*Joyride Chapter 3:Stuck In Space is written by the dream team of Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly with art from the talented Marcus To. *

Issue #3 of Joyride is my favorite by far. There is just so much to look at thanks to the great work of Marcus To and Irma Kniivila; I sometimes forgot to read the actual words. (Sorry Collin and Jackson) I did however go back and re-read it to make sure I didn’t miss any little detail, because it is so worth it! The characters are evolving beautifully and this issue was packed with reveals.

***Insert my typical spoiler warning here***

We pick up where we left off with our now foursome, 5 if you include bot; utterly stranded in the most dangerous quadrant of space according to Kolstak. He seems very high strung and Uma has to tell Mr. Frowny Frog to just “calm it down”. I swear nothing rattles this girl, she is so fearless and bold; I kind of envy her for those qualities. If you were stranded in space what would you do? Uma and her gang of runaways decide to have a space dance party of course; and I’m dying because Dewydd looks like he busting out the running man. Glad to see that even in the far off future this move is still as dorky as it was 20 years ago. Catrin and Uma volunteer to head out into space to try and fix the ship now that Kolstak has identified the problem. Uma is all for a walk about in space and never seems to take things seriously, even when they are very serious things. The girls end up getting blasted off the ship by the Pr otex; the thing that is guarding the area. The two girls end up floating out in space with Catrin saving Uma’s butt once again. She is a highly trained soldier, but no amount of training can prepare her for what is about to happen. While Dewydd and Frogman are stuck on the ship watching all this go down, Uma and Catrin have an alien encounter of the very personal kind. A giant lifeform from the planet below is giving the girls a view into each others minds and everything they have tried to hide from one another is now being laid out before them. Meanwhile Dewydd is playing hero by standing up the the coward Kolstak who just wants to run away and leave the girls; and to Protex who is a sentient being whose only mission it is to destroy them. Dewydd manages to pull off the impossibl and actually changes the programming parameters of Protex and then he is free to rescue the girls. The big reveal and twist comes while Uma and Catrin are under some sort of psychic hallucination and seeing into each others memories. Catrin sees Uma and her mom, and how great she had it before she lost her mom. Uma sees something darker in her visions. Catrin is part of the Cosanova family, the family that is responsible for the tyrannical rule of Earth. Not only that but apparently Catrin isn’t who she appears to be. She has a real face that she has been hiding all her life, an embarrassment to her powerful family. She is what Uma refers to as an “abnormal”. I’m very interested to see what exactly this means, and how it will effect their friendship.

Joyride is simply such a joy to read, and this third issue delivers in so many ways. The art is top notch and the story is just positively infectious. If you haven’t picked up a copy of Joyride yet, it is never too late. The first issue is now on it’s second printing and that is a testament to how good it really it. I strongly believe that Lanzing and Kelly have really found their stride. I love their writing style for Grayson or Batman and Robin Eternal, but this is their baby and you can feel how much of themselves they put into each issue. This book is suitable for all ages. I strongly encourage my daughter to read Joyride because Uma and Catrin are such strong female characters who are also very relatable. I am giving Joyride #3 Stuck In Space a solid 10/10 rating. Make this your new must read book and pick up your copy on new comic book day Wednesday.