Alex + Ada #2

by Jonathan Luna & Sarah Vaughn

The first issue did a great job of introducing us to our main character Alex, your average lonely and depressed guy. With issue two we are introduced to his new human-looking robot companion, Ada who was bought by Alex’s grandmother as a surprise birthday gift for her pouting grandson. Now Alex has to decide whether he wants Ada in his life at all.

Since Ada is a manufactured robot  both Vaughn and Luna use this as an excellent oppurtunity to introduce her functions through a list of rules and guidelines Ada informs Alex of after she has been turned on. Even though these robots were made to assist people with all sorts of tasks there are some things not allowed such as driving, handling money or harming people, animals or property.  This is not only an excellent way to introduce Ada and the guidelines to being a robot owner but it also expands this neo-futuristic world they live in. The futuristic world setting this series takes place in seems like a not-so-distant future of the world we live in now with concepts like psychic phone calls and the idea that some people may alter or hack their companion robot.

Luna’s art has always stood out from most other comic artists and usually leaves most readers to either  love or hate it. The thing that is personally so great about Luna’s art is that it seems so simple on the surface but there is so much subtle depth in characters reactions, long pauses and small reveals that most readers don’t even notice it because it just moves the entire story so smoothly.

Alex + Ada is a pretty basic concept pulled off really well so far. Even if there isn’t a solid plot it has well rounded characters in a distant but familiar world, with an interesting but basic concept that makes this an engaging series. It’s hard to judge a series so early on but Alex + Ada has set things up while still leaving plenty of room for the story to go anywhere it pleases from here.