Africa | Page(s): 358 | Patreon
Finally, the hissing match between little Mondo and the crocodile has snapped Safari out of his delusion. His tranquil vision of being accepted by his sister fades into a nightmare as she hisses at him to go back. Just in time, as he was only a few paces away from his doom. As a bonus, Mondo can retreat to safety as well. Crisis averted.
Interestingly enough, we get a glimpse of Mosi’s torn ear, and I can’t help but wonder if he had anything do with Safari’s retreat by yelling at him, or if he just heard the noise and decided to investigate. It feels more like the latter, as I’m sure Mondo would have reacted to his voice. Here’s to hoping Africa is finally on the cusp of arriving to take her adopted brother and son to safety. (If Mondo’s willing to meet with her after learning about Sabra’s death, that is.) There’s also the question of if Mosi is finally ready to talk to Africa. Depending on how everything plays out, this upcoming moment could be heartwarming or heartbreaking.
To Catch a Star | Page(s): 443, 444, 445, 446 | Patreon
After stabbing his little brother, Takedown begins to mercilessly beat him. The scene is extremely tragic for Backlash, as he’d learned to trust others and saw that people could change for the better. At the start of the comic, he saw his brother in Shadow, but she eventually warmed to him and accepted him as family. After being attacked by Hearth, the two worked out their differences and got along. He was even treated kindly by a Nova pack, and saw a mixed Dusky-Nova pack first hand. It’s not surprising that he felt as if his pack and by extension Takedown, saw there was a better way to live they’d choose peaceful co-existence over violence.
Sadly, Backlash’s faith in his own brother was wildly misplaced. In the author’s note for page 443 on DeviantArt, Sleepy comments that he wanted his older brother to change so much that he became blind to the very clear and present danger. Everyone else could see this, including Shadow who’s never even met Backlash’s older brother. The thing is, Takedown has no desire to change. And why would he? He’s strong and loves killing for the sake of killing. He even murdered his own parents in cold blood. As revealed in page 446, he gets the most excitement from those who don’t see his attack coming, like the little brother who looked up to him.
These set of pages also answer a question that I’ve had since the opening chapter of To Catch a Star. If Takedown cared so little for his brother, why did he bother to save him from Sunny during the Supernova raid? I originally thought it was familial duty, but the actual reason was much darker. In his twisted mind no one else is allowed to kill Backlash. That is the only reason why he didn’t allow anyone else to harm his little brother. If Backlash had died in that skirmish with One Eye, Takedown would have murdered him for stealing his “kill.” In the same way he’s toying with his brother’s life and taunting him. The only reason he wasn’t swiftly killed is to serve as one last source of amusement. Additionally, he committed the biggest “sin” of all– stealing a position of power that Takedown “rightfully” saw as his. Danger’s own opinions be damned. At this rate, he’s so far off the deep end that he likely would have killed Danger sooner or later regardless of if she made him an alpha. I’m starting to wonder if he’s the actual embodiment of the Dusky’s version of the Lupi myth, aka a sadistic wolf who lead the largest pack before eventually turning on them and killing them.
As for Backlash’s current predicament, it seems that someone has cut Takedown off mid-sentence. I wonder if anyone will come to help the young alpha. A villainous monologue is usually the perfect time to strike in most fiction.
The Order of the Black Dog | Page(s): Issue 27, page 31 | Patreon
It looks like Mel’s ritual worked, as the girls are starting to take a spiritual trip, which seems oddly similar to a drug trip. There’s not much else happening, as the two now have to concentrate to actually summon the black dog. Fingers crossed we finally get to see Kenazil in action next week!
Golden Shrike | Page(s): 256 | Patreon
The simplest explanation turned out to be true. Helevise was killed by a cut to the throat. I had been pondering if it would be murder or predation from a wild animal. It turned to be murder. I’m going to go with BreadBuster’s theory from last week. The old caller was likely killed by a deer with a crow halv in order to prevent her from talking to Antaras. The timing makes sense. The last time we saw Helevise alive she was certain that Iralee summoned her again. Instead, she was lured away from just as she was about to attempt to talk the stubborn buck out of his current plan with Eve. Someone spied on her final conversation with her daughter, and had been keeping tabs on them.
Why they’d want to murder Helevise is still a mystery. Perhaps they support what Antaras plans to do and doesn’t want him to reconsider? Maybe they plan to confront the former caller later at a critical moment? Perhaps the old doe was left as a warning? I did find it odd that she was killed in a field of flowers and some were placed on her corpse. Either way, the background mystery in Golden Shrike continues to deepen.
It’ll be about a month’s wait until the next chapter, though.
Lost Scent | Page(s): 38 | Patreon
This week’s Lost Scent update went in a direction I wasn’t expecting. Not only is poor Tulpi battling her own memories and nightmares, but she also has to contend with a viciously critical inner-voice. The voice that many of us have, the one who manifests our self-doubts and tears us down more effectively than most critics. Tulpi does her best not to given in to this voice and her doubts, but in the end she collapses in the snow wondering if Motte has really abandoned her.
What this page really reveals is her deep insecurities, and how she’s her own worst enemy in multiple ways. Not because she’s a bit clumsy and impulsive, but because of those deep insecurities. I wonder if she’s always had this inner voice or if it’s something borne from her overly critical mother? I also wonder if she was previously abandoned by other dogs, or if it was all a big misunderstanding? Either way, I hope Motte shows up soon to prove Tulpi’s inner critic wrong.
This page brings up more questions than answers. It seems the Rabisu attacked for the sole purpose of getting revenge on Marduk after calling him a murder in an unknown language. Suddenly the obelisk reacts to the former Sky God and begins to harm the glowing dogs. Kainan demands the attack be called off as Marduk insists the pain the Rabisu are suffering will be over in a moment. Overall, this is a strange scene and once again reeks of manufactured conflict because something needs to happen in this story. Forget about the dozen or so unresolved plots, Kique has just added another.
What did Marduk do to warrant him being attacked by these strange glowing dogs? Are they natives to Aedra, aliens of another type? Were they another forgotten project of the Sky Gods? More importantly, when did Marduk have time to make enemies? I thought he was relatively new to Aedra after being transferred into the body of a dog. Wasn’t his first action to help the Asmundr pack? If he did have time to make enemies in his dog form, did he lie about the recent body transfer? If he did his harm as a Sky God, how did the Rabisu recognize him?
I’m also pondering why Kainan decided to step in. Sure, watching them suffer is painful, but he has no idea if they were planning to attack the Asmundr pack after they were done with Marduk.
I also have to question the obelisk as well. Can Marduk control what it attacks? Or is it an automated feature that harms anyone trying to kill him? If that’s the case, why did it attack the other dogs instead of the one who grabbed him by the face? What happens if the enemy kills Marduk suddenly? Does this weapon go berserk? On a darker note, would this obelisk harm anyone in the Asmundr pack if they tried to kill Marduk, despite it supposedly being a gift from the Sky Gods to the pack?
This is what happens when you suddenly introduce a twist to the story that has no build up or foreshadowing. It just ends up being confusing as hell.
On the upside, Marduk’s irises turning green against his black sclera actually looked cool, as did the energy defense system on the obelisk. That said, the rule of cool is not a substitute for good writing, and certainly can’t carry the mind-boggling events of this page.
