Oni Press Digital 2018
By Ted Naifeh
Lettered by Aditya Bidikar
As poison slowly claims the Furie, Emerane attempts the unthinkable. With the help of the Magus's necromancy, she infiltrates the dominion of death itself. If all goes well, Emerane may be able to rescue the Furie's soul from the shores of oblivion. But if she fails, she will be claimed by Uhlume, the god of death.
I don’t know if I said this before though I think I might have but here goes you don’t know how much you missed something until a new story comes out. I love this book and the world that Ted has created here it has this great tone, mood and feel to it that mixes the action, the adventure and mystery in this world in ways that once it’s captured your imagination that’s it there’s no turning back because you are in. Also I like that each arc is new reader friendly, you can jump in here and very quickly be caught up to speed and start enjoying.
The way the book is structured is extremely well done. The opening does what it should do as it captures the mind’s imagination in not only the imagery which gives off the old immigrant feel in say San Francisco when Chinatown was created except take that kind of aesthetic and make it out of stone and brick in a middle eastern kind of way. Plus the conversation between the Acolyte and Nima and how that leads into the current story is exceptionally conceived. Then the way the story is told through the pages and the whole ebb & flow of what we see and how the characters have gone about it gives off this energy and it leaves you wanting to know more.
I feel like a lot of things happen this issue and yet the way it all unfolds has a natural grace to it where the hectic one thing after another way of storytelling never seems rushed or as if it’s too much. It does have an adrenaline rush attached to it and by the time you get to the end of the story well let’s just say expect the unexpected. I will say that I get a sense that the gang is back together in order to kind of fix what they broke and while not strictly an attempt at redemption it does have certain qualities that lean that way. Nothing can change the past but they can help ensure a better future right so let’s see if their actions help or send the city further into madness and disarray.
The interiors are as impressive as ever and I love the way Ted brings us the faces of each character. There’s is always something about each one that is not only uniquely them but it’s how we see the eyes and what they express that really connects you to them. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective shows off that eye for storytelling which I enjoy so very much. Ted may play it light on the use of backgrounds but what we see is gorgeous and I wish we’d see more of them.
I love seeing what lengths people will go to for those who are in their group, which we all know is their chosen family, to help them out and make sure that they end up okay. I have enjoyed watching the evolution of the characters to get to this point in their lives and where they are going to go from here. All I do know is that while their intentions are good but oh lord don’t their intentions be misunderstood which of course is one of two ways it ends up going.
This is a series that epitomises how a series of events can forge bonds between people and how alone they might not be great but together can do great things. Isn’t this what we all want for ourselves as well?