(This review may contain spoilers).
Having seen Bobby in a couple of different incarnations, I was really happy to have the opportunity to read more about him and learn more about him.
It was really good to see Bobby’s origin story. I liked the fact that, although his parents had difficulty understanding his abilities, they still made it clear that they loved him… even though they told him that he had to hide who he was. I felt a lot of sympathy for him when he tried to protect his girlfriend and she reacted as if he was a freak.
It was very interesting to see Bobby have to take on the mantle of leadership, though I thought it was good he managed to keep his jokey nature even while faced with certain doom. The Sentinels were especially creepy… I think because they couldn’t be reasoned with and they couldn’t see that they were causing collateral damage. They were a broken solution to a problem that didn’t actually exist.
I found Marrow a really intriguing character, even though I knew next to nothing about her. I wasn’t sure if she was truly on the others’ side or not… but then again, it was clear that Cecilia didn’t really want to be a part of the group either. While I could understand her reluctance, I felt she did take it out on Bobby a lot, who was trying his best. By the time Sabra came along, it seemed like Bobby was spending most of his time trying to stop his team from maiming each other.
On the other side, it was interesting to see Kelly suffering from remorse. While I think it should have hit him much earlier, I did like the fact that he eventually did the right thing… even though it would have been good to see if Bobby had managed to get through to Bastion. I would have liked to know more about Bastion’s past and what drove him.
There were quite a few moments I found myself laughing out loud while I was reading this. There were some good elements of humour to go along with the tension. And I would be interested in reading more about Bobby in the future and learning more about his personality, history, present and future.
Ink of Blood 