Luna 5 Review w/ spoilers of course

[Rebochan]

So, I finally got my Vol. 5 of what may be the last Luna book. I bought it expecting a storyline that wrapped up the dangling plot threads satisfactorily, as I had been assured it would in the past.

I got...something rather strange. It's either a strong resolution to a story arc in an ongoing series, or an incredibly disappointing and empty series finale.

That's pretty much what this book boiled down to for me - whether the series keeps going or not. If there is a Vol. 6 or a Year 2 series, this is a great cap to Luna's first year and an exciting setup to the remaining books. I know there was a master plan of more books, and in that context, it's great.

The reality is, even the book itself admits that Amazing Agent Luna's future is in the air. So if the writers were aware of that, why is the book composed of sequel hooks? We got a cap to the Project Scion storyline (which was a surprise to me - I was completely on the wrong track)...and that's about it. There's even some *new* plot hooks in here that would, in an ongoing series, make the remaining volumes all the more tantalizing to read. The characters got a delightful shove forward...but nothing in their development is actually *resolved* either.

Control has been the most unique and surprising character in this series - I expected a pretty cliched hardass boss who is melted by the power of love from her hippie fake-husband. Instead, I got a really complex, conflicted character and a hippie husband who's actually not as good at reading people as he thinks he is - and with a greater potential for cruelty than the "just the facts" Control. I wanted to smack Andrew for being such a callous creep here, as much as I was delighted to find that he wasn't always the voice of common sense and reason when he's miffed. And I was on tenterhooks during Control and Jonas' conversation - and *really* surprised that she lied to Luna about him being there. Earlier in the series she would have told her the truth and sent Luna to slit his throat. Even in that one little white lie, she's still trying to spare Luna's feelings.

And then we have poor Oliver, who strangely spent yet another book getting more screentime and character development than the guy Luna is supposed to be in love with. Actually, whether this is a finale or not, I was really disappointed with Jonas' arc. He got only a handful of pages here and apparently his greatest moment of badassery happened off panel. He's a guy of few words, and he has a lot of conflict, but after last volume, I expected more of that on display than what I got. Oh, but...is Jonas not aware that Luna actually *did* kill a guy? It takes a lot of punch out of his dramatic entrance at the dance.

Then there's the bombshell that the Agency, which we've been led to believe is a force for good, could easily be as corrupt as the villain Luna just took down and possibly even *more* dangerous to her continued existence. This actually is the part that gives me the most conflict - if the series continues, that plotline alone promises to completely reshape the established dynamic we've been given over the past four years. Seeing the series die on the vine after having that tossed at us with no indication of what will happen to the characters is a very bitter pill to swallow.

In the end, how I view this book largely depends on whether there is another. The book read more like it was written with the intent of a longer series, and it can only work if there is another series. But since I know the staff was aware that this could be the finale, I'm really disappointed that they didn't write something that could serve as a real conclusion to the Luna saga so those of us that supported the series for this long could get some closure.

I want to remain optimistic, but I've also got a rather depressing collection of canceled Seven Seas books on my shelf that seem to argue otherwise. Luna is a flagship title of the company, but its not invincible.

I can say this - if there is more Luna, I'll definitely keep buying this series and this book is a strong entry in that potential series. Hopefully not one book a year though - as much as I loved this series, the year+ gaps between stories really threw off the pacing. I'm hoping that if the series is continuing, we at least get one omnibus a year so there's something meatier to stand up between all those gaps.

[Nunzio DeFilippis]

Rebochan,

Sorry the finale left you so conflicted. I figured I'd come in here and explain a bit of our thinking, creatively.

We want Luna to continue, and so does Jason. We think Shiei does too, though I'd expect that after all these years working on the same two books, she may want to try something different for a while.

The reality is that we're not 100% sure about that continuation, but we are sure that everyone is going to try to make it happen. So we have to view this as the end of a first storyline.

Now, why seed the final volume with hooks for the future?

That's a tricky question. In all honesty, these weren't hooks, so much as they were evolutions in the characters and in the relationships.

If we'd wrapped this volume up without transitioning the story and the characters, then we'd have to make those transitions and changes at the start of the next volume.

Creatively, starting the next volume with a bunch of changes seemed to us to be a way of alienating the readers who'd been with us (I waited two years for the series to resume and when it does it's totally different?) and a way to lose the interest of people who read the second arc as their first Luna story (wait, in Chapter One, he's a villain, and Chapter 2, it completely turns upside down?).

So, organically, the better way to tell the story, it seemed to us, was to seed those changes here as a hint of things to come.

What we tried to do was seed those changes as a coda. If you read up to the end of the school dance, you get a story that resolves. Not neatly and completely, but it reaches its natural end. Von Brucken's plan is revealed and defeated, Luna and Jonah have a last moment together, denying for that one moment the inevitability of their breakup. Control and Dr. Andy make peace with each other, as he finally understands why she's doing what she does and he promises to help her.

Right there, the story ends.

The last chapter, however, is the transition. It tells people what the series will be like if (and hopefully, when) it comes back.

We knew we were taking a chance putting this coda onto the book.

But we figured, the more we made the story seem like it HAD to continue, the more we'd light a fire under Jason, Shiei, the readers, and even ourselves to make sure it happens.

So that was our thinking.

Now, as to your reference to Jonah and Luna's killing... Jonah is well aware of the fact that Luna killed. And he knows she doesn't want to do it ever again. He even promised to make sure she wouldn't have to.

So when he enters with that line, he's saying 2 things. The obvious one is that clearly the fake has revealed herself because she's ready to kill, and Luna has vowed not to do that.

But the other thing he's saying is that despite her having done so once, he knows, trusts and believes that Luna does not kill and will be able to make her vow stick. He's reaffirming his faith in her better nature.

The line is supposed to be more powerful because he DOES know she did so once.

Sadly, it did not work as planned for you.

Still, it seems you enjoyed the volume on certain levels, and for that I'm glad.

Know that we will work very hard to make sure this story continues. We love Luna, Jonah, Oliver, Francesca, Dr. Andy (even though he was a bit of a cad this volume), Mr. Dreyfus, Principal Ohlinger, Aristotle, Von Brucken, Timothy, Bowie and Control (especially Control - she's my favorite) too much to let it end here.

[Rebochan]

I'm sorry so much of my post was written in the initial disappointment I had - it's still a great book and understand that I will support the series if it continues. And like I said, if it does continue, this book is in a much less akward place. As it is, I almost feel like I just watched Star Wars and The Empire Strikes back...and will never know if they'll actually make a third movie and I'm still on tenterhooks waiting to find out what happens next.

It's interesting that I as a viewer and you as a creator had different ideas of where the sequel hooks were. I think a lot of it boils down to, since the last chapter ends with a clear lead in to another series, certain elements in the rest of the narrative stand out as seeding later books more than if the series had a straight up conclusion and those elements were simply left open-ended but not necessary to the story's conclusion.

By the way, I would still buy Luna even if Shiei left...but of course I want her to stay.

[ryanasaurus0077]

Oh, but...is Jonas not aware that Luna actually *did* kill a guy? It takes a lot of punch out of his dramatic entrance at the dance.

Remember Dr. Tromperie in Vol. 3? He was killed simply because he discovered Luna, implying that Jonas might have known about it yet meant that she wouldn't kill her own friends (having possibly overheard the fake Luna's threats to kill both Francesca and Oliver if the real Luna didn't surrender).