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Life is Strange: Partners in Time #2 is a wonderful bag of heartfelt emotions and wholesomeness that anyone going through trying times deserves. It’s not as strong as the previous issue, which had a wonderful thematic core, but it does, however, allow for some genuine moments of joy.
Max And Rachel’s Emotional Talk
Over in the universe with the trio of Max, Chloe, and Rachel, things get emotional and yet lively at the same time. For years, this trio has been together; nothing can really shake that friendship considering everything they have been through. But as pointed out in multiple previous arcs as well as Life is Strange: Partners in Time #2, this universe is not Max’s home. This Rachel is only a mirror image of the woman she never met in her universe, and this Chloe isn’t the one she loves. She is stranded in this universe, and yet she has formed a friendship so strong that the feelings reverberate throughout the multiverse in a way.
The segment with Max and Rachel changing in their pirate costumes is phenomenal, and the entire creative team deserves recognition for it. Rachel is still coming to terms with the knowledge of what happened to her other universes’ counterpart; meanwhile, Max is dealing with the conflicting emotions of being with her closest friends and yet being stranded from her love. If two people needed to take a minute and relax, it’s these two. So while they’re changing, they talk about everything; it’s awkward in the way these conversations can be awkward, it’s daunting in the way these conversations can be daunting, it’s sweet in the way these conversations can be sweet.
The clever use of the bathroom stalls to put walls between the two to say their feelings without fear of a bad reaction, and then the full page spread where all their emotion is released in one hug is just brilliant comic book storytelling. This is something only this medium can truly accomplish due to our mix of words and pictures. I don’t know who came up with this fantastic layout but know that Emma Vieceli and Claudia Leonardi are clearly masters of their craft.
The Need To Get Away
Meanwhile, over in the original universe, we have Chloe and Tristan figuring things out as they go along. They don’t know each other, not really, so they are sizing each other up while also helping each other out. There is a beautiful moment where they both talk about some of their past traumas, not in great detail, just enough for the other person to understand, and I think that is the core of their segment of Life is Strange: Partners in Time #2. This issue is ultimately about accepting your place at the moment, in the present, and focusing on the smaller, nicer things in life. They both needed this release, just like Max and Rachel did in their universe.
Interestingly, we get a look at someone else who has a lot to get off her chest, Victoria Chase. As we got to know her in the original game, we came to realize that Victoria’s “mean girl” attitude was a front to hide from a troubled life. Yes, she wasn’t exactly the nicest person, but she wasn’t the worst either. She was just a confused and troubled teenager trying to find her way in this life.
Here in this issue, we get to check in on her and see how she is progressing down her arc. She is seeing a therapist and is far more receptive to Chloe than she ever was before. She admits to herself that she was good at pretending to be something she wasn’t. She needed to get away, and so she fled in the wrong direction. Now, hopefully, she is pointed in the right direction, and the light-hearted ending of this issue points to that.
Life is Strange: Partners in Time #2 Balances Its Emotions Perfectly
Life is Strange: Partners in Time #2 provides a great time, a warm atmosphere but doesn’t shy away from how these things are used to mask troubling experiences and emotions. This issue made me smile, it made me cry, and it made me cry while smiling. I don’t think you can get better than that when it comes to Life is Strange.
