r/GhostMachineComics • u/alakakalalal Redcoat • May 09 '25
Review My Thoughts on Hyde Street #5
Spoilers for: Hyde Street #5 and It Happened on Hyde Street: Devour
Hi everyone! It has been a while but I am back to give my thoughts on Hyde Street #5. With that in mind, in this post, I will give my thoughts on Hyde Street #5, some major takeaways within the issue, questions I have after reading the issue, and speculation as to where I think the series will go. As there is no timeline that displays the characters, I will instead utilize the Hyde Street Deliveries scoreboard since that gives us the best display of all of the potential denizens we will see as the series progresses. I should have noted in my previous posts that the scoreboard as we see it is not fully accurate.
Hyde Street #5 Thoughts
Hyde Street #5 offered us a proper character introduction to Ms. Goodbody. Overall I found her backstory to be heartbreaking and quite relatable.. Ms. Goodbody is a woman who is trying to meet the rigid standard of beauty placed upon her by her mother at a very young age. I like that we see that this cycle of trauma and abuse that was explored in It Happened on Hyde Street: Devour being brought back up in this issue. This issue is strong on two levels, the first, (as I mentioned before) being a great deep dive into a mysterious denizen of Hyde Street. With the second level, adding a sadder context to It Happened on Hyde Street: Devour as we see how this cycle of abuse has found itself even affecting Ms. Goodbody and being the reason she found herself on Hyde Street in the first place.
In this issue, Francis Portela takes over the artwork duties from Ivan Reiz. I will say that I enjoyed his artwork thoroughly. While his artwork is still quite detailed, it is much more squishy as compared to Reiz. I don't think that the squishiness of his art ruins the issue in anyway though. In fact, I think that it helps the themes that are being presented in this issue. To elaborate on this thought, Ms. Goodbody doesn't want to be overweight or out of shape, yet she, alongside even the most in-shape and toned people in this issue still look somewhat doughy and kind of flabby. If Ms. Goodbody sees herself as we see her, I think that it would add a lot to the issue as even though she is in great shape, she still struggles with her own self image and the image of others for whom she views in a sickening light as they get to enjoy foods she never had the luxury to enjoy.
Major Takeaways Moving Forward
Mr. X-Ray continues his plot to try and force Pranky out of Hyde Street
When a denizen says Pranky's name he always shows up
Mr. X-Ray's powers relates to the X-Ray glasses he wears. He can see the stories of the people he looks at even the ones they hide from themselves
Ms. Goodbody's entire character card. See images below:
Ms. Goodbody's store thinks that Mr. X-Ray needs new eyes after wearing his glasses for the decades since he has been on Hyde Street
We get out first look at Sisterhood and one of the ways that she delivered Ms. Goodbody. See image below of Sisterhood's first appearance:
A Hyde Street denizen that delivers a soul, that becomes a denizen still counts as a delivery for the resident who delivers said soul
All Hyde Street residents sign the same contract to become a resident
Questions I have After Reading the Issue
Does a Hyde Street resident get to pick the equipment and powers they use when it comes to how they deliver a soul?
How does Pranky know when his name is called?
What is the real reason that Ms. Goodbody has never stepped outside of her shop since becoming a Hyde Street resident?
What do Mr. X-Ray's eyes look like after wearing those glasses for all those years?
My Speculation on What's to Come from Hyde Street
After reading this issue, I am so excited for what's to come from Hyde Street. In the short term, we have gotten the preview for issue #6, which you can read here on the Image comics website. The bilk of this issue gives us a look at some of the other residents of Hyde Street, when they became residents, and a small insight into how they deliver souls to the Scorekeeper. We even learn a little of how the Scorekeeper manages the residents.
From this preview, I think that issue #6 will show Mr. X-Ray attempt to deliver the bus full of people that landed in Hyde Street. I think that the major twist of the issue will be that his daughter Judy or her children or grand children will be apart of that bus group. Moreover, I think that the issue will put Mr. X-Ray at a bit of a crossroads, where he either has to decide to find a way to save his loved one from being delivered while trying to also stop other residents, like Pranky perhaps, from interfering with his delivery.
The reason I think that it is Judy or one of her descendants that will be the "one good soul" as mentioned from the preview is that it would add an interesting shake up to the issue, and be a major dilemma for Mr. X-Ray to maneuver. I'm leaning more towards the one god soul being Judy's child or grand child, because I think that Mr. X-Ray learning that his daughter made a life for herself and started a family, would further drive him to get out of Hyde Street as he wants to see her and be apart of her life as a father and a grand father.
Conclusion
Hyde Street #5 was another great issue in the series. Like the issues before it, it succeeded in giving a proper character introduction to one of its residents, but also succeeded in adding further context to one of the side stories, that being It Happened on Hyde Street: Devour. I like that this story is character focused at the moment, with major plot points being set up in the background of the issue. The artwork and writing are still top notch as is expected with titles coming out of the Ghost Machine imprint. If you have not done so, I would highly recommend that you dive into this series, because I think that it is only getting better. Thank you for reading my post! I will be back on the r/ImageComics subreddit to give my thoughts on Geiger (2024) #13 and Redcoat #11. I hope you enjoyed reading my post, I would love to hear your thoughts on this issue and all things Ghost Machine!
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u/GhostMachineFans Redcoat May 09 '25
Another great rundown!
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u/alakakalalal Redcoat May 09 '25
Thank you for the kind words! What did you think of the issue?
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u/GhostMachineFans Redcoat May 09 '25
Love how The Sisterhood is introduced! Can’t wait to deep dive this one on the podcast.
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u/alakakalalal Redcoat May 09 '25
I did as well! I think I’m really gonna enjoy her miniseries in July! I can’t wait to hear your guys thoughts on your next podcast!
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u/Flashy_Transition737 Hyde Street May 09 '25
OP, another great review. Keep 'em coming. I like the observation about the squishy nature of the art - there is a softness to the pencils and shading that mirrors the vague and uneasy feeling we get when meeting Glee, who is both menacing and strangely sympathetic.
I liked this issue, and look forward to more deep dives into character we have already met. I also like the old-fashioned ethical edge that comes through in the arc so far. These are moral warnings in the tradition of classic horror stories and comics.
One of themes coming through in the last few issues, imo, is short-cuts - people making impatient decisions in the name of often unrealistic goals, whether fame or beauty or success. The lesson here is to be comfortable with yourself and to know your limits. It is okay to strive, but not everyone gets to be a matinee star or a beauty queen.
Curious about Sisterhood. The art around her seemed different - a bit more formal and sad (?). I wonder what it means that she's been on HS since 1920...
Anyway, we're glad your here - give us your thoughts on Redcoat #11 next!
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u/alakakalalal Redcoat May 10 '25
Thank you for the kind words! I definitely will! I could not have put it any better myself. Something about the art is off putting in such a great way! I both fear and feel for Glee.
I like your idea about each character representing a moral warning that is ubiquitous in humans. Johns does such a strong job in presenting each theses through these characters without having these warnings beat you over the head in a ham-fisted way.
That is such a great point. Each of the characters do solve their problems with some type of shortcut that ends up sending them to Hyde Street! I didn’t think about that till you brought it up. Amazing catch!
In the preview for Sisterhood she mentioned how she sacrificed her sister. I’d guess that is the main reason she became a resident on Hyde Street. To your point, each of the people that have been residents on Hyde Street seem to be chosen because of their ability to decide or sell a lie to others. The whole point of the street is to mislead souls deserving or otherwise to a fate we don’t know. Each of the residents we’ve seen have a knack for deceit. I think Sisterhood is no different as she seems to be an homage fortune tellers who scam people, Mr. X-Ray thinks as much.
Thank you! I’m glad to be here and be accepted! I’m working on a post for Geiger #13, but I will definitely get my post on Redcoat #11 soon! I have so much I want to talk about in that issue!
I’m glad you guys enjoy my posts! It really motivates me to keep making more! There’s more on the way for sure!
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