“Mazebook” #5

The final confrontations and decisions are to be made here. Some Spoilers Ahead

Cover by Jeff Lemire

Written, Illustrated & Colored by Jeff Lemire
Lettered by Steve Wands

Will has reached the center of the maze. He’s met the monster that guards its secrets and he is forced to face his grief head on and relive one of the worst moments of his life: the final days he had with Wendy.

With the final issue, Lemire picks up where we left Will in issue 4. He’s followed the red string to the center of the maze and the horrific Minotaur is staring him down. Attempting to beat whatever game the monster has planned and do the impossible, be reunited with Wendy. Without any sort of confrontation, he is thrown into the memory of one of his last days with her. We have gotten some of these moments in previous issues, but this time it mostly feels cemented in time. Even with all of his determination and this other-worldly mission, it is becoming clearer that there can be no changing the past and no resurrecting Wendy. We have been pretty sure all along that there has been something supernatural occurring to get Will to enter this maze world, but at the same time it could have just as easily been a break with reality caused by his grief. No matter the truth, what’s done is done.

This sequence with Wendy is so haunting and beautifully executed. She and Will share some fun memories of camping and their love and bond fills every panel, whether hinted at or outright spoken. Wendy has come to grips with the idea of not recovering far better than her parents have. For them there can be only one outcome: she gets better and they bring her home. For Wendy, she is pretty sure the opposite will come to pass, as we know to be the case. This scene ends with the Minotaur appearing once again and Wendy fading into bits of yarn and blurred out of existence. It is a soul crushing moment. I do not know how Lemire is able to take these simplistic, and commonplace, ideas and turn them into some of the most heart-rending stories in comics, but he does it every time. His ability to take grief, depression, and the wealth of day to day human mundanity and spin it into some of the most compelling storytelling I’ve read is baffling. Any time he comes up with another book about working through the hardships of life it is nothing short of spectacular with “Mazebook” being the latest example. The fantastical elements have become a signature part of a lot of his work, but even without it these stories work. Of course having these sci-fi or supernatural parts may make the story more palatable for many, I know I’m always intrigued to see what he does next with the medium.

After Wendy fades away Will attacks the Minotaur and in a “Luke Skywalker in the Dark Side cave” moment comes face to face with his own dead face. Emerging from the dark tunnels under the maze world city he picks up the red string trail once again and does get reunited with Wendy, but it can only be short-lived. Explaining that she was not the one who sent him those messages to find her, and that while she is there with him, she is made up of his memories and isn’t the “real” Wendy. Attempting to stay with her and saying he’ll never leave her, and that he only wants to be her father, she tells him he’s never left. He was the “best daddy ever” and if he doesn’t take this time to go back to his life he will “never be anything else.” This is the moment that broke me. The writing is straight forward and hardly flowery, but the weight behind every word is there. This series has been emotional from the start, and this final issue is one of the most impassioned. It’s a stunning piece of work and a further example as to why Lemire is one of the best writers working in comics today.

As the story moves to its final moments, Wendy fades away again, making it clear that it is time to say goodbye. Will gives a few last defiant exclamations, but even he knows it is time to start moving on and begin healing. Finding himself back in the real city, he comes across the dog companion who helped guide him through the maze. Seeing that the dog is no longer speaking English to him, and is just a dog, they head back towards home. While these pages are colored in the same gloomy grays, there is a light to the mono-palate that wasn’t really evident before. As Will and the dog make their way through the streets you can feel the weight is starting to life from this nearly broken man. These pages are so peaceful and give the perfect amount of stoicism and sigh of relief. It is a perfect sequence leading to a beautiful ending. Arriving back at his apartment building, he knocks on Lisa’s door to strike up their friendship once more only to be surprised by the fact that the dog is hers. Reunited with Vern, it’s just one more circle closed off and moment of grief snuffed out. Lisa offers to share takeout with Will and as he and Vern enter Lisa’s apartment and the door slowly closes behind them it is known that things are going to get better eventually.

And this is where I broke down again. Fulfilling Wendy’s wish that he can become something else other than just a grieving father, Lemire gives this protagonist a way out of a hellish existence that so many have been unable to crawl out from. Masterful storytelling that uses its naturalistic dialogue and subtly changing art to complete this brilliant meditation on loss and conquering grief.

Final Verdict: 9.5, A masterclass in telling one man’s journey through the worst pain of his life.