Spectra #5

Here's  the fifth issue in this educational series that I picked up at the National Conference on Science Education.

Title: Spectra
Issue: 5
Publisher: American Physical Society
Date: 2013
Writer: Rebecca Thompson
Artist: Kerry G. Johnson

Holofoil cover that looks great in person, but loses a bit in the scanning process.

Having reached at least a truce with rival Tiffany Maxwell, Lucy Hene focuses on the upcoming state championship swim meet. Lucy and the Nikola Tesla Middle School Chargers are set to face their arch-rivals (wait for it...), the Thomas A. Edison Middle School Wizards. The audience cheers are nicely full of Tesla vs. Edison references, of course.

But something strange is going on with the Chargers' coach. He seems to have developed some water elemental style superpowers of his own, and when mayhem breaks loose at the state finals, it's up to Lucy and her friends to bring the... um... corn starch? No, really. It's a viscosity thing and it totally makes sense. At least enough for the story to work. Besides, what comic has ever had a climactic battle that hinged on corn starch? I would guess that Spectra is the only one.

This was fun, but it felt rushed in places. There was more story here than there was really page count for, although Thompson and Johnson do a good job of fitting in all of the essential plot points.

Still. Corn starch. For the win.

Rating: 6.5/10