Perhaps I’m just a little worn down, but I found this issue a lot better. Unfortunately, I know it really isn’t much better–Holmes is still a minor character in his own book and the thing’s way too full with lots of foreshadowing, cameos and sensationalism. But I’ve come to accept the book’s not going to be perfect–or particularly good and I’ve accepted it–I can enjoy the reading experience to some degree now.
A limited one, of course, because it’s an intentionally confusing issue with a lot of storytelling devices at play to allow for the “fullest” issue possible.
What’s missing is charm. The comic makes Holmes the protagonist and “good guy” because it’s easy to, especially in comics and even more especially when the book’s named after the good guy hero. Holmes is a fun character, an erudite pulp hero, there’s too much Sturm und Drang here.
