Dynamite Entertainment 2019
Written by Vita Ayala
Illustrated by Olympia Sweetman & Vasil Georgiey
Coloured by Rebecca Nalty
Lettered by Ariana Maher
Xena and Gabrielle find themselves amidst a deadly quarrel between The God Of Strife and The God Of Discord! The only way to save a village of innocents is for Xena to agree to lead an army against an incoming Roman legion. But Xena’s “army” is comprised of…the village elders!?
I am glad that I have decided to give this run a shot, but then again I am a fan of Vita and what they are doing in the industry in general. I was never a huge fan of the show it starting airing when I lived in Chicago and finished by the time I moved back to Cincinnati and all I got to see of it were in reruns when the opportunity arose. That was a busy time in my life but we’re not here to discuss all that it’s just a little perspective when it comes to my familiarity of the characters. What I see here from Vita is taking the mythology behind it, weaving around that plausible encounters and starting off her adventures with Gabrielle without starting off at the beginning.
I am thoroughly enjoying this in that regard. The way that this is being told is great as between the story & plot development and the characterisation the overall ebb & flow of the book is highlighted through the pacing. The idea behind this that I see may or may not be what Vita intended but they really planted a seed in my mind that germinated into be going off the page. I like being engaged in this manner too and to feel as if I am part of the story as my mind races with thoughts about what I am seeing. That Vita can do this to their readers is one of the things I really like about them.
As the story unfolds and it seems straightforward in it’s approach we should all know better. There are a few twists and turns that happen here and they are delightful. We see events occur that we might not have expected so soon as well as some extremely nice aspects that have a more touching manner about them do wonders in setting this apart from what we may or may expect to find within this series.
The interiors here are a tad disappointing to me. They do come across with a more animated quality to them which isn’t my forte, though others will appreciate that. Body proportions seem off in places that make me squint my face, Gabrielle’s body with that leg coming out of her skirt on page 7 that kind of irked me, also there is a weird androgyny in Strife here as we see the feminine then the male at different points in this issue. The good thing about this is that the utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a good eye for storytelling. When we see backgrounds being utilised they do wonders in expanding the moments and bringing a size and scope to the story, so hopefully we’ll see more of that happen and fewer blank backgrounds. The colour work is nice to see in the way that light sources are utilised to create shading, shadows and some interesting colour choices. This includes moments of colour gradation which I greatly appreciate.
I am looking forward to seeing what this creative team has in store for Xena and Gabrielle. This two part series opener is leading up to a much larger story, at least I feel it is, and it should be the kind that Xena hates to be a part of which makes me want to see it all the more. I like the promise that this book holds and the strength of the writing and yes even in the interiors.