Review: Sideways Vol. 2- Rifts and Revelations

Quick Summary

Pros: The book opens with a unique storyline that instantly captures attention. The book’s second half provides a satisfactory conclusion for the series. The character development is enjoyable all the way through. The majority of the book’s artwork is beautiful.

Cons: The pacing is a bit too quick at points.

Overall: The second and final volume of the Sideways series is every bit as fun as the first. This comic has an interesting premise, wonderful characters, great levels of emotion, and plenty of imagination in both the art and the writing. The positives here are plentiful and the negatives are minimal. Anyone who enjoyed the first Sideways volume should keep reading here.

Story

Sideways Vol. 2: Rifts and Revelations is a unique and enjoyable comic. The main narrative immediately launches a gripping adventure before bringing the series as a whole to a worthwhile conclusion. Along the way, the text delivers when it comes to creative concepts, character development, and emotion. Though there are some places where the pacing feels a little too rapid, the vast majority of the read is great. Honestly, the biggest disappointment here is the fact that I wish this series had ran for a longer period of time and that there were more volumes out there.

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Rifts and Revelations is crazy and awesome right from the very start. The volume’s opening chapter brings Sideways into contact with the Seven Soldiers of Victory and with forgotten elements of the DC Universe. This portion of the book is a wild ride that is a treat for fans of DC’s complicated history while still being suitable for newer readers. Then, the book returns to Earth and refocuses on the conspiracy building up around Sideways. This offers some payoff for the comic’s ongoing narrative while also being thrilling all on its own. Together, these two halves make an exciting and enjoyable read.

This entire narrative also benefits from the emotional development that takes place over the course of this volume. Derek confronts his mother’s death, deals with his emotions in both school and on a superhero adventure, comes into conflict with his father, talks things through with both Superman and his best friend, and finally comes face to face with his mother’s killer. It is an emotional trip that makes you understand and respect what this young hero has gone through.

My only real complaint with Rifts and Revelations is that the pacing is weird in some places. For example, Derek arrives in a broken dimension and, before he has a full grasp of the situation there, he is able to almost instantly inspire the citizens to revolt against their leader. Later on, a similar problem occurs as Derek’s confrontation against the comic’s main villain goes by just a bit too quickly, especially considering this is a conflict the entire series has built up to. In general, it feels like Sideways could have used just a few more chapters to tell the story it was trying to tell.

(spoilers end here)

Art

The artwork in Rifts and Revelations is beautiful and helps emphasize the unique nature of this book. Kenneth Rocafort gets the volume’s wild and magical opening story arc going with artwork that is equally wild and magical. Then, other artists take over for work that continues to emphasize creativity, with Will Conrad and Cliff Richards’ chapter standing out as a particularly positive example. In the book’s second half, Kenneth Rocafort returns with equally impressive results. This portion of the book features the energetic energy and bold layouts that Rocafort used to define this series back when it first started. Having Rocafort return for the comic’s conclusion is also a fitting sendoff for the Sideways series, which Rocafort helped create. All in all, the artwork here is appealing and adds to the overall reading experience.

Continuity

Sideways Vol. 2: Rifts and Revelations continues the story from Sideways Vol. 1: Steppin’ Out (Review).

The Sideways series ends with this volume. Sideways appears next in Young Justice #13-15, collected in Young Justice Vol. 3: Warriors and Warlords.

This volume also references other comic books, detailed below:

• The modern iteration of the Seven Soldiers of Victory comes from the stories collected across Seven Soldiers of Victory: Book One and Seven Soldiers of Victory: Book Two.
• A version of Superman (Reading Order) seen in this volume appears to be the New 52 version of Superman (Reading Order).
• Sideways #10 makes a brief reference to the Event Leviathan (Review) (Reading Order) event.