This week from BOOM! Studios we get Origins 3, the halfway point of the story. From top to bottom, this issue seems to embody the question ‘Who am I?’ From David to the new bots the question of identity plays out.

We get a few interesting flashbacks into David’s past that show us his mindset for the present. The first focuses on the very question of identity. Seven-year-old David figures out for the first time, he and Cloe are not the same. He sees himself as different and wrong because he is human and Cloe is a machine. This type of questioning can strike home for many children when it comes to questions their origins and surroundings, but remember David is the sole flesh and blood creature on the planet.

The second flashback gives us a bit more humorous scene. The question of identity turns into Cloe trying to educate David on the nature of human sexuality. Of course, David does what most kids do at that age. They run away in disgust. It sounds funny, but with David doing some serious soul searching later on in the issue, it becomes very relevant.

Origins 3 – The Future I Make

Back in the present, David, Cloe, and Clif flee from the machines, but David suffers a critical wound. Cloe saves him from drowning, but he cannot take care of the main wound. Thankfully they stumble upon a group of hospitality droids. The droids patch David’s wounds and allow him to recover. They then swear their unrusting loyalty and service to David.

They are hospitality droids whose sole purpose was to take care of the human race. There’s just one problem. There IS no human race anymore, not for 900 years. Naturally, David’s arrival would be a godsend for the droids. At long last, they can fulfill their programming, but to David, this devotion overwhelms him.

David’s guilt overwhelms him. After his memory restoration, he knows the part he played in the world’s downfall and the droids’ predicaments. The droids merely carry out their programming. It’s who they are, but with droids, their identity can be altered far easier than a human’s. David reprograms all of the droids to be more.

Origins 3 – Chains of Identity

This whole identity crisis storyline then translates over to Cloe. She now questions her worth to David, but David not only has an answer for her but for himself as well. This final scene between David and Cloe is quite touching, especially when you remember one is human, one is an android.

David declares his identity. He does not answer to the man he was 900 years ago, or the mistakes he made then. He is who he is now, and he owes that to Cloe’s guidance. Of course, all sweet endings must end with explosions as the machines find David and Cloe and blow the town to dust.

My one big question going forward is will this title actually jump into the past? Only three issues remain, and a lot of ground needs to be covered.

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