Book Review: The Backstagers issue #3

Book: The Backstagers #3 by James Tynion IV with illustrations by Rian Sygh, color by Walter Baiamonte and letters by Jim Campbell

Cover Art by Veronica Fish

Edition: Single Print Issue

Description:

It’s Tech Rehearsal for Les Terribles and Beckett is determined to nail every cue, but Sasha’s mistake brings new drama to the stage!


Rating: 5 stars

Review:

Have I told you how much I love The Backstagers? This miniseries is great and in this third issue the light and sound technician Beckett got the spotlight. Early on in this issue you find out that the control booth for Beckett is sort of like his Fortress of Solitude. He enjoys being up there displaying his tech expertise while also reveling in the fact that he is absolutely alone.

With only five days to go until opening night of St. Genesius' school play, rehearsal efforts are really underway for the actors and the backstagers. There is also an additional actor who joins their school's plays, Bailey Brentwood, she goes to Penitent Angels an all-girls school. She's also Beckett's friend and I do believe he has a crush on her.

As the stage managers Jaime and Timothy assign jobs for the backstagers Beckett finds his solitude in question when Sasha is assigned to be his assistant. For anyone who is unfamiliar with this series, Sasha is very adorable and childlike, he reminds me of Steven Universe. However, he's very energetic and can be easily distracted. The last thing Beckett wants is to share his space but Timothy wants Beckett to have more experience with running the stage as well as instructing others. It's more than likely Hunter and Beckett will be the new stage managers after Jaime and Timothy graduate and Beckett is going to have to get out of the sound box to do it.

It goes without saying that Sasha being in the control room was a total disaster. As Beckett was trying to show him how to use the controls and explain about the power source (a unique crystal), Sasha carelessly made a huge mistake with the lights and caused not only an accident on stage but it broke the crystal. Beckett was so upset with the mistake as well as Bailey may have been injured that he said some rather mean things to Sasha. Leaving to go check out the stage, Beckett realized the accident was minor and there was no injuries or problems however it was the unexpected praise from Bailey that really had Beckett feeling awful for how he treated Sasha. But returning to the control room to apologize Beckett found a note from Sasha stating that he was going to find a new crystal.

There are a lot things that stood out for me in this issue:

First is you learn so much about Beckett such as he feels the most comfortable in the control room. But what I like is that writer James Tynion IV made the revelation that Beckett is transgender feel normal. It was just a simple statement from Bailey saying that she missed going to the same school as Beckett. He used to attend the all-girls school Penitent Angels and now goes to St. Genesius which is an all-boys school. By not making such a big deal out of the revelation and showing it as a normal everyday thing it actually feels both powerful and humanizing.

Second is that I was surprised that the magical supernatural stuff was almost non-existent. Which was probably expected since the focus was on what was happening on stage for the rehearsal.

Third is Sasha. He might seem like a hyperactive little kid but he's willing to go alone into the backstage tunnels to try to fix his mistake. That's saying something and with the way the tunnels change and all the mysterious and sometimes dangerous things that maybe in there he really is taking a big risk to make things right.

And last, with the huge egos of the McQueen twins I'm surprised they are willing to share the spotlight and stage with Bailey. And I love that she stood up to them when they were bullying another student, that's pretty cool.

The Backstagers continues to be a joy to read with both the writing and the artwork working perfectly together for a great story. And with each issue you find out a little more about the characters and the mysterious backstage. This was a fun read.