Monday, May 27, 2019

Coda Vol. 1 (Simon Spurrier)

Coda Vol. 1
The Coda series
Simon Spurrier, illustrations by Matias Bergara
BOOM! Studios
Fiction, Fantasy
***+ (Okay/Good)


DESCRIPTION: Once upon a time, in a land of enchanted castles and magical elves and immortal dragons... the forces of darkness won and destroyed everything.
The survivors wander a post-apocalyptic wasteland, bands of looters and thieves and the odd attempt at restarting civilization with little but the dregs of the magic that once flowed freely. Amid this ruin roves the nameless bard, astride a mutant (not to mention psychotic) "pentacorn." He seeks the means to rescue his true love from a terrible demonic curse... but he himself is the first to admit that quests and happy endings were always empty fairy tales, even before the world ended.

REVIEW: A post-apocalyptic Fairyland is an interesting concept. I wish I'd had more engaging characters (and maybe a less threadbare plot) to follow through it. The bard (known as "Hm", his only answer when asked for a name) tries to thread the antihero needle of cynicism and determination laced with sarcasm, but just comes across as a selfish jerk, making his dedication to his cursed wife feel out of character. At some point his pithy observations and commentary start sounding like adolescent nihilistic whining rather than the voice of an older and justifiably jaded man. At times, the story feels jerky. There are some nice (if grotesque) elements, but ultimately the parts just don't come together like they should.

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