive but does get the point across about the struggles that Caroline faces.
As Caroline tries to get her powers back in check she is visited in both dream and daydream by an old foe that she killed. In these visions, she is given the choice to finally be able to die- but in the process, she is told that all other life would be destroyed along with her. Knowing this, we see the first issue ends with the first glimpse of happiness for the character.
While the story and source material may initially turn readers off, I believe if given the chance this story can really be something special. Only time will tell, but the first issue is promising and hopefully, we see many great issues to follow from this creative team.
4.5/5
Eternity Girl issue #2 out 4/11.
“Far beyond the farthest any mortal has ever traveled is a nameless world nested in the very heart of existence. On that planet is a structure that extends infinitely into the heavens. It is the Shining Tower, the axis of life and death. And to end her suffering, Eternity Girl must destroy it. The catch? Everyone else will die, too.”
