Review: MEMETIC #2

Memetic_002_cover

MEMETIC #2
Written by James Tynion IV
Art by Eryk Donovan and Adam Guzowski
Published by BOOM! Studios
Release Date: November 26, 2014

An internet meme has done what no plague, no army, and no alien attack could do. In a mere 12 hours, the world has gone to chaos, with the only sane survivors being those who will not, or cannot, view one very strange and particular jpg file. At the center of all of this is Aaron and his boyfriend Ryan — alone, but together. And as they travel to the safest place they know, conditions begin to conspire against their safety. The meme is evolving…

James Tynion IV has done something here that very few writers do when they engage in apocalyptic fiction. The story of Memetic isn’t about survival, for the conditions under which society unravels happens far too quickly for that to even be a possibility. It’s not even about self-determination, really — characters finding out all they can be when put to the test.

No, wrapped in the packaging of fascinating technological decay and the complete mental breakdown of the world population, Memetic tells a very simple, and heartbreaking story about what it means to be lonely — deeply lonely, even if you aren’t alone.

It’s not simply that lead character Aaron’s physical impairments leave him immune to the effects of the meme (which in itself is a source of isolation), but they psychologically separate him from the world as much as physically. Imagine yourself only able to see in black and white, walking around with cotton deeply stuffed into each ear. You’ve not only spent your childhood hearing about your physical abnormality, but you’ve also absorbed the prevailing feeling that being gay is aggressively abnormal as well.

Now try to imagine having a deep relationship with another human being.

The distance between your body and mind and that other person’s just seems inescapable. And so it is with Aaron, whose relationship with Ryan is doomed, and not just necessarily because of the meme he can’t become infected by. The scenes between the two young men (practically still boys) is so beautifully written by Tynion, and so effectively rendered by Donovan. The rawness of Ryan’s monologue, coupled with the matter-of-factness behind his nakedness, is beautiful and painful all at once. And at the same time it feels dulled by sadness in a way that makes it all the more heartbreaking to think about.

Donovan’s figures border on exaggerated caricature in some moments, but that only helps to develop a real sense of innocence to the characters of Aaron and Ryan. Their plight is devastating, not because there are zombies banging at their door, but because these wide-eyed kids should be off in a Hardy Boys mystery romance book (imagine how different my childhood would have been with that!), not facing the end of everything they know and cling to.

There are about a dozen other smart things happening in Memetic that are worthy of analysis — from strong characterization to inventive use of memetic theory — but at my core I am most touched by Aaron’s condition, the human condition, and the kind of sadness that I don’t like to remember having anymore. But it comes back faster than I would have expected. Amid the chaos and along with the smarts, Tynion has woven within this book a beautifully authentic rendition of isolation and loss that I can’t — and won’t — soon forget.

The Verdict: 9.0/10

 

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