A daring raid into Badwa – the camp for the unwanted minorities who could not be deported – sets up a fight between the Esthers, Provis, and the Trads. But who is double-crossing whom?

OLIVIA TWIST #3

Writer: Darin Strauss, Adam Dalva
Artist: Emma Vieceli
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Letterer: Sal Cipriano
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: November 21, 2018

Previously in Olivia Twist: Olivia has been taken in by the Esthers, an all-girl street gang led by Fagin. Her new friend, the Artful Dodger, sneaks back into the workhouse to rescue the little boy Pip, and comes across a photo of Olivia’s mother, which Fagin keeps. As Olivia starts learning the art of being a street thief, Christian Krespo, the CEO of Provis is talking to Monks, his hireling who has been killing young Levantine women. Krespo needs Olivia alive so she can open a certain locket for him. What does it conceal?

YOU NEVER KNOW WHO YOU CAN TRUST

Olivia Twist #3 has an unreliable narrator, who has admitted that she may tell things out of order. These things do come back around. But we start with Olivia sliding down a pipe, working on something with the Esthers and Charley – and Fagin herself. They are sneaking into Badwa, the camp holding all the unwanted in England who could not be deported, apparently planning to break people out. We backtrack a little to see the planning, and see Charley flirting with Olivia.

In camp, Charley is disguised as a guard, and the Esthers move through, taking out cameras, etc. as they go. We flashback again to see a conversation between Fagin and Dodger. Fagin is looking for a necklace, and Dodger has to find it while they’re in camp, not only that, but keep it secret from Olivia. Standing just outside the camp, Olivia has a sense she’s been there. She was only a baby, but this is where here parents were killed in issue #1. Then a group of Trads show up, and it turns out Charley was a Trad. Is he now loyal to the Esthers? Fighting ensues.

Then we cut to Vertical City. Krespo is talking to a projection of Charles Leeford, his old business partner and Olivia’s father. Krespo is behind letting the Trads into Badwa. The Trads are taken down by the Esthers with Olivia’s help, and Fagin figures out that Krespo was the traitor. But while the others hand out supplies, Fagin takes Olivia and Dodger to a certain tent, where she introduces Olivia to Selda, her aunt – her mother’s sister. They reunite and Olivia finds out that her mother was murdered. Dodger searches the tent and finds proof that Olivia is Leeford’s daughter, but no locket. Back in Vertical City, we learn that Charles hid his files in the locket. This information is the last step Krespo needs to basically take over the world. Charles did not trust him, and the locket cannot open without his blood and that of Olivia’s mother – or that of Olivia.

Fagin meets with women of the camp, even as she sends Dodger to do more searching. The Provis guards come in and attack them. And then the Trads arrive. Basically, things devolve into chaos. Several Esthers are taken down. Fagin is caught. Charley is caught. Olivia runs.

This is where we flash back again and things get a little confusing. Dodger offers to let Olivia sit back, and take her part in Badwa. There’s a hint that things may not have gone down quite as we saw. Then we’re with Dodger and Olivia back at Selda’s tent. They have a very sweet, romantic moment, and then Monks is there, and he has the locket – and Selda is dead. Dodger tells Olivia to run, but Pip is there. How did he get here and what is he doing? Monks throws a knife at Olivia and she vanishes as does Pip. And we get a big reveal in the end regarding Olivia’s brother.

TWISTS AND TURNS

The art in Olivia Twist #3 is just lovely. I like the way all the characters are drawn – they’re so distinctive. And the settings are great. Badwa hits like a sledge hammer. An internment camp is never pretty, and to see how international it is and how deep the hatred goes is tough. I also like the action sequences – they’re dynamic and they make good storytelling sense.

Where I got lost this issue with the flashbacks and setting changes, but mainly cutting back and forth through time. I frankly lost track of the timeline in camp, and just what the Esthers were trying to do there. The flashbacks had a different color palette, so I could identify them; it was more trying to fit everything back together in a proper order that made sense.

Next issue is the conclusion of the story, and to be fair, things could be setting up for that. Considering that this tale has some facets of Dickens at its heart, this is not unlike the very twisty plot tangles that he was fond of using. I’m trusting the creators to deliver when it comes to the final chapter.

BOTTOM LINE:  A CONFUSING TANGLE, BUT PROPERLY SUSPENSEFUL

If you haven’t been reading this story, you don’t want to jump into Olivia Twist #3. The plot is pretty tangled. But the reveals have been great, and I have not anticipated all of them which makes the story that much more exciting.