There’s a saying that an artist is only appreciated after she is flung into space by her best friend. (I might be paraphrasing.) In the Land of Ooo, that statement holds true, as the residents of the Candy Kingdom and beyond mourn the loss of Marceline: half-vampire, half-demon, total rock legend, each in their own way. No one is grieving more than Princess Bubblegum, who made the decision to send her into space.
Issue #2 of Marceline Gone Adrift takes it easy, giving us all a breather after the events of Issue #1. That doesn’t mean writer Meredith Gran lets up on the amazing dialogue or even on developing the friendship between Princess Bubblegum and Marceline. While the Candy Kingdom people’s many shades of grief and Jake and Finn dealing with the aftermath of the lightning strike were entertaining, the heart and the soul of this issue is still PB and Marcy. Gran and artist Carey Pietsch show us Bubblegum’s grief. Gone is the bright pink dress this issue. PB dons more muted tones (and the classic hoodie of depression) and perhaps more shockingly of all, doesn’t step in when her candy subjects run amok. Bubblegum is the woman who makes the hard decisions and always manages to live with them. To see her torn up inside and out of sorts is disturbing in a good way.
But, best of all, this issue shows us flashbacks from the early, early days of the Adventure Time world. Younger Marcy and PB are adorable (although not to be topped by kid Peppermint Butler). Pietsch trades out her watercolor shades for a set that’s reminiscent of sepia tone without losing any of the rich colors of the Adventure Time universe. I won’t give away more than that, but I hope that the flashbacks are a reoccurring element in this series and that we dive more into not only PB and Marcy’s relationship in the present, but their relationship in the past.
Gran’s dialogue remains top notch, Pietsch’s art perfect, and the breather following the action was nice, and yet I find myself eager to get to the meat of the story. Bring on the crazy space adventures!
Four and a Half Commemorative Marceline Memorabeelz out of Five!
