Book Review: Morning Glories Vol. 5: Tests by N. Spencer et al.

Morning Glories Volume 5: Tests written by Nick Spencer and art by Joe Eisma

Morning Glories Academy is in chaos. The students got lost in another reality during the Woodrun, an outdoor scavenger hunt. Some of the students were hoping to escape the school (because things are very odd and very dangerous there) but another group of students were able to return everyone (students and teachers) to the same reality. Confrontations ensue. Meanwhile, more backstory is given for key characters.

Unfortunately, having taken a two-month break in between reading volumes, I've lost enough details that the story and the implications of events are hard to follow. Some big revelations are made but they don't make a lot of sense to me. At this point, I'm not sure there's a bigger picture that the story is working towards. The writer is just throwing in more mysteries and complications to string the readers along. So I am bailing out on this series.

Book Review: Morning Glories Vol. 4: Truants by Nick Spencer et al.

Morning Glories Volume 4: Truants written by Nick Spencer and art by Joe Eisma

After the surprising ending of the last volume, where some sort of time split happened leaving the teachers of Morning Glories Academy in a different state from most of the student who were out in the woods. This current day story is stuffed with flashbacks that fill in details about what's going on and the motivations of various characters. A new set of students have shown up and are working their own scheme (they caused the time rift). So things are even more complicated than before.

The plot is getting more outlandish which has me a bit worried. So many separate threads and odd details are introduced, it is hard to tell what's a red herring, what's there just because it's cool, and what's important to the main story (or will be important). The various parts are very interesting but is there a greater whole to be seen soon? I'm still intrigued enough to read the next issue.

Book Review: Morning Glories Vol. 3 by Nick Spencer et al.

Morning Glories Volume 3: P.E. written by Nick Spencer and art by Joe Eisma

See the reviews of Volume One and Volume Two!

How do they handle P.E. at Morning Glories Academy, the most exclusive prep school in America? Classes are canceled and everyone is grouped in threes, given maps, and sent out into the woods for "Woodrun." This bit of chaos in the schedule is the perfect opportunity to execute some hidden plans. For example, student counselor Ms. Hodge wants to escape with Casey and she has an extra-special and extra-odd way to get out--they go to a cave and stare at a wall where shadows are going. Eventually Ms. Hodge and Case disappear. Jade and Ike have to sit and watch, giving them a chance to talk. Meanwhile, the other kids are out in the woods where even stranger things happen as they try to complete the objectives on their map.

The plot is still very mysterious with fewer questions being answered than being raised. The characters are fairly interesting and there's plenty of pop culture and other references (like the Plato's Cave set-up for Ms. Hodge). I'm still intrigued enough to get the next volume but am getting worried that the big picture is not a coherent one. Time will tell.

Book Review: Morning Glories Vol. 2 by Nick Spencer et al.

Morning Glories Volume 2 All Will Be Free written by Nick Spencer and art by Joe Eisma

See the review of Volume 1 here.

The saga of six new students at Morning Glories Academy continues. This volume provides backstories for the students and answers some questions, like, Who is that other kid who looks just like Jun? Did Ike really kill his dad or is he just that scary/bad? Other questions come up, especially with the arrival of the student counselor. Her introduction brings some answers and more questions about what is going on and where they are.

So the Lost television show formula (large cast in a strange place with lots of mysteries about the people and the place) is still running. The ratio of satisfaction to frustration is still in favor of satisfaction but is close. The overall story doesn't move forward very far (at least, that's the way it seems), but I am patient enough to give it another volume or two to see if and how things develop.

Book Review: Morning Glories Vol. 1 by Nick Spencer et al.

Morning Glories Volume 1 For a Better Future written by Nick Spencer and art by Joe Eisma

Morning Glories is the sort of super-exclusive and super-secretive prep school that should draw more attention than it does. For example, all of the students are driven a few hours from a New York airport by a limo service, a trip during which they all fall asleep. They don't know the location of the school and their cell phone signals start to fade right after they call home to parents who completely deny their existence. The students assume their parents are part of some scheme to separate the kids from their old life but it does seem a bit extreme. Things get more extreme pretty quickly--just ask Casey, whose parents didn't want to deny their daughter's existence. She finds out about them when she's led to a chamber with their dead bodies. When another of the students is taken to the nurse's office and doesn't come back, the new students make a secret plan to get her out and get themselves away from Morning Glories.

The storytelling is clearly patterned after the television show Lost, where a set of characters are thrown into a bizarre situation with a bunch of mysteries that slowly get explained as the story goes on. As in Lost, the characters here are interesting, distinct, and mostly likable. Lost became bogged down in continually introducing new mysteries, which made the show less satisfying in later seasons. It's far too early to tell if that will happen here, though the teachers do seem to have a bigger secret project, so maybe when that is solved it will be the end (of the story, if not the world). I am more than interested enough and hopeful enough to keep reading.