IDW Publishing 2018
Written by Jim Zub
Illustrated by Dean Kotz
Coloured by Stefani Rennee
Lettered by Neil Uyetake
Minsc the Mighty—Evil Beware! The Baldur's Gate heroes return to the city at last, but their time adventuring in Ravenloft and the frozen northern reaches of the Realms has changed them. Each of them must face great trials ahead before they'll be ready to embrace their destiny. A new hero of the people roams the streets of Baldur's Gate, and Minsc feels left behind despite his own legend. Can he reclaim his place as the city's Beloved Ranger? Whatever happens, evil is going to get its butt kicked most thoroughly!
This is one of those books that I look forward to constantly because of it’s consistency of good writing and solid interior artwork. Since the first issue Jim has been able to get these characters to grow and evolve in ways that we’ve never seen before in any D&D style book. That this has been so character centric has been a joy to read and is why I cannot wait to take it home. Jim’s got a busy schedule and honestly I wish this were a monthly but that we get semi-regular arcs well I can make do with that.
So that this is a five issue run and each issue focuses on the members of the group it’s a great time to jump on board and see why I love these characters. Minsc is up first and I gotta say he really is the most enigmatic of the group and how he came to be a part of it in that first arc well one of these days we need a full five issue run on how that all came to be and how he was able to be brought back. The way that the book is structured is great as we open with a fight scene in progress and then work our way back to that point. It is certainly a strong opening and grabs the readers attention perfectly.
I love the interiors here! What Dean can do using the varying weights of linework is stunning to see. The attention to detail he gets into the work amazes me and I gotta say there’s no better way to really see these races this way is a sheer delight. The way he utilises the page layouts as well as how we see the angles and perspective in the panels showcases his extremely strong eye for storytelling. Plus as if that weren’t enough I mean the utilisation of backgrounds is beyond what we normally see, which I am thankful for, and really expand the moment, the scope of the town and the confined space of the fight so kudos to he and Stefani for providing us with this gorgeous work.
On some level the group thinks that Minsc is slow, as in mentally stunted, and his obsession to act like a hero and be considered one is an unspoken hassle. So it’s no surprise that when he gets the chance to go off on his own he finds a pub, the Gibbpring Gizzard, to drink at and find a way to be heroic. The fact that Minsc is so childlike and enthusiastic is why I am drawn to him and Boo. After all they just to use their abilities and help people and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to do just that. Meeting Krigar the Courageous will put those ideals to the test.
Remember this is Dungeons & Dragons and nothing and no one is what they appear to be. God this so makes me want to have a game to join. Also for those of you who think D&D is silly or whatnot this is how teams are made so any superhero team you fancy so much is pretty much any adventuring group that is created. Different folks, species instead of aliens, different power sets and diverse personalities it’s the same thing. I say give a good look and you’ll see that this is exactly what you love to read.