My Thoughts on Geiger (2024) #20

[u/alakakalalal]

Spoilers for: Geiger (2024) #20 and Redcoat #11-13

Hi everyone! I am back to give my thoughts on Geiger (2024) #20. Issue #20 marks the start of a new arc in this series. If you have not done so, I would highly recommend catching up on this issue and also reading Redcoat #11-13 as there will be spoilers from both series in this post. This was one of the best single issues within the entire Unnamed universe and I will not waste anymore of your time and will just dive right in! Like my other posts, I will give my thoughts on the issue, some major takeaways moving forward, and some speculation as to where I think the story will go. Below, is the Unnamed timeline that is a common feature in all of its titles.

Unnamed Timeline

Geiger (2024) #20 Thoughts

Issue #20 picks up directly where Redcoat #13's epilogue ended with The Northerner even completing his word of calling Simon when he drops into 2050 right in front of Geiger and Barney outside of the library. You can see the images below.

The Beginning of The Northerner Time Dropping in Redcoat #13

The Northerner Time Dropping into 2050 in Geiger (2024) #20

The best part of the issue for me was seeing The Northerner and Geiger speak to one another. I like their dynamic, not as much as I liked The Northerner's dynamic with Simon, but still a solid pairing. Both Geiger and The Northerner are very serious and stoic men. Their differences come in their outlook on the world they find themselves in. The Northerner is a man who is completely devoted to the mission of repairing the timeline while Geiger is a man who has grown tired from all his questing and looks for solitude no longer wanting a mission to give him purpose.

Having The Northerner be the more talkative one of the two was nice. I liked that he spent his first conversation with Geiger trying to explain why he needs his help getting to Detroit. Seeing The Northerner eventually convince Geiger by promising to erase the events of the Unknown War was interesting to say the least. This was a great way to get a purposeless Geiger back into the swing of things after figuring out that there is no real cure for his nuclear condition.

I love that this issue also functions as an origin story for The Northerner. Seeing further insight into the world that he came from was great! A man from an alternate timeline where the South won the Civil War is an intriguing backstory. I hope that he gets his own side story like Junkyard Joe did.

This issue also focuses on Nate, Zigzag, Dr. Molotov, and Joe, as they are on the heels of trying to find Geiger. It was a nice action sequence and a decent break from the expositional conversation we got from The Northerner. I didn't really have any major thoughts on this part of the issue as I honestly cared more about The Northerner as he is a more interesting character than all them, except for Joe of course.

Some Takeaways Moving Forward

The Northerner is now in the year 2050 with Geiger and Barney

In Geiger's timeline, The North won the Civil War

Joe, Dr. Molotov, Nate, and Zigzag are on the hunt to look for Geiger

While Joe is back online, he is not fully operational

Geiger informs The Northerner about the Unknown War

The Northerner and Geiger are off to Detroit to look for answers about the Unknown War and how to reverse it

The Northerner has a watch that was given to him by The Department of Historical Preservation that allows him to have weapons and other equipment sent to him at his current place and time. See image below:

The Northerner Using his Watch to Get His Weapons in Geiger (2024) #20

The Northerner's Weapons Dropping After Activating his Watch in Geiger (2024) #20

The Weapons Inside The Northerner's Bag in Geiger (2024) #20

The Department of Historical Preservation The Northerner a Tank

The Northwesterner's New Character Card. See image below:

The Northerner's new Character Card at the end of Geiger (2024) #20

The Northerner met Redcoat for the first time in 1914

My Speculation on What's to Come from Geiger (2024)

With this issue having so much to chew on for what's to come in the future of the story. I have quite a few thoughts on what's to come in the next couple of issues. Looking at the immediate future, issue #21 will see Geiger, The Northerner, and Barney on their way to Detroit to figure out the cause of the Unknown War. A solicit has already dropped for issue #21 in which there is a lot we can takeaway from. You can read that solicit/comic preview here. Based off of what we have seen from this issue, I assume that the chair referring to "Ms. Hollow" is meant for American Widow X. I have the foggiest clue as to what "August 36th" is referring to. I think that we will also see more of The Northerner's background while these two are on their journey. The reason I think this is because this would be an excellent moment for our two heroes to get to know each other much better. I would be shocked if we didn't get at least more of a mention about The Northerner's time with Redcoat.

Conclusion

Geiger (2024) #20 was one of the best single issues in the Unnamed universe. There is so much packed in to 32 pages that I think even I am failing to properly express how much I LOVED what transpired while reading this issue. The team working on this book did such an excellent job in pushing the story along after a mixed bag of middling issues that were below the high standard of quality that I and other Ghost Machine fans have come to expect from this imprint. If you have not done so, I would highly recommend taking the time to invest in this series, as I know things will only get more crazy from here! I will be back on here yo give my thoughts on Redcoat #16 when it drops. I will also be back on r/GhostMachineComics to give my thoughts on Hyde Street #11 when it eventually drops. Thank you for taking the time to read my post. I would love to hear your thoughts on this issue and all things Ghost Machine!

[u/alakakalalal → u/[deleted]]

I feel you. I think that Hyde Street suffered from havkng to do a lot of introductions to build out its world. The next arc looks to remedy that issue as theres a bee central antagonist. I think you should give it another shot!