Review: Cave Carson has a Cybernetic Eye Vol. 2- Every Me, Every You

October 12, 2018April 1, 2019 ComicBookWire

Quick Summary

Pros: The main narrative is interesting and incredibly unique. The action is entertaining throughout and makes for a fun adventure. Most of the book’s emotions are well written and give some great character development. The artwork is beautiful and gives the books its wonderful psychedelic twist.

Cons: Small elements of the minor characters’ story are not that interesting. Not every reader will appreciate the book’s intentionally weird approach.

Overall: This is a book that is strange and bizarre at every turn, in a way that makes it an absolute joy to read. It takes over-the-top action, blends it with an incredibly imaginative story, and then covers the entire thing in a coat of psychedelic insanity. Meanwhile, great character development and an interesting plot keep the book’s core solid. In the end, fans of the previous volume and fans of bizarre action will find a lot to love within this collection.

Story

Cave Carson has a Cybernetic Eye Vol. 2: Every Me, Every You, by Jon Rivera and Gerard Way, is a wacky trip that starts out strong and never eases up. It picks up where the previous volume left off and details Cave Carson’s attempt to save the world from a deadly horror. The volume contains a diverse range of storytelling elements that make for a unique and interesting experience; one that feels like part apocalyptic horror and part psychedelic adventure. This allows the volume to be chock-full of action as the heroes do everything in their power to overcome the nearly unbeatable evil they are tasked with destroying. Overall, this is a book that revels in weird action and somehow manages to make it incredibly fun.

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Every Me, Every You somehow manages the impressive feat of blending over-the-top action, cosmic adventure, and psychedelic insanity all into one coherent story. In addition, the heavy focus on action-adventure allows the book to define itself within the Young Animal lineup, a collection of comics that are already unique in their own individual way. This makes this book unique when compared against both mainstream comics and more esoteric offerings, allowing it to stand out in every way possible.

This unique approach to storytelling allows the narrative here to be wonderfully imaginative. It has the heroes jump from reality to reality looking for a way to stop their enemy, while also trying to save as many people as possible. It also allows for alternative versions of these heroes to pop up and have a number of great interactions with the main cast, which is particularly interesting in the case of the two Cave Carsons. All of this makes the book more interesting to read and makes it easier to become involved with the story being told.

It also helps that this story is downright fun from beginning to end. With the previous volume’s setup, this volume is able to get right into the good stuff from the very beginning. This immediately launches the heroes on a quest filled with laser blasts, explosions, and grenade launchers. The action here is over-the-top in a way that doesn’t feel overdone, partly due to the volume’s self-awareness.

In addition, Every Me, Every You does a great job in bringing home some of the more emotional connections that were introduced in the first volume. Here, readers have a chance to see Cave Carson develop into a better father and see Chloe begin to overcome the death of her mother. The moments in which these elements develop are interesting and provide additional depth to the narrative. The only place this doesn’t work is in regards to some of the more minor characters, whose romances and personal struggles never really reach a point where they become interesting. However, for the most part, the emotions in this book are well written.

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Art

In our review of the previous volume, we discussed how Michael Avon Oeming’s artwork helped emphasize the non-traditional nature of the previous volume’s storytelling. In this volume, this same compliment can be levied to an even greater degree. Oeming’s work here makes this dimension hopping adventure work, as it provides surreal visuals that match the bizarre setting. The trippy background and purposefully chaotic panel structures work well with strange trips through time and visits to alien planets. All of this is also helped along by Nick Filardi’s colors, which further the book’s psychedelic elements. All in all, the artwork here is a near-perfect match for the story being told.