Paper Girls #13 Review

Writer: Brian K. Vaughan / Artist: Cliff Chiang / Image Comics Paper Girls grows more complex as we learn more about time travel this issue than most of the expository issues in the past. The clues have been sparse over thirteen issues now, a hint here and a major detail there, and Paper Girls #13 holds one of the latter as Erin’s actions give us an “a-ha” moment to help readers put together this crazy puzzle. The time travel rules will inevitably point back to fatalism and predetermination – and the extent to which freedom of choice exists – but we don’t focus on Mac’s future leukemia or anything like that here. Instead, as is the case with most early issues of BKV’s arcs, this one builds more mystery than resolutions, adds more questions than offers answers.

What that means for Paper Girls #13 is added allusions to the past and, even more interesting, visions into the future. Being shown flashes of what’s in store is a surefire way to keep readers invested in this series despite knowing only a fraction of what’s going on in the bigger picture. The beauty of this book is that it allows you to forget how much you don’t know as you focus on what’s just in front of you – the current conflict to overcome, the next checkpoint in the race to survival – just as the girls are forced to do. Visibility in this series is never more than 50 feet but always enough to keep you moving forward, all the while learning more about our characters, like Tiffany’s adoption, Mac’s education versu…