Africa | Page(s): 324 | Patreon
Africa reveals her worry about Mondo always watching his back. Faida suggests that because the young serval is both predator and prey, he might be uncomfortable being surrounded by much larger predators. Africa then begins to wonder if it was a mistake to adopt Sabra’s son, and wanders off, worried that she has another child afraid of her. Faida looks on worried before becoming lost in her own thoughts.
I don’t think Faida is totally wrong about Mondo. That said, I doubt he’s worried about being surrounded by the other predators on Hyena Hill. After all, they and Africa have been raising him since he was a kitten. The audience knows the real reason, as Mosi is actually stalking Mondo, and the little guy can sense it. Hopefully Africa comes to her senses soon and stops worrying about Mondo being scared of her. Meanwhile, it looks like we may be getting a flashback regarding the hyena matriarch.
Repeat | Page(s): 159, 160, 161 | Patreon (N/A)
Unfortunately Tilter falls victim to the Dusk’s plans, as the crow sends a boar they put under their influence to attack the young wolf. The attack is successful and Sol snaps the boar out of their madness at the Dawn’s insistence. Horrified at what’s happened, the boar suggests that maybe the great forest god can help. Sol promptly rejects this offer and sends the pig away. While the sun god frets over Tilter’s dire state, they berate their servant. Sol figures out the Dawn might be trying to break the cycle. Meanwhile, Tilter has a fitful slumber, but they’re warm and everything smells like flowers. Night arrives with Sol and the Dawn continuing to fight over if the cycle should be broken. The former is staunchly against it, while the latter thinks they simply haven’t tried hard enough and devises new plans. Tilter finally wakes up.
It’s hard to judge where Repeat is going next. At the moment Tilter’s wound is serious and requires medical attention way beyond what the older wolf and fox can provide. At the same time, the Dawn really wants to break the cycle even if they have to betray Sol’s wishes. The sun god is already thinking of what will happen to Tilter if they fail to take down Lun. This makes me wonder if they’ll come around to trying to break the cycle– provided Tilter recovers, or they go to the forest the Dawn is interested in.
The Realm of Kaerwyn | Page(s): Issue 20, pages 70, 71, 72 | Patreon
With everyone off-world, werewolf Tunc is mostly left to his own devices. I say mostly because he desperately wants to find Neek, but orders from Sisari are urging him to kill Neek instead. He finally meets up with Neek and Renard. He struggles to resist his orders to kill. Neek realizes he’s not firmly under Sisari’s control and attempts to finish the rune on Tunc’s hand that’s currently keeping his mind partially intact. Neek uses telekinesis to make the attempt from a safe distance. Instead, Tunc breaks the spell by swatting the pen away. As Neek recoils in pain from the broken link, the werewolf attacks. Not missing a beat, Renard fires and a fallen Tunc’s arm rests in a rapidly spreading puddle of his own blood. The rune on his hand starts to fade. In the meantime, a werewolf blood-covered Neek is horrified at Rendard’s actions.
These last few pages of The Realm of Kaerwyn have been a good kind of frustration. The plot tension is super thick. It’s hard to know if Neek will break Sisari’s influence over Tunc, if the werewolf will try to kill him first, or Renard finally kills off a main character. Maybe Renard has already done so. What bothers me the most is that this issue is called “Momento Mori” which translates roughly into “Remember you must die.” This alone hints that someone may die in this issue, and it could very well be Tunc. Renard is certainly ruthless enough to put the threat down against Neek’s wishes. Looks like we’ll have to see how this resolves with the next update.
To Catch a Star | Page(s): 309, 310, 311, 312| Patreon
After Shadow and Lupi arrive on the scene, Shadow roars and sends the zealous supernova running with the exception of the two leaders. Cloud rushes in to kill the larger of the two. Before the smaller leader can attack her, Blaze intercepts him. However, she’s unable to deliver the killing blow, so Cloud reassures her and finishes the zealot off instead. Taking a breather after the fight, Hearth notices Backlash’s reunion with Lupi and Shadow. He looks on until Shadow notices him and prepares to attack. Backlash stops her and insists Hearth isn’t a bad person. Shadow counters that Hearth injured him and reminds him of Sunny’s treachery. The young wolf then wonders if he can’t trust people at all anymore, and Shadow is unsure of what to say.
I’m extremely happy that Backlash is back together again with the group. While him and Hearth meeting Cloud and Blaze’s pack was interesting and served as a point of character growth for Hearth, it all felt so rushed. Basically, Hearth’s growth is meant to parallel Backlash’s and that’s good, but the events are playing out too quickly. We’re not being given the room to allow Hearth to grow more naturally, as Ash did. Yes, Hearth does have doubts about how Scorch is doing things, and even fought against the zealots. All the pieces are there for his ultimate rejection of the Supernova, but it’s happening too fast.
I just can’t suspend my disbelief that he’s going to be so trusting, so soon. Sunny going back was played out more realistically, even if he was remorseful about hurting Backlash. Now, I’m willing to give Sleepy the benefit of the doubt regarding her writing, but I hope she slows down Hearth’s role. I think I would rather have seen him discovering the positive sides of Duskies, and learning more about the rejected Nova before he found Backlash.
As for the current situation, Shadow is correct to be distrusting. Sunny is a good counter-point, and Backlash can be too trusting for his own good. Even if he thought about Sunny, and how Hearth is probably not much different. As for Hearth, his faith in the Supernova has been shaken, but is not completely shattered. At this point, he still believes what the Supernova are doing will ultimately be good for Nova, even if he doesn’t’ like Scorch’s methods. Plus, he still has a high rank in the pack and has everything to lose. He still has yet fully see the Dusky as worthy of living their own lives. There’s no guarantee that he won’t also try to steal Lupi away. And there’s no guarantee that Shadow will let him come along willingly. I guess it all falls on what Lupi says. As I imagine this story will continue to show how Duskies and Nova aren’t really all that different, and their respective moon and sun have been ultimately misrepresented as being in conflict.
Tofauti Sawa | Page(s): 376, 377 | Patreon
After Silver ultimately leaves Jeuri to her meal and searches for something else to eat, he hears a cry for help. Immediately bounding into action, he comes across a cub hanging from a low-lying tree branch. The scene is comical, as the cub isn’t very high at all. Nevertheless, Silver’s a good guy and assures the cub he’s here to help. He gently takes the cub in his mouth and sets him down. Just behind him, a lioness that I’m assuming to be the cub’s mother see him. She’s then alarmed to see Silver so close to him.
I checked the Tofauti Sawa’s character guide on Toyhouse and neither cub nor mother are listed. I’m guessing these characters are minor enough that they don’t get their own profiles. The only natural conclusion here is that there’s going to be a huge misunderstanding between the lioness and Silver. After all, most mothers would be worried if a strange male was interacting with their cubs. We’re fresh off the memories of Gatura killing Silver’s own cubs. Either Silver is going to be chased off and possibly leave with new scars, or the cub will explain that the mysterious white-maned lion saved his life and that’s that. Either way, I doubt Silver will stick around long, as he enjoys avoiding conflict.
What Lurks Beneath | Page(s): 655, 656, 657 | Patreon
Kelp admits to Tusk that she had more children. In fact, she had four litters that all faded away before giving birth to a healthy kitten. (Which we all know that King Thresher ordered to be given to the sea, causing her more heartbreak.) Where Kelp sees the gods as good for finally giving her a son, Tusk sees as horrible. “Good gods don’t kill four litters!” she exclaims. Kelp sadly agrees with her. The older cat then admits that she can’t really offer Tusk any comforting words, but can only suggest that she spends all the time she has with her newborn son before he fades. Also, to give him a name so he can be remembered. Tusk then asks if Kelp named all of her kittens. Kelp admits she didn’t, and she regrets it, as it turned out not to be any easier on her heart. The young mother proposes that it’s not too late to name them, and the older mother smiles and suggests they think up some names.
Page 657 is the end of the chapter, and it is a heart-breaking end to a chapter that was filled with the promise of finally seeing Tusk’s kits. She never really expected them to survive. The reality is that her fears weren’t totally unfounded, as she only had one kitten and he won’t survive the night short of a miracle. The fact that food was scarce and being horded by The Family doesn’t help things at all, even if she’s part of The Family now. As for Sturgeon, she managed to get Trout to spare Wahoo, while telling him how Krill died. As a bonus, she managed to turn him into a spy for her. She’s walking quite the tightrope and I fear her lies for the greater good will be exposed some day. For now, she appears to have everything mostly under control.
A Doe’s Salvation | Page(s): 177| Patreon
Disillusioned with the Mountains and becoming the next Matriarch, Absaroka lashes out at Sawtooth, after he calls her selfish for not wanting to take on the role. She correctly points out that she killed her son and brother for gods that don’t even exist. She then tears into Sawtooth, blaming him for putting Sierra Nevada’s leadership responsibilities onto her instead of someone else. Sawtooth decides he’s done with their conversation and remarks that Asaroka is starting to act like her brother, who was considered a heretic. As he walks away, Absaroka quietly declares that she’ll be an even better heretic than Gallatin.
I can’t blame Absaroka for her frustrations. For the longest time she believed in the mountains and the cult surrounding them. For this she killed her immediate family only to learn that the mountains are a lie. Her father didn’t prevent her mother from being sacrificed, nor his son or grandson, despite his high position in the herd. Also, her half-brother wants her to lead the cult with the goal of ending the sacrifices. (Ironically, Sawtooth doesn’t even know he’s related to Absaroka, Gallatin, and Crazy.) It’s a lot for one doe to learn while having to keep up the charade of believing in the mountains while the current matriarch is still alive. Absaroka was born into a web of madness, and no doubt she’s either looking to burn that web down or she wants to escape. It’s rich that Sawtooth would make a remark about someone being a heretic when he holds similar beliefs to Gallatin about the mountains not being real.
Golden Shrike | Page(s): 222 | Patreon
The group prepares to leave. Before they go, Boneslav calms down the situation between Grimjav, Runi, Nero, and Kasko. Grimjav insists that he was only joking about having fallen for Runi. He then asks if Boneslav remembers which way Farnorth is, and the smaller buck replies with “North?” Which is correct. Loudkill then remarks about how proud she is of her smallest pup relaying the Tongue’s wishes for her Mouth. She embraces her son and they both wag their tails, as Boneslave vows to give it his all. She remarks there’s nothing more she loves than to see her smallest pup’s face, and Grimjav is jealous. To that Loudkill nips him on the face, declaring she loves him just as much, as she also calls him a brat.
More character building for this page. Thinking about the previous page, Grimjav’s remorse over a relationship between him and Runi not working out seemingly came from nowhere. The last time they interacted, Grimjav was apologizing for slamming her head into a rock, causing her to lose a tooth. Between that scene pages ago and this scene, there was no indication he had feelings for the doe. A page showing a bit more of affection for Runi would have been helpful. As for this page, it’s clear that Loudkill’s Mouth all love each other. The Strokekrovn may be fierce to outsiders and threats, but among each other they are extremely loving. It will be interesting to see what Boneslav brings to the group as a whole.
Home | Page(s): 801, 802| Patreon
Roamer refuses to engage Kargo any further about his plans to hide alone in the forest. They walk back to the tribe in silence, only to see that their home is now on fire. Alarmed, the run back to the tribe and run into everyone gathered in the center of the territory, as the remaining wall and various huts are on fire. Ronja reveals that a large group of dogs has come to forcibly evict the Meteors from their land. No one has been hurt, and Roamer insists the remaining raiders have to be stopped. Ronja pleads for Roamer, Rogio, and Kargo not to hurt anyone, but just to make them leave. Vigr calls out to Rogio to help him put out fires, and Roamer sees a lone dog about to set his and Rogio’s tent on fire.
This is the raid that’s been hinted at for weeks now. You know the one, where the Guild saw them gathering in the forest, and where Rhov told Keirr about it. Instead of saying anything to Ronja, Rhov instead chose to bed Feaf, after being fired from the guild. And Keirr decided to wait until morning to tell Fraujar, because priorities. Never mind the fact that the Meteor Tribe is dangerously short on members or that both Rhov and Keirr are Ronja’s cousin– because who needs family?
Previous complaints aside, I have some current ones about these pages too. The raid is here. And it is the lamest raid I’ve ever seen. The dogs are only here to burn the tents, and the walls. In short, it’s an illegal land eviction, not a raid. It sure is plot convenient that no one has been hurt or captured. It makes you wonder why if other tribes are illegally forcing others off their land, that they’re not just killing them too. After all, what’s to stop the Meteors from forming a tribe elsewhere on Aedra? But of course, Kique doesn’t want to see any of his main characters die while forcing them to leave, because something needs to happen in this story. (Forget about the other ignored or dropped plotlines that were never resolved.) It would have been easier for Ronja just to move the tribe sooner, or have a bunch of members disband after the second rebellion, or shortly after Ranach abandoned the tribe. Doing it now feels too little, too late– especially since so much time has passed.
On Hiatus :
The Order of the Black Dog | Page(s): Issue 27, page | Patreon
