ADVANCED REVIEW: Space Ghost #2: Space Ghost the Babysitter

Space Ghost #1 was a very good first issue that deserved the praise that it got. But in many ways it didn’t set itself apart beyond the interest in Space Ghost himself. Space Ghost #2 successfully changes things up, already adding a new dimension to the series.

Three unexpected passengers escaped with Space Ghost at the end of the first issue. In Space Ghost #2, it’s clear that he has no idea how to deal with two kids and a monkey. The quartet arrives at Space Ghost’s mysterious base where the best instructions he can think of are “sit down and don’t get into trouble.”

Space Ghost #2 steps back from the first issue’s large scale action and life or death stakes in favor of more ordinary concerns like how Space Ghost is going to deal with two kids. Jace and Jan almost steal the show here. They are very smart for their age. But they are, nevertheless, children. Pepose captures traits one would expect ordinary kids to have such as inquisitiveness and disregard for potential consequences. Jace and Jan prove to be perfect foils for Space Ghost who is dreadfully serious through much of the issue. The result is an undercurrent of natural humor running through much of the issue.

There are good reasons for Space Ghost to be dreadfully serious. Space Ghost #2 starts chipping away at the character’s backstory in brief snippets. It never interferes with story flow. Space Ghost’s internal monologue doesn’t take extended detours. A flashback and snippets of long gone dialogue are very effective at laying a foundation for Space Ghost that can be further explored with supporting characters such as Jace and Jan. In surrounding Space Ghost with characters who also don’t know anything about him, Pepose gives himself the ability to deliver backstory and exposition the reader needs under the guise of Space Ghost educating his companions.

Lau’s work in Space Ghost #2 further reinforces Jace and Jan’s child qualities by making them far more emotive than Space Ghost who spends most of the issue scowling and gritting his teeth. Everything the children do is exaggerated. Whether scared, awed, or excited, there is never subtlety in their expressions. Lau carries this further with the children’s body language. When Jan is dejected after being rebuked by Space Ghost, the change in posture and stance is so extreme it borders on pouting. Jace and Jan truly look and act like children as opposed to merely small people who act largely the same as adults.

Rather than employ thicker fields of black to create depth and contours, most of Lau’s shading for these purposes comes from fields of dense linework. This is evident throughout the issue but especially prominent on Space Ghost. When Space Ghost is in motion, the technique adds to the sensation of speed and strength even when the character isn’t in a panel with action.

Dalhouse’s color choices are vivid and alive in Space Ghost #2. This is most evident in the issue’s antagonist. Very thin outlines delineate its shape, but as an individual creature it wouldn’t look like anything without the oranges and yellows that Dalhouse layers within it. He also makes space a colorful setting rather than just a black expanse. His color choices are frequently gripping.

Jace and Jan spend a lot of the issue whispering. Rather than go with the traditional choice of a dialogue bubble outlined with a dotted line. Esposito shrinks the text within a regular sized dialogue bubble. The small text surrounded by extra white space conveys the idea of an actual drop in volume as opposed to just an indicator for the reader that a character is whispering.