Space Ghost #12: An Action Packed Penultimate Issue

The struggle against Tempus the Time Master, Space Ghost’s biggest story to date, comes to a head in Space Ghost #12. Pepose leaves some character oriented story threads for the next issue, but he wraps up the big action struggle between Space Ghost and the Time Master.

Space Ghost #12 is almost entirely an action affair. Space Ghost #11 slowed the story down a little bit as the bad guys looked for Space Ghost and Jace and Jan explored the future, getting to know Space Spectre. The third entry in the Time Master arc ratchets up the tension and urgency once more, putting it on par with the action packed first part. Pepose takes a few pages to establish the stakes, show Space Ghost’s dire situation, and finalize Jace and Jan’s plans–then it’s off to the races.

All of this action doesn’t get in the way of Space Ghost’s real strength, though. Pepose’s talent with developing complex characters is on display once more. As the action side of this story races toward its conclusion, Pepose is able to slip in the Time Master’s backstory. Far from being a villain for the sake of villainy, the Time Master turns out to be a tragic character. Yes, his goals are incredibly selfish and would come at the expanse of countless lives, but he isn’t seeking power for its own sake.

These revelations in Space Ghost #12 don’t rehabilitate the Time Master or make him sympathetic, but they do make his motives understandable, especially because his background mirrors Space Ghost’s in a way. They also highlight the ongoing development of the relationship between Space Ghost, Jace, and Jan. In a way, the Time Master and Space Ghost’s paths diverged because Space Ghost found in Jace and Jan something that the Time Master couldn’t. Once more, Pepose’s ongoing development of the series’ three main characters helps resolve an action adventure. It’s a showcase for how character exploration is almost always front and center in the series.

The tragic nature of the Time Master’s past is made more acute thanks to Lau’s detailed art. Expressive characters are a strength of Lau’s, and it makes a big difference here. As noted above, the Time Master never becomes sympathetic. But Lau’s ability to make the character expressive does still soften him.

This said, action is the order of the day in Space Ghost #12 and Lau delivers in spades. From start to finish this is a visually dynamic, fast paced book. Lau’s use of shading, both small solid fields of black and larger patches of straight lines and crosshatches, emphasizes characters’ strength and movement. The level of detail is impressively high here and does justice to an issue with so many characters and so much going on.

Dalhouse’s coloring is vivid as it always does. It doesn’t overwhelm Lau’s art, but it helps turn every page into a meal. Space Ghost, the Time Master, and almost every other character in the issue is dealing with tremendous energies and Dalhouse realizes them in spectacular fashion.

Late in the issue both Space Ghost and the Time Master enter the “temporal slipstream.” It’s realized in an effective combination of Lau and Dalhouse suggesting a different environment and speed moving through it with a combination of linework and a rich and varied color scheme.

Space Ghost #12 is full of sound effects that Esposito does a great job incorporating into the art work. He uses a variety of fonts and colors, consistently associating each style with the same character. They contrast very effectively, especially with Dalhouse’s coloring, but never overwhelm the visuals.