I have no catchy title Although not drawn by elfquests original artist this is undoubtably one of the best non wendy books.Theres no way to sum up all the great moments of the shards war.You sit through the agonizing loss of characters you have never met yet seem to know like your best friends and you cheer along with the rebellion and final victors.The story sucks you in and you find yourself crying laughing and not being ashamed of it. So...A awesome book but not to be read in the company of strangers. They may give you funny looks.
Great Read, Despite Poor Paperback Edition I'm a big fan of all the original Elfquest graphic novels, and while this one is far from being one of the best, it's still an excellent read. Reprinted from the second half of the "Shards" series, with excellent writing from Wendy and Richard Pini, this follows the wolfriders final ascent to restore the palace and stop Winnowill once and for all. The art, while not even close to Wendy Pini's abilities, is done particularly well by Brandon McKinney. Most notable though is the art done by Wendy who returns for the last 3 chapters of this book. The most interesting aspect is the final chapter of the book which is done in a storybook form instead of the regular comic form. The only real downside is this is one of the tortured victims of the xeroxed in black and white from the orginal color comic books (with the exception of the last few chapters which were originally published in black and while), which is unfortunate cause it deserves much better.
If you want to read this book despite these glaring flaws, plop down in a bookstore and read it there (like I did) and save your money. With this, much of the very rich tradition of Elfquest is squandered.
A walk through grief, toward joy "Reunion", volume 12a in the Reader's Collection and the sequel to "Ascent", features the heartrending conclusion to the story of the elves' quest to reclaim the Palace of the High Ones from Winnowill and her partner, the warlord Grohmul Djun.
The story in these episodes is the most sobering and poignant yet seen in the Elfquest series - and, ultimately, the most uplifting. Surprisingly, the suspense does not come from wondering whether the elves will survive their attack on the Djun's fortress. Rather, the story revolves around how the heroes react to the deaths of two of their own (just in the first three chapters!), and whether their quest is worth so much suffering. The sobering death-scenes early in the story serve only to heighten the effect of the climax, to make it much more meaningful. Many, indeed most, Elfquest stories have been as memorable, but none have been as moving as this one.
Although this book is not in color, a note on the production is in order. The artwork, which had been rendered in color originally, reverted to black-and-white beginning with the fourth chapter of this book; for budget reasons WaRP Graphics gave up color production in September 1995, the year the American comic-book market tanked. Understandably, some of the BW chapters look sketchy, since these were to have been colored-in originally. The last chapter, though, was drawn entirely by Wendy Pini, and is a visual treat, nothing new for her! (It also served as a preview for the artistic style she would show in the "Dreamtime" series, now published as Book 8a in the Reader's Collection.)
Despite the production troubles I have mentioned, this is a most memorable tale and a fitting capstone on this series. (Moreover, the Pinis are currently working on the _sequel_ to this story - stay tuned!)
Anything Goes Trivia
Trevor
Megaton Man
