We received the first big snowfall in this region in nearly a decade. Despite our city mayor insisting that every street would be plowed, my own street has yet to see one. My small sedan wasn’t getting over the snow or down the untreated street. That equaled a night off work for me. If you live in an area of the United States impacted by the massive storm, how did you make out?
After getting some rest from helping to shovel the sidewalk and driveway, I figured a late round up is better than no round up this week. Though it’s going to be a short one because only half the comics I’m following updated last week.
Africa | Page(s): 458 | Patreon
Once again, I have to admire how Faida is still thinking of the overall survival of the clan, even after being ousted. It would have been easy enough to walk off with Badru, find a place to get dried off, and recover from her injuries. Instead, she’s sending her mate ahead to warn the clan, no matter what. Furthermore, she’s going to face Kauket alone. Going up against one lioness without backup would be dangerous even if Faida was healthy. She knows she’s likely to die in her current state. Given that Bes’s mother bit her own grandchild, she likely won’t have second thoughts about a lone hyena.
Let’s just hope that if her plan turns out to be a sacrifice, Badru’s own actions of warning the clan will pan out.
What Lurks Beneath | Pages(s): 969 – 972 | Patreon
Snapper confirms that changing your name isn’t a requirement when discovering your true self. I will note that a few readers have an interesting theory regarding the scene about Fangtooth changing her name. Basically, there may come a time in the future when Hake changes his own name to distance himself from the Family. I do wonder if these fans will be on the mark in that regard. (I kind of hope they are, because that would be some amazing foresight.)
That said, Krill is an ass, and both Snapper and Fangtooth know it. (We also learn that Lobster is his mother’s name.) I doubt Krill’s animosity is related to Hake’s gender change, and is more about being butthurt over the prince being better at fighting thanks to Sturgeon’s training. Speaking of gender and freedom to be who you are, we now get a glimpse of why Hake is so religious. In exchange for devotion, The Tide allows for freedom of choice. Sadly, this is your reminder that these very cool cats are still in a cult, and those freedoms and benevolence doesn’t extend to outsiders, aka the Daisys. Honestly, I feel as if the cult cats would be more concerned about Daisys being non-believers or not part of the Family versus their actual gender choices.
I can also see why Trout specifically asked for Kelp after her blowup with Hake. There’s nothing quite like a mother’s comfort when you’re feeling down. (Provided you have a good relationship.) I can only guess witnessing the fight between Thresher and Petrel was more traumatic than first glance. Otherwise, I’m not really sure why the future queen would be feeling so down.
Golden Shrike | Page(s): 343 | Patreon
While Loss has been silent this entire time, Eve has been fiery with sharp, cutting remarks. Red is definitely a fitting color for the god. I do like how she’s subtly pointing out how selfish Antaras is being by asking if Oudia is the only one he wants to be brought back. I have to wonder if the stag is correct about her powers having a limit since he was able to bind her despite being mortal. I’m not sure if he’s being cautious here, but I’m pretty sure he doesn’t care about the other deer at all. Well, I mean, just look at what he did to summon Eve in the first place.
I’m on the edge of my seat with anticipation to see what limits Eve’s powers must have. Again, there must be a reason why she’s piloting Oudia’s body instead just bringing the doe back to life. Until disproven, I’m sticking with the theory that she can’t bring Antaras’ mate back, but can instead breathe life into their unborn fawn. Perhaps it’s easier for her to bestow life on the unborn rather than returning a departed soul to a body after Loss does its thing.
Oh! I just had another thought! I’m going to wager that either she can’t revive the already born, or she would have to place a newly created soul into the stag’s mate, effectively making her a different person. Antaras didn’t like either of those options, so decided the deal should be Eve stays until their fawn is born and weened, and then she and Loss can return to the sky. Again, this is just my own theory.
So I was correct. The visitors to Iberón and Siqhaala’s camp are loners. Despite them wanting to get as far away from Kargo and the Meteor Tribe as possible, Javo and Alva didn’t make it far. Not only that, but along the way Galti died during a ghoul attack. I’m kind of shocked by their awful state. I get Alva and Galti maybe having a hard time because they’re not native to Aedra, but Javo? He used to be a Herbalist/Navigator under the old MT. That means he would have had to travel for long periods of time to gather needed herbs, among other things. At least according to the Wiki.
And just as a refresher, here is Javo’s rank from the old Meteor Tribe chart that used to be on the Wiki, along with the old combined ranks from the tribe under Arenak’s rule. He can be seen with his original paint on this page on the third panel.
In other words, Javo should have had the skills to keep his companions alive because of his past travels. He should have known where to find prey, how to preserve meat as required, and safe places to hide from the ghouls at night. When the three of them left they all had supplies. I can’t believe they’d burn through them without replenishing anything. After all, these are items that can be found in nature, not created in a factory. I just don’t buy the trio having so hard of a time that they’re starved, and Galti got offed by ghouls. Not only that, but then they would return to the same territory they originally felt was unsafe?
I can only guess them meeting Iberón and Siqhaala means that they’ll let some information slip about Rogio, despite them lying about not being part of the MT. Otherwise, why bring these two back? They don’t know about the raid, unless they saw it happen while nearby. And unless they’ve also been keeping tabs on Ronja’s tribe, they don’t know everyone packed up and went north, just that the territory is now abandoned. If they do know the tribe’s new location, that means they’ve been in the shadows of the former MT for a while, avoided the raid group, but somehow still starved and lost a member of the trio.
Having Alva and Javo back just raises more questions than answers for me. Let’s see if Kique has any future plans for them beyond this scene.
Off for the week:
In The Lion’s Den: The Scarlet Uproar | Page(s): | Patreon
Lost Scent | Page(s): | Patreon
On hiatus:
The Order of the Black Dog | Issue Page: | Patreon
