Welcome back to Minding Mind MGMT, the monthly column focused on the Dark Horse series “Mind MGMT” from Matt Kindt. Why a special column instead of a regular review? Because each issue is crammed with story, requiring no less than two reads to fully absorb everything Kindt packs into it. Each month, we try to piece together the clues Kindt is hiding throughout the book, find all the Easter eggs, and speculate on what may happen next.
This is a spoiler-heavy column, so turn back now if you don’t want major plot details revealed.
There’s not much to say about the cover this month, aside from a bad case of brains growing in Lyme’s car. The headline and blurb refer to Lyme’s motivation and actions in this issue, respectively.
The Second Floor
Mandy Ross’ story contains two references to the larger “MIND MGMT” universe. The most obvious is the Perrier twin cameo in the final panel. A little more subtle is the title of her book – “Martha Mulligan”. I don’t know what it means or how it relates, but it’s almost certainly related to “Mulligan Rock”, the activation words for undercover Russian agents as seen in issue zero. Since the Mind Memos for this arc have been about Russian agents, the Field Guide has been replaced with the Russian Guide, and the Housewife being all but confirmed as a double agent, expect her to come up again somehow in the next couple issues.
The Main Story
In a huge break from the series’ usual MO, this issue answered loads of questions without raising even more questions. It starts with Lyme remembering a mission/trip he took with Natasha years ago, then switches to the massacre in Zanzibar we’ve previously seen in issues 1, 5, and 12. The man next to Lyme in the bottom left panel of page 4 is holding a machete very similar to the one Natasha is holding in issue one, page 4. There are a few explanations for this: he took it from her, she took it from him, or this particular machete is popular in Zanzibar.
His narration on page 5 brings up the possibility Natasha and her daughter escaped death, but it’s immediately followed with “I’m sure they didn’t.” Setting aside Lyme’s credibility during his time of mental breakdown, this does seem like a good time to mention that while we’ve seen Natasha giving into violence during the massacre twice, we’ve never seen her body. MIND MGMT agents arrived before the town had fully destroyed itself, so it is possible Lyme’s family is still alive.
When Lyme is delivering Meru to her foster parents, the man calls him “Harry”. This is a reference to “Harry Lime”, the character from the film “The Third Man” and the namesake of Henry. The panels of him looking for the origins of the immortals are set in South America, near the Mayan city of Machu Pichu. The mushrooms growing next to him are a necessary element to achieving the ultimate mind over matter. His travels during this time explain how he found the Fingerprint so easily between issues six and seven, as seen in the io9 strips. We also see how the first Perrier sister got trapped in Lyme’s scheme. She was recruited from the beginning, which means she was in that apartment typing out what she saw for about four years. (More on how I got that figure below)
Page seven explains how the dolphins released in the mind memo of issue 4 were back in Lyme’s service in issue two. It also address the series’ most glaring error. Way back in issue three, Meru and Bill were told by a local from Hong Kong to go to Guangzhou, a “remote village”. The real Guangzhou, as mentioned here, is actually the third largest city in China. While this was most likely never noticed by most readers, some people took real offense to it. One guy on Amazon even called Matt a racist over it. Was this a planned mistake, an early clue to Lyme’s scheme? Or an error-turned-plot-point? I have my guess, I’ll let you make yours.
Continued belowPages eight through fourteen detail the seven times Meru found Lyme. Each page has identical panel layouts which really emphasis how the two characters change over time. The first three times, Meru tracks Lyme down on a hunch, or because of dreams. The third time, she’s ragged and in trouble. Lyme points her toward Jason Corridor, the murderer she caught in issue zero and the subject of her best selling book. He must have also given her some of the money she asked for, because she was also looking better when she confronted Corridor. The middle panel also cameos the village woman who was seen and killed in issue four.
When she returns the next time, she’s a successful writer and looking much better in every respect. Unfortunately, it was her search for Corridor that attracted the attention of the CIA and MIND MGMT/the Eraser, as seen in issue zero on page eleven. The sixth time, she says the CIA agent who had been with her was killed. This is the impetus that got Bill assigned to her as seen in the issue eleven mind memo. Also: was I the only one who laughed at Lyme’s dry comment about no longer telling Meru her mind had been wiped? The seventh and last time is the same encounter from issues four through six.
A few things are noteworthy of this sequence. First, life is wearing on Lyme even more than he thinks it is on Meru. Second, Meru is really, really attached to khaki and green clothes. Third, Lyme wasn’t just sitting around in this remote village between visits from Meru. Two years ago, when Meru’s book was first published, Lyme was on flight 815 erasing everyone’s memories.
Finally, this series of events finally gives a rough timeline of events. We know “Premeditated” was published a little over two years ago (issue one, page eight), and we know Meru researched it for at least a year (issue zero, page eleven). Since we know Meru didn’t visit Lyme while writing her book, that means she found him four times in about two years, and that there are about six months between visits. We also know the third visit was at least three years ago. Assuming the six month spacing was true then too, that means she met him the first time four years ago. Allowing time for Lyme to leave his breadcrumbs (and for Meru to be trained, dismissed, and grow back some hair), the Zanzibar attack must have occurred somewhere between 2006 and 2008. Assuming my guess a few months ago about MIND MGMT being dismissed by Obama after he took office is correct, it’s probably closer to 2006.
The next few pages reveal what happened immediately after the end of issue six, when Meru had left Lyme and the immortals grew some gills. He allowed them to attack him, finally explaining the bandages on his face in issue seven (and the io9 strips). Page 21 has two important revelations: the immortals were supposed to recruit Lyme, and the scarred immortal appears to blind Lyme. Lyme hasn’t had his glasses off since issue six, but you do get a look behind them in issue seven, page
19, last panel. His eyeballs appear to be ok there, but they look like empty sockets on page 22 of this month’s issue. Considering all of Lyme’s other talents, it’s very possible he’s been going through the last several issues using a second sight like Neo in The Matrix Revolutions or Paul Atreides in “Dune” before him.
The final scene is the same final scene of issue thirteen.
Mind Memo
This month continues the trend of covering enemy agents, and brings back one we’ve seen before. The bear has appeared twice before – starring in a chapter of issue zero and making a cameo appearance in issue five. Here, he is participating in the tandem training first introduced last issue. He talks with “Agent M” about his scars, then kills her mother. Meanwhile, she’s declared “ready” and conditioned to wake when she sees the same commercial Lyme and Duncan paid to have played for a month in the bottom story of issue thirteen. After Agent M was inserted into the USA, she gets recruited almost immediately.
It seems odd the Russian and US MIND MGMT agencies used the same wake up signals.
The most important thing about this Mind Memo is also the least obvious: it’s dated 1992. In issue zero, the Bear’s “widow” tells Meru he died when the Berlin Wall was still standing. The Bear is still alive.
Speculation
At this point, it doesn’t require too many dots to be connected to say that Meghan, the homemaker in issue thirteen, is the same Russian girl who’s been appearing in the Mind Memos as Agent M. Since Lyme, Meru, and the Eraser all seem to be unaware of her double agent status and are all also headed for a three way collision to recruit her, it’s becoming very clear what causes the promised brawl in issue 18. The big question now is if any other Russian agents will be joining the party.
The letter column
This month’s letter column shows off some of the more decorative replies to the ad on the back of issue eleven. At least one of the hidden messages in the first one is “I’m Smart”, but I couldn’t decipher the second part. Agent O’Rourke, if you read this column, help me out! The answer to the riddle on the third one is “nothing”.
The next issue focuses on the Eraser, and Brendan also promises it’ll connect to “Premeditated.” Here’s hoping it explains more about Mulligan Rock and Corridor’s forgetfulness when he was caught.
The back cover
More fake ads! My favorite one this month was the one offering personal injuries. The code for extras (I think) is not “This is not”. It smacks of one of the original ads for “MIND MGMT” which read “This is not an advertisement.” My guess? The final address will be “Thisisnotawebsite”.
Other books you may enjoy…
There are more than a few other Matt Kindt books coming out this month, including “Unity” #1, “Marvel Knights Spider-Man” #1, “Infinity: The Hunt” #2, and “Suicide Squad” #24. However, he is not writing “Forever Evil: ARGUS” as previously announced.
And if you’ve been enjoying “MIND MGMT” (you must be, because you’re reading this), try “Trillium” by Jeff Lemire. The fourth issue comes out tomorrow, but this is definitely a series you don’t want to trade wait. Like “MIND MGMT”, it’s really pushing the boundaries of what a monthly book can do.
Lastly, if you didn’t notice it in Previews, there will not be a new “MIND MGMT” issue in December, but there will be a short story in “Dark Horse Presents” that month. You should already be reading DHP because it’s an award winning anthology, but if you’re not, be sure to order the December issue.
And that’s all
If you caught something I didn’t from this issue or prior ones, please mention it in the comments. I know I’m not catching everything. Thanks for reading!
Previously, on Minding MIND MGMT…
Issues: #0 #1 #3 #4 #5 #6 DHP #19 #7 #8 #9 #10 #11 #12 #13 #14
Interviews: Matt Kindt Brendan Wright Matt Kindt (2)Matt Kindt (3)
Annotations: Volume One
