I think Deadman has to be the most intentionally confusing thing I've read. Writer Bruce Jones twists and turns through a seemingly endless number of alternate universes (except there are probably only thirty in these five issues) and never gives the reader a chance to orient him or herself. Running under (or over) these various scenes is the actual narrative, which occasionally directly contradicts itself, and frequently changes details. It's incredibly confusing and I was trying to keep track until I finally just had to let it go and read. Removing as much comprehension from my reading technique as I could, I found myself racing through the last issue (it took me a while to make that 'letting go' decision). If Deadman didn't exhaust enough from all its confusion, this racing did the trick. As I finished the fifth issue, I realized I had very little idea of what was going on and would have even less if I thought about it anymore than I already had.
I'm not one for surprise endings of the “Owl Creek” variety, but I think if Jones wraps up Deadman with something like it (an inverse, obviously), it'd be really funny. Since it's an ongoing series, I suppose I should be wondering what's going to happen next or something, but I'm really not. Jones has been hit or (major) miss at DC, but with Deadman, he's entirely free of any responsibility and it shows. His characters come alive together--his jokes work. Jones is always writing female characters and they really haven't been working as of late, but in Deadman, the female lead really does work. The protagonist works too. He's too addled not to be likable and the reader's too addled to wonder if he deserves the affection.
So, I suppose I am expecting a couple things from Deadman's future issues--well, actually just one and dreading is a better word. I'm dreading a big exposition issue, where the whole thing gets laid out. Until then, Deadman's a weird, interesting read. It's not quite a daring weird, but it's also not quite not. If Jones manages to maintain his utter disregard for any type of sense--his exuberance in the fruitless scenes--it will be one of the more audacious comics I've read.
