The arbitrary rules are a convenience that slightly nags on occasion, and some questions about the big picture aren’t answered, but we learn a lot about Emma, and Thompson ensures matters don’t follow a predictable sentimental path. It keeps Heart in a Box fresh, and distracts us from the inevitability of what Emma needs to do when retrieving portions of her heart. By segmenting Emma’s heart, Thompson also segments her story, giving her the chance to tell very differently themed short stories as part of the bigger one.

How far will Emma go to reunite her heart? Well, a lot further than she thought she might at the beginning. Except, as noted, there are rules about that as well. That’s prone to change, as an early problem is a surplus of heart sections, and each alters Emma’s feelings and memories until she can rid herself of it. Kelly Thompson spins out one hell of a clever plot, and Meredith McLaren draws the hell out of it too, sometimes in an abstracted way, but mostly prioritising whatever Emma’s feeling.

Bob is able to guide her on the procedures and what may or may not be to her advantage. One slip and everything is lost, but she does have ‘Bob’, technically the man with no name just like her former partner. It takes Emma to places she wishes she didn’t have to visit, and makes her do things she never considered herself capable of, and it’s a process governed by rules. But what is life without a heart? A mistake has been made, and the remainder of Heart in a Box deals with rectifying that mistake.

It turns out there’s an organisation that can do something about that, and Emma decides to avail herself of their services. 2 and VOL.Completely miserable after a relationship break-up, Emma claims she wishes she didn’t have a heart. GHOSTBUSTERS: ANSWER THE CALL (IDW, 2017 - 2018) ROGUE & GAMBIT: RING OF FIRE (Marvel, 2018) NANCY DREW (Dynamite, June 2018 - October 2018) JESSICA JONES (Blind Spot Purple Daughter) (Marvel, July 2018 - April 2019) WEST COAST AVENGERS (Marvel, August 2018 - April 2019 ) UNCANNY X-MEN (Marvel, November 2018 - January 2019) SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH VOLUME 1: UNBURNT (Archie, March - Sept 2019) JESSICA JONES: BLIND SPOT (Marvel, January 2020 - March 2020) SABRINA THE TEENAGE WITCH VOLUME 2: SOMETHING WICKED (April 2020 - August 2020)ĬAPTAIN MARVEL “THE END” (ONE-SHOT) (Marvel, January 2020) STORYKILLER 2: ALL OF THEM ARE TRUE (coming soon!)

Heart in a Box by Kelly Thompson