If you ask me, this past summer’s comics sensation, Existence 2.0, owed its success to the strength of its narrative voice. Granted, the book had a thrilling storyline told at a breakneck pace, but it was the ongoing commentary by lead character Sylvester Baladine that really set writer Nick Spencer’s mini-series apart. Completely amoral and definitely not a role model, Sly, with his constantly outrageous reactions to his circumstances, kept the story entertaining, if not a lesson in decency.

Such a distinctive voice is exactly what has been lacking from the rapidly released sequel to Spencer’s hit, Existence 3.0. Ever since Sly uniquely sacrificed himself for the life of his daughter at the end of the first series, no other character has stepped into his role as franchise spokesperson. This is, perhaps needlessly said, enough to make the current effort feel like a slightly disappointing follow-up to the original volume.

Sure, the plot twists and turns are intact, as a wealthy schizophrenic pursues Sly’s surviving family in hopes of learning the secrets of the body swapping process that has driven this series from the beginning. But as the plot thickens, new characters and new motives are introduced rather quickly, and we’re left without a reliable anchor in the midst of this ever-changing playing field. It’s impossible not to think that Sly’s narration, or at least that of a reasonable replacement, would go a long way here toward helping us keep our bearings.

Help in this area certainly isn’t to be found in Ron Salas’ artwork. With a minimalist style that deemphasizes facial features, his visuals often make it difficult to recognize certain characters when they aren’t placed in direct contrast to one another. This is not to say that Salas isn’t talented or even that he’s not doing a good job in this book. I had the same occasional problem with Michael Lark’s pencils during his tenure on Gotham Central and Salas could certainly do worse than to be likened to an artist of Lark’s caliber. In fact, I probably wouldn’t even be writing this paragraph if Spencer’s script had a firmer center for readers to latch onto.

Though not without merit, Existence 3.0 reads like a sequel whose creators don’t quite understand what made the previous offering work. Nick Spencer and friends certainly deserve credit for getting half the formula right, but recapturing the glory of a beloved story requires more than just telling us what happens next.

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