A
Genre: Comic, LGBTQIA, Time Travel, Science Fiction/Fantasy
The Infinite Loop is a comic book series consisting of six issues. The limited number of issues allows for a single, contained story with a happy ending that should make romance readers very happy. The last issue was released on September 30th, 2015, so you can get that nice satisfying feeling of eating up all the issues at once, if, like me, you’re a comics binger.
The comic is a romance between two women, and although it’s far from subtle in exhorting readers to fight for LGBT and other human rights, it sure is exhilarating. It’s also a great science fiction and time travel story.
The plot of Infinite Loop is pretty convoluted, but it can be summed up simply. Teddy works for an agency that attempts to eliminate or contain time anomalies. She travels through time stopping anything that is out of place. Got a T Rex rampaging through the modern day desert? Teddy will take care of it for you – and there’s a handy flowchart to help the reader determine how well the reader would do in such a circumstance.
Teddy is devoted to her job, and is accustomed to containing everything from anachronistic chairs to dinosaurs (“This is my second dino this week!”)…until she’s ordered to eliminate a human anomaly. Teddy names the human shaped anomaly Ano, and the idealistic Ano and cynical Teddy fall in love. However, they have to figure out how to evade Teddy’s employers, who will kill both of them – and Ano isn’t content to hide forever. Ano wants to fight to protect other anomalies.
This is such a fun series to read and re-read, because the art design is so complex. Panels are arranged in unusual compositions, blown apart into spirals and fragments, and arranged as single page panels. The simple lines and pastel colors keep the tone optimistic even as Teddy’s state of mind grows darker.
As Teddy is faced with decisions, the reader is presented with a view into her head by way of flow charts, dots of thought, and lists of options. Above all, Teddy’s mental state is revealed by the women she talks to in her head – her imaginings of possible alternate timeline Teddys who have their own personalities and opinions. As Teddy starts breaking into new timelines, the Teddys in her head are joined by even more alternate timeline Teddys. Watching the situation deteriorate into chaos is both horrifying (it means our characters aren’t doing well) and really fun (the art gets more and more incredible). We end up with Teddys running around everywhere, and may I just say that this comic has the best cameo by a dinosaur EVER.
The relationship between Teddy and Ano is explicitly erotic (and quite beautifully erotic). You can expect nudity and explicit depictions of sex. It’s also tender and sweet, with both women trusting and respecting each other, having loving – if painful – disagreements, and helping each other grow. I’m a sucker for stories in which lovers balance each other and Teddy and Ano clearly need each other for balance. In terms of adult content, there’s also some truly shocking, but totally non-gory, violence. It’s shocking because it tends to be unexpected, and because the people who practice it are so casual about it.
Infinite Loop is a love story that is also a call to arms. The central conflict is less, “Will Teddy and Ano be able to stay together” and more, “Can Ano convince Teddy to fight for EVERYONE, not just herself and Ano?” The last issue has Teddy plummeting through time and space, past quotes from people like Harvey Milk, Susan B. Anthony, and Malcolm X.
At one point, a frazzled Teddy yells, “Shut up, Patrick Henry!” and I laughed so loud that people looked at me funny. This comic is not an example of using subtle metaphor to delicately introduce a point. It’s more like being smacked upside the head with a message that is in bold type and caps lock. But it’s a message that needs to get out there, and it’s a powerful and moving one, and so well told – the ending. Yes, this is message fiction, but it’s message fiction at it’s very finest. And it’s a love story between two women who love each other, trust each other, and help each other grow – what’s not to like?
This book is available from:
As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
We also may use affiliate links in our posts, as well.
Thanks!
My copy of this is in the mail. Can’t wait.
This art looks gorgeous.