Skottie Young writer
Jorge Corona, art
Jean-Francois Beaulieu, colors
Nate Peikos of Blambot, letters
Recap
In the previous issue, Abel acts heroically saving a leader and wins the respect of Nicholas Raider. He recognizes that Abel has a monster in him like the one heading towards them. This issue begins, Jebediah and Maggie lead their ragtag group through a driving storm. They’re forced to get assistance from a local sheriff and an expert machine-builder named Mick. With assistance they find passage through a flooded river. Meanwhile, Abel and Bobby plan their escape from Nicholas Raider and his group.
The emotional base in the story centers around the well-being of Abel, Bobby, and the rest of the children working for Nicholas Raider. The active portions of the story centers around Jebediah and Maggie making their way to the children to help free them. The interesting part of Jeb and Maggie’s journey is the new friends they meet, Sheriff Barry and Mick. It is amazing how the writer creates a story with so many characters with different talents and experiences in an interconnected story. The big question left in my mind after this issue is how Abel’s father connects to the overall story. The storms and floods echo the father’s presence, as they have represented the father’s anger in issue one. We’ll see if the current weather patterns predicts the father’s physical presence in the story coming up.
The art remains amazing because of its combination of whimsical characters, colorful scenes, and beautiful panoramic panels. There are a number of highs when it comes to art work in this issue. Near the top is a full-spread panel near the beginning of this issue that shows a stormy sky, a missing bridge, and raging river. In the background and underneath the stormy sky is a group of tents sprawled over the countryside. The perspective of the panel creates a large open space and speaks to the vast reach of the story. This is an amazing story with great art. I highly recommend this story to fans of fantasy stories. Overall 9.5/10
