To be honest this is quickly becoming one of the most intriguing comics I’m reading. Naomi #2 continues the excellent job done in the first issue of taking this nobody girl, keeping her a nobody, and implying she is so much more. Also, to certain young readers, I can see Naomi’s struggle to find herself striking home.
I love the cover to this issue. It is simple, yet it implies an almost cosmic importance that I think at some point we will reach with her. The TRUTH in large letters lends well to her search for who she is and what happened the year of her adoption.
Tossing Out the Trash
This issue moves very fast, it picks right up where #1 left off. Naomi is confronting the Hulk-like garage mechanic, who basically says nothing and eventually picks her up by the head and tosses her out of the garage before ripping out of there on his Harley.
What adds so much more to these panels than my over simplification is the artwork by Jamal Campbell. He is doing such a great job of showing emotions. Naomi does all the talking while giant dude just sits there. At the same time, you can see the war of emotions crossing not only his face, but Naomi’s as well.
Home For Dinner
In fact this continues into the next section where Naomi is eating dinner with her parents. The picture both Campbell and the writers (Brian Bendis and David Walker) paint is a perfect picture of two parents gossiping ceaselessly over the child who sits in the middle, surrounded by meaningless conversation as they ponder whatever is going wrong.
It is this next part of the scene that may begin to strike home with kids who are adopted. Naomi opens up about talking to Dee, the adoptive parents begin to question why Naomi was talking to her. When she questions what they know, it turns into a back and forth of the foster parents dodging questions and talking over Naomi until Naomi finally becomes very upset.
Both parents switch to full-on comfort mode, but even then they give off that vibe that there is plenty they are not willing to tell Naomi. Their questions feel very pointed, like they are searching for what avenues to find and shut down before Naomi can get there.
I think this last scene, along with other parts throughout these first two issues may strike a chord with kids that are adopted. Kids want answers to where they come from and why, but those answers aren’t always available.
Puzzle Pieces
We get a beautiful full page mash-up of Superman fighting a ton of bad guys. It doesn’t really make a lot of sense.
Naomi has a quick conversation with a friend after missing her sleep-over. It feels like a real conversation between two teens. The big thing to come out of this is Annabelle asked her parents about Dee. While Annabelle thinks Iron Heights is a very nice suburb of Detroit. Meanwhile, Naomi knows it for the high security super-villain prison that it is. Dee’s backstory deepens.
Here we get another full page of super hero battles. This time they are unknown heroes, in fact there is an image that reappears of a female warrior dressed in gold, fighting a dragon. I can’t wait for this part of the story to come into focus.
Restless Nights
We find out these are dreams of Naomi’s. Dreams that interfere with her sleep and keep her restless. What do restless teens do? They sneak out of the house and get into trouble. Naomi sneaks out and breaks into Dee’s garage.
She sneaks around his garage, despite seeing his bike was out front, and snoops until she discovers a picture. In it, is a giant man with a full beard and head of hair, off hand I’d say he looks like Hercules. Snuggled in his arm is a young woman, which if you look closer, bares a remarkable resemblance to Naomi and she realizes this.
Of course, in walks Dee. He is polite in asking for the picture, but when Naomi starts pushing for answers, he screams “Because I’m not ready!” Of course Naomi never backs down…
It feels like next issue we may begin to get at least some answers to what is going on. The next title is “The Secret History of the DC Universe“. It really gives the feeling like Naomi is tied into happenings of a much larger scale that will intertwine itself through the landscape of the DC Universe.
