It is a dark time for Detroit and the entire country. The Umbra is gaining power while Elena’s counter magic is cut off. What is stopping her from using her abilities? Find out in Abbott 1979 #2 from BOOM! Studios.

ABBOTT 1979 #2

Writer: Saladin Ahmed
Artist: Sami Kivelä
Colorist: Dan Jackson
Letterer: Jim Campbell
Editor: Ramiro Portnoy
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Cover Price: $4.99
Release Date: November 8, 2023

Previously in Abbott 1979: Elena Abbott was once an investigative reporter. Now she writes theatre reviews for a weekly free paper. At the funeral for a new photographer, an old colleague of hers reaches out about a possible job in television. Weary, she returns home. The occult forces of the Umbra continue to affect her. She calls an old friend, Amelia, who recalls that it is Elena’s birthday, but tells her she never wants to see her again. However, she is affected by the Umbra. Elena’s brother Elmer calls her, wanting money. Elena cannot help him. Exhausted, she goes to bed and the Umbra comes for her in her sleep.

OLD FRIENDS AND AN OLD ENEMY

Abbott 1979 #2 opens in Elena’s dream where she faces the Umbra. She hears the voice of someone she knows, Sebastian, who reminds her that she is the Lightbringer. In her dream, she gathers fire in her hands and lashes out at the dark, shadowy form that is trying to envelop her. She blasts it to pieces and wakes up on the floor of her apartment, alone.

There is a knock at the door. A couple of police are there. They have had another complaint about screaming coming from her apartment, and they must take her in for causing a disturbance. She calls James before they take her in. He gets her released but tells her he may not be able to keep doing this. The police department is caught up in a “tough on crime” policy which is just the excuse some people need to take policing back to the older ways of cracking skulls. He also tells her that Chee’s is closing, a bar she and her brother practically grew up in, But Elena has been avoiding Chee’s to avoid Amelia.

James talks her into going there with him for a drink. There are no customers, but Lincoln, the owner, immediately recognizes Elena and they start to catch up. He tells her that Amelia, who is his sister, has not been there for years. She is caught up in her own life, but he also feels like there is more to it. She sounds like there is a shadow over her.

One drink turns into several. James offers to drive Elena home. She prefers to walk and perhaps clear her head a little. She hears something behind her, and it is the Umbra! She reaches for her light powers, but unlike in her dream, they flash briefly and die. She gives up, and Sebastian steps in and dispels the Umbra. She thanks him and confesses that she has lost her powers. This is why he has come to see her. He tells her more about the Umbra, that it is the embodiment of greed and selfishness. She, as the Lightbringer, dispatched its lesser servants, but now it is here. Its shadows cut her off from her power. It is tethered somewhere nearby. She must find it…and stop it!

THE LIGHT WITHIN THE SHADOW

The art of Abbott 1979 #2 is dark and gritty, a representation of the feelings of unease and unrest around the city. Abbott herself looks worn and rumpled, lines creasing her face and dark circles beneath her eyes. In her dreams, she knows who she is and what power she wields, but in the real world, they fail her. The police who take her in are kinder than we might expect. Still, Abbott goes with them quietly, well aware of the consequences she could face if she does not. It is not until she and James go to Chee’s and she sees Lincoln again for the first time in years that we see the shadow of a smile cross her face, a memory of happier times. There is a wonderful panel, framed by liquor sloshing in clinking glasses, that tells us all we need to know about an evening of catching up and getting away from the darkness of the world for a few hours.

As Elena walks home, the streets are dark and quiet, devoid of people. Then the Umbra oozes out, a formless shadow that takes on a form and an image of toothy corporealness as it towers over the woman it knows can no longer face it down. I like the change in color when Sebastian shows up. His magic is teal and pale yellow, a stark contrast to the purples of nighttime Detroit. It glows with sparkles and the hints of sigils. It also contrasts with the fiery red of Elena’s magic, when it works for her. I like how this sets them apart as though they have their own techniques and specialties.

BOTTOM LINE: DARKEST BEFORE THE DAWN

Abbott 1979 #2 not only shows us Elena at her lowest point, but finally, we get a sense of what she is up against. The Umbra symbolizes a time of difficult change in our country, taking that negative energy and creating a personification for it.

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