G. Willow Wilson & M.K. Perker, $9.99, Vertigo Comics

If you like your comics simple and straight-forward, you probably won’t like AIR. It’s infuriatingly obtuse, and several issues in I’m still unsure what it’s about. I could go into synopsis mode and dole out the major plot points for the first story arc, collected in this volume. But that’s a bit of a fool’s errand, because it doesn’t give you enough of a sense of what’s cooking in here. There’s acrophobic stewardesses, winged serpents and letters from countries that don’t exist. There’s topical political intrigue, racial issues and terrorism. It’s been compared on more than one occasion to TV’s LOST, and as a deeply immersed fan of that show I can confirm the similarities.

G. Willow Wilson has jumped over from her career as an international affairs journalist to give writing comics a crank, and in doing so either forgets or ignores many of the rules. And I’m thankful for it, because as tough as it is for me to chew on AIR, I can’t wait to get another bite. There isn’t anything else like it on the stands these days, which is cause for celebration. This one could be another flagship feather in Vertigo’s cap, reinventing what comics can and should be. Check it out!