Page 45 Review by Stephen
"Can I ask you something, Father?"
"Of course you can. That's what I'm here for, right?"
"Nah, you'll just think I'm an idiot. I shouldn't even be here. My mom and dad aren't even Catholics."
"Well, neither's Muhammad Ali, but I'd still given him five minutes of my precious time. Just tell me what you want to know."
"Do you think it's possible I'm the returned Jesus Christ?"
Jodie's a normal kid who's been living the normal life a normal kid does: comics, salvaged porn and average grades at school. Then one day a truck careers off a bridge and lands right on top of his noggin, but Jodie walks away without a scratch - just a fresh fluency in any known language, an intuitive understanding of all forms of science and a complete encyclopaedia of history on tap in his head. When his mother tells him she's never had sex, he begins to entertain the idea that he's the reincarnation of Jesus Christ, as do many of those around him with the emphatic exception of the local priest. As the priest explains, it's common for people of Jodie's age to think they're a little different, especially after they've survived some sort of accident. It's tempting to give in to grandiose presumptions of being special. Tempting, and dangerous.
Gross keeps suburban life real, whilst Millar keeps the suspense simmering, exploring what a young boy like Jodie might make of the situation. I loved the extended comparison Jodie comes up with between the Bible Testaments and the Star Wars Trilogy. Not only does it work, it's just what a kid might do if they were suddenly that bright. As for what's really at work, well, Jodie's thirty-three as he looks back at these difficult days, so he's evidently come to terms with how things have turned out.
One way, or the other...
