Second Shift
A terraformer struggles to recognize what’s real in Kit Anderson’s introspective science fiction graphic novel Second Shift.
Birdie works for Terracorp at an outpost where crew members are “dropped-in” to a patented Dreamspace between shifts. When they’re needed to harvest asteroids diverted toward their base, they are “dropped-out” of the AI and algorithmic stasis. Station, the outpost’s AI companion, appears in the form of various animals, guiding Birdie and her sibling Heck through their work and occupying them with algorithmic games and stories. Investigating a mysterious signal, they find what seems to be a separate, abandoned station, setting into motion a process that reveals the dark truth about their mission.
The story is creepy and intriguing but also resonant on an emotional level. Birdie and Heck disagree about the purpose and satisfaction of their lives. Although much of it is “fake,” the world they inhabit seems real; it’s a logical extrapolation from immersive computer-generated distractions. The book raises questions about the role of technology as a mediator between human beings and the cost of smoothing out life’s rough edges.
The art is exceptional, with haunting depictions of the AI-created environments. In addition, creative techniques aid the narrative, like doubled lines to indicate the disorienting, blurred vision effects of dropping-out, or the expository Terracorp entries that provide information through the company’s relentlessly upbeat messaging.
Second Shift is a revelatory graphic novel about a woman navigating the spaces between reality and artifice in deep space.
Reviewed by
Peter Dabbene
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
