By: Mike Carey & Peter Gross (creators), Chris Chuckry (colors), Todd Klein (letters), Yuko Shimizu (cover), Gregory Lockard (assistant editor) & Shelly Bond (editor)
The Story: Tommy Taylor has a bone to pick with the King of Hades.
A few things (with minor SPOILERS):
1). Confusing, but enjoyable. – This is probably a series that reads better in collected editions. I usually hate that phrase – “reads better in collected editions” – because it is often code for “lazy writing where not much happens issue-to-issue.” But in the case of The Unwritten, the problem is that so much is going on, keeping a handle on the story is like trying to catch a greased pig. This is a comic that gets special reading treatment and I simply won’t read it if I’m tired or distracted because I know I won’t fully appreciate the story. It can be a little annoying sometimes when I’m going through a confused phase, but I do appreciate the fact that The Unwritten is always telling an ambitious story. It is also interesting that I never find The Unwritten to be aggressively opaque the way I find some comics like Change #1 from a week ago.
2). Why is everyone Tommy-related in Purgatory? – It seemed odd that all of the people that Tom/Tommy has encountered in his life seem to be lingering in Purgatory. Why is that? It’s an interesting point to ponder when we consider why Tommy is trying to get into Hades in the first place: to save a “dead” Lizzie Hexam. All the real people Tommy has know who have died seem to be in Purgatory, but Lizzie – who is a literary character brought to life – seems to have passed on into Hades itself. What’s up with that? And then what to make of the initial scene where Charon refuses to carry The Tinker (another literary character) across River Styx because The Tinker is “a living man“. Weird that Charon would consider The Tinker a living man, yet Lizzie clearly got a boat ride. Lots to ponder here.
3). Making stew! – How comical was the scene of Eliza Bennet (from Pride and Prejudice) making stew from the talking head of the dead unicorn? Especially given that the unicorn’s head was spouting “oracular statements” the whole time, I’m not sure I’d want to eat that stew.
4). Effective art…alluring harpies. – The art in The Unwritten is always effective but rarely anything to rave about. There’s a beauty to its efficiency though because it isn’t as if artist Gross is incapable; he’s just restraining himself. He is just telling us the story and not making us worry about the art too much….although if you do fixate on a panel, you’ll often notice a lot of nice little touches. Plus, he draws a pretty good dingo dog! And, did anyone else find his topless harpies to be uncomfortably alluring?
5). Can’t connect the ending. – I’m really not sure what to make of the scene where Pauly Bruckner is revealed to be the King of Hades. Does that mean that the animals have completed their takeover of storyland? That their control is so complete that they even hold sway over an ancient tale like Hades? Does that mean that they also dominate all other, younger stories including the Bible? Honestly, I keep waiting for The Unwritten to apply their concept to the key religious texts.
6). Odd cover. – It’s a testament to the skills of cover artist Yuko Shimizu that this is the only series where I routinely comment on the cover art. Not only does she create beautiful images, but they almost always connect with the story in some way that is clear after you read the issue. But, I don’t get this one and the implication that the harpies’ hair is somehow creating the river of fire that Tommy and the kids cross in this issue. I’m sure the solution is just hiding from me, so someone chime in in the comments section to tell me what I missed. I’m still amazed that these cover images come from a lady who is famous for creating Hello Kitty.
Conclusion: High quality storytelling. Unlike a lot of other comics, I don’t even mind too much when I get lost. The Unwritten is already earmarked for a reread or two due to its complex and ambitious storytelling.
Grade: B+
– Dean Stell
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Conclusion