Time has passed since Director B’tay left the little primate called Helpless to his own devices in the habitat. Now General Cov’n is searching for him. What is he like now as an adult? Find out in All Against All #2 from Image Comics!

ALL AGAINST ALL #2

Writer: Alex Paknadel
Artist: Caspar Wijngaard
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Editor: Chris Ryall
Publisher: Image Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: January 11, 2023

Previously in All Against All: Director B’tay, of the Operators, is fascinated by a particular artificial habitat he has been studying – a habitat of Earth creatures. A human boy is one of several creatures there, and B’tay has a face-to-face encounter with him. Years later, B’tay allows his people to observe this habitat, but not to harvest from it. His daughter, V’lmann does not agree. They are at war and on the lookout for useful features to incorporate into their bodies. General Cov’n arrives and reveals that he has been experimenting with having Operators inhabit creatures directly. B’tay thinks this would be too dangerous as they risk losing control. Cov’n thinks B’tay’s protect carnivore biome looks promising and sends some Operators in to look around.

A SECRET IS DIFFICULT TO KEEP

All Against All #2 opens as B’tay recalls growing the creatures. Most of them were born alert and capable of fending for themselves, but one particular primate was helpless at birth, so much so that they nicknamed him Helpless. He released him into the habitat far before he was ready, but the little human bonded with the gorilla the Operators had called Thumper. And somehow, he survived.

Cov’n and B’tay face each other. When Cov’n arrived, an unknown insect was found free on the station, which could contaminate it. Cov’n is upset because two of the Operators he sent into the habitat are now missing. He is also angered that B’tay withheld information about the human, but B’tay insists that he is dead. But not only is there no body, they found a drawing in a cave, a rough drawing of an Operator with different colored eyes, just like B’tay.

B’tay reveals that long ago, he took Thumper away from the habitat and left the boy to die. B’tay recalled the ruins of Earth and surmised that the humans, while not physically dangerous, might have something even more destructive. Cov’n insists on going back into the habitat to find some answers.

B’tay and V’lmann talk. He wonders why they are so obsessed with conquest and muses on the mistake he has made by trying to conceal Helpless. She wants to study the habitat and is more than willing to help Cov’n. But she has another question. B’tay has told her that he sees her mother sometimes, in the habitat and he admits that he has, when he cannot sleep. B’tay both wants and does not want to go into the habitat, but in the end, he cannot resist.

One of the missing Operators regains consciousness. He cannot move his body, but he hears something, he hears someone speaking. It is Helpless, who is not so helpless anymore.

Cov’n observes how quiet the habitat is. B’tay tells him it is gradually dying. It is a bounded system and cannot go on forever. He regrets that the war interrupted his studies further and asks how the war is going. It sounds like is keeps going on; the projected end still has not yet happened. They see one of their missing Operators standing on a hill. The General orders him to join them. B’tay feels something is wrong. V’lmann, operating the drone, flies in for a closer look. It is indeed the Operator, out of his suit and impaled on a stick. The setup is a trap that catches one, and Helpless calls wolves who join in to attack other Operators. B’tay realizes this is Helpless’s work and that now the General will not stop until he finds the human.

SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES

One of the things I like about the art of All Against All #2 is how well it holds true to the concept that the point of view is that of the Operators. They are not human. As B’tay explains, the word for their planet is the same as their word for water, which parallels with how we use the word “Earth.” The parallels, as well as the bipedal forms they wear, give us an anchor toward understanding them by seeing where we share similarities. It also lets the story focus on humans from an outside viewpoint. The fact that Helpless can be underestimated adds excitement and unpredictability.

And it makes the beginning particularly interesting. Human babies are not born ready to move or fend for themselves. It is no wonder B’tay named his charge “Helpless.” It is chilling to see him release baby Helpless into the habitat from a crate, and the accusatory look from the child is heartbreaking. But in that moment, there is something else we see. He has different colored eyes just like B’tay does. Perhaps the connection between the two of them runs deeper than we have expected.

BOTTOM LINE: WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO SURVIVE?

All Against All #2 is setting up to be the conflict between a lone human against the advanced Operators. But beyond that it takes advantage of the setting to explore humanity from a different perspective as well as pondering the value of scientific research when it is reduced to warfare. This is a terrific story on multiple levels.

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All Against All #2

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Terrific Story!

Director B’tay has kept everyone out of the habitat containing a lone human, but that is about to change.

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• Art

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