Legend of Huma: Comic #2
I received so many fan mails regarding my last review, I knew I had to produce another one for the adoring masses.
Ok, so I lie like a cheap Tarsisian rug. Nobody gave a flip. But it really doesn't matter, because we have to produce fascinating articles and Paladine knows I love to please.
And I'm lazy. This review is going to mimic the previous review, starting with:
The Cover
What? You thought I'd start with the back of the comic or something?
The cover is done by Nghia Lam, who's definitely got a thing for detail. This dragon has scales, Huma has feathers on his winged helmet, the hilt of the sword engraved with emblems, even the armour has small insignia on it. While it's quite impressive and well done, I find the dragon looks a little too "furry" and not scaly. It also looks very masculine... not at all the type of dragon a normal human would fall in love with.
I really do like the colouring of the cover though. The dragon does look silver, although a bit tarnished. The background is made up of various shades of red, giving it an Abyss or volcanic type setting.
But there's no Kaz and nipple ring like the first one. That's disapointing.
Interior Art
The first thing I noticed upon opening the comic is on the inside front cover, there are a few small panels showing the last few pages of the previous comic. This helps the reader feel some continuity in the storyline and also demonstrates that the artist is the same between the two comics, something that may not be obvious unless you go dig up the previous comic to compare.
I really like most of the illustrations of the silver dragon. The artists captured the metallic colouring very well and given the sheer size of her compared to the humans, she does cut a very imposing figure. Some nearly full page battle scenes with the silver dragon versus several black and red dragons sent shivers up my spine. It's just beautifully done.
At the back of the comic is an advertisement for Issue 3. The cover art there is absolutely drool material. I'd buy that in a print for my wall if I could.
The Storyline
Maybe it's my lack of experience with comics, but is it common to make up words for sound effects? What the heck is this "Slirissh" that seems to happen when a black dragon claws the silver? That did rather confuse me.
The storyline is building up nicely. Huma acts as mediator between the silver dragon and Kaz, and also uses a bit of trickery to convince the minotaur to ride on the back of the dragon. When faced with the evil dragons, Huma shows his desire (or would that be stubbornness?) to aid the dragon and stays mounted to fly into combat. It is quite likely that the main villain will be Crynus, the Queen's warlord, and rider of the black dragon. Due to Huma facing the warlord in battle and injuring him, the knights believe he will be returning to seek vengeance.
Huma also plays mediator between Kaz and his faction of Knights of Solamnia. Although they are uneasy with the minotaur, they take Huma's word that the bullman will behave and act in peace when among them.
Overall Impression
The storyline is building rather well. It moves at a good speed... not too quickly, yet not dragging on. The artwork really makes this comic a great piece of work to look at. The writing style is well done and brings the reader into the story. I still sit here and wonder though... where did they come up with those words??
In time... Issue 3 to be released and reviewed.