This round up is a bit late and a bit shorter than usual thanks to a busy weekend and week. I’ll get my shit together hopefully next week. No promises though, as it promises to be busy as well.
Africa | Page(s): 322 | Patreon
Faida reveals she’d like Africa to take over the clan once she’s too old to lead. The leopard is surprised, but reminds the matriarch that the hyenas are supposed to be searching for Mosi. The clan leader then replies they are helping. Africa immediately cuts her off, noting she’s lying as a patrol hasn’t gone out in months. Faida dodges and notes that hunting parties search for him when they’re out, but the heat prevents them from searching for too long.
Faida is obviously hiding something. What she’s hiding is the fact she knows Mosi is alive. During Mosi’s flashback it was revealed Faida saw him and an injured Bibi as they rushed to defend Africa from Bes and his pride. I’ll forgive the matriarch for not telling Africa in the moment, but five months have passed. No signs of Mosi’s death have been found, so it’s a mystery as to why Faida is keeping the cub’s whereabouts a secret. Perhaps she is afraid Mondo would be abandoned once Mosi is found. (I highly doubt Africa would do this to Mondo.) Or perhaps there’s a bigger reason yet to be revealed.
To Catch a Star | Page(s): 299, 300, 301, 302 | Patreon
Hearth confronts the zealot Supernova and they reveal that they’re looking for Blaze in addition to other Nova in the area. (So I was right last week.) Hearth is indignant as Blaze is just an old lady who wanted to leave the Supernova, and is essentially harmless. The zealots don’t care as they claim it’s the will of the Sun that she be punished, along with the rejected Nova. It doesn’t matter if they’re banding together to find food, as they perhaps weren’t meant to survive. Hearth finds this notion ridiculous and pushes back against his fellow Supernova. He declares perhaps the Sun has no business deciding who thrives and who dies. The zealous enforcers are clearly jealous Hearth is the “chosen one” and the larger one muses that the younger wolf smells like a Dusky and that he probably set Sunny free. The wolf with the braid agrees and declares their new mission is to take Hearth down. Before both wolves can double-team him, Backlash jumps on the larger of the two Supernova.
First, it seems like To Catch a Star will be updating four times a week, at least as long as Sleepy can keep the schedule going. Second, I can’t help but notice the art mistake on page 303 with Hearth’s front legs. One leg is larger than the other, and now I can’t stop seeing it. Honestly, considering how hard the author works on these pages, small mistakes happen. Though I can’t decide if I like Hearth better with the buffer leg, or the regular-sized leg.
As for the updates, this is clearly a parallel to Backlash when members of his pack found and rounded up Shadow and Lupi. Backlash could have said nothing, and let his pack execute his traveling partners. Instead, he risked his own life to set his Nova companions free. Hearth is doing the same here. He first tries to get both Supernova to leave peacefully, and when that fails tries to discourage them from harming Blaze and the others. These zealot enforcers were prepared for violence, so there was no reasoning with them. That said, there’s only two of them and the combined Dusky/Nova pack is ready to fight. I’m not sure how these guys are a threat yet. Unless, they have back up waiting in the hills. (Page 304 is out and the answer to the statement is “yes.” These two assholes came with backup.)
Tofauti Sawa | Page(s): 372, 373 | Patreon
Silver smirks as he finds Sahara sleeping. He decides to let her rest as he goes off to find something to eat for them both. He first comes across water buffalo herd which would be a challenge to hunt even if he had a pride with him. As he walks away, he hears a death scream, and finds a lone hyena has taken down a rabbit. She hasn’t noticed Silver’s presence yet.
I hope Sahara isn’t in any danger as Silver left her side to hunt. Then again, I can’t imagine too many animals that would dare approach a hyena, even if said hunter was alone. According to Cynical’s character profiles on Toyhouse, this new hyena’s name is Jeuri. Her bio states her as a bit on the mean side. Meaning, if she doesn’t immediately run from Silver, she’s going to give him quite the tongue lashing. Maybe. I’m curious to see how the encounter will unfold.
What Lurks Beneath | Page(s): 650, 651, 652 | Patreon
After being pressed by Sturgeon, Wahoo reveals Veta and Gull are also not happy about the changes Trout has made regarding the Daisies. He stresses that the two cats meant no harm– it was all talk. Furthermore, he doesn’t know if anyone else is vocally unhappy about the queen’s changes. Sturgeon asks can he start listening to help her keep Trout safe. With some reluctance, he agrees. Meanwhile, back at the cave Hake has fallen fast asleep next to Tusk and her sickly kitten. The kit is struggling to breathe. A voice just out of view calls to the young mother.
Sturgeon has managed to somehow take care of two birds with one paw swipe. She’s informed Wahoo of his mate’s death, while making sure he stays quiet about the knowledge she’s given him. Additionally, she’s drafted him to keep an eye out for possible traitors. It has yet to be seen if Sturgeon will confront Veta and Gull, or if she’ll have Wrasse keep an eye on them. I don’t know much about Veta, but Gull being upset about the Daisies doesn’t surprise me. She went out of her way to give the Daisies dirty looks, including barely talking to them. Now, if she’s violent, that’s another story. Again, I’m doubtful Krill would have done his violence if he didn’t have Sturgeon’s perceived backing.
As for Tusk and her kit, I’m hoping the little guy pulls through. He’s not feeding, so that’s not good, but I’m just hoping against hope. But this is What Lurks Beneath, a story that’s no stranger to tragedy.
Golden Shrike | Page(s): 220 | Patreon
As usual with new chapters, Runi narrates her experiences. As the story has gone on, she has become more confident and comfortable with their journey. She’s gone from regret and worry in earlier chapters to deciding their plan to save the world and the events that lead them there weren’t a mistake. The group returns from the mountain top and the Stonekrovn herd aka mouth, greet them with a bow. They rest for the night, determined to set out in the morning. While everyone else is sleeping, Boneslav lies awake.
The end of the previous chapter made it clear that Boneslav would be joining Nero, Runi, and Kasko. This page further cements it, even as the dialogue only consists of Runi’s thoughts. Given the last few pages of the chapter, it’s clear that Usma will be eventually joining the group. For now, these young deer have been tasked with finding War before going after Eve. On page 216 it was revealed the gang needs to travel to a place called “Farnorth.” Having Boneslav in the group will be handy since this is another Stonekrovn mouth.
What I’m skipping for the week:
Repeat | Page(s): 152, 153, 154 | Patreon (N/A)
The Realm of Kaerwyn | Page(s): Issue 20, pages 64, 65, 66 | Patreon
A Doe’s Salvation | Page(s): 175| Patreon
On Hiatus :
The Order of the Black Dog | Page(s): Issue 27, page | Patreon
