Elfquest

Elfquest TPB 8

Collecting issues 5-9 of the “Kings of the Broken Wheel” arc.  After reading these, I have no desire to get the missing four issues.  Rayek kidnaps Leetah, her kids, and Skywise thousands of years into the future in order to change the past.  He wants to prevent the High Ones from ever landing on the planet, preventing their suffering but wiping the trolls and elves from existence.  It’s high level time travel shit, which really doesn’t work me in fantasy.  (As I write this, I’m reminded of Dragonlance’s Legends trilogy and how it’s one of the best time travel stories I’ve ever read.  Never mind.)

The problem is that I don’t care at all about the High Ones, and the whole story hinges on Rayek being a self-important prick who thinks he knows better than everyone else.  He’s absolutely insufferable here, and not in a good way.  It ruins any chance the story has of succeeding.  (My wife had the same reaction to Spider-Man: No Way Home, which I don’t agree with, but understand.)  

The issue with Cutter and the elves stuck in the present is really well done, showing how they move on with their lives over hundreds of years while never letting go of what they’ve lost.  And the whole thing ends as well as it can given the crummy premise.  

Overall, it was great to revisit these characters.  I do love them like old friends.  But at the same time, I’m ready to move on to the next thing.  Invincible, maybe?

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: No

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Nice 

Elfquest

Elfquest TPB 5-6

Collecting the eight-part “Siege at Blue Mountain” arc.  The Wolfriders take on Winnowill in a final battle, and there’s a real sense of epic finality to it all.  Wendy and Richard Pini do a great job of building up the menace and big-bossness of the evil elf, and the whole thing is very third act.  

But despite all of this undeniably entertaining stuff, Elfquest is definitely suffering from diminishing returns with me.  While I had fun during the actual reading, I wasn’t as eager to get started as I was with the first issues, and I’m approaching the final trade (I’m missing volume 7) with a sense of relief that I’m almost done.  But don’t get me wrong, this is still good comics.

Her agony is so well drawn.

Phenomenal, complex storytelling through facial expressions.  Wendy Pini is an artist. 

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Pretty good

Elfquest

Elfquest 20-32

Another reason why Elfquest works so well is because each story flows naturally into the next, as if there’s no other way it could have gone.  Nothing feels like filler, everything is written with intent.  It makes for a propulsive story that constantly had me reaching for the next issue.

The Wolfriders defeat Winnowill, fly north in search of the High Ones’ palace, find the Snow Elves after a particularly brutal fight, then assault the trolls in a final battle.  The fight scenes are extremely well done, visceral and desperate in a way that’s pretty rare for a comic.  The Pinis accomplish this by creating characters that I care about and showing that they’re not afraid to kill them off every once in a while.  They even made the death of an extremely minor character extremely moving, an impressive feat.

Poor Vaya.

That said, it’s highly improbable that none of the Wolfriders died when half of the Snow Elves did.  I don’t care how good they are at combat.

My memory of Elfquest gets fuzzy after this.  Presumably because it isn’t as good.  There are four trades to go, of which I’m missing one.  Time to see if it’s worth picking up…

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good

Elfquest

Elfquest 9-19

Jump ahead seven years.  Cutter and Leetah have two (not annoying) kids, Ember and Suntop.  Cutter and Skywise set off on a quest to find other elves.  Along the way, they learn that not all humans are the evil killers they’ve always thought them to be.  (Racism bad!  Ignorance bad!)

Eventually, all roads lead to the sky elves and Winnowill.  Brr.  Talk about an effective, scary villain.  She looms over the Wolfriders, and she’s got the brutal psychic powers to back up her haughty arrogance and cold cruelty.  

What an entrance.

Not quite as good as the first batch of issues, but still very well done.  And things are going to pick up quickly from here.

Wendy Pini is great with the visual gags.

Skywise has his Whole New World moment.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Good

Elfquest

Elfquest 1-8

I first read this in my middle school library, I have wonderful memories of it.  Years later, I found the first 32 Marvel Epic issues for 16 bucks, all the incentive I needed to pick up the rest of the Father Tree Press trades that I grew up loving.  I don’t think I’ve actually read them though, they’ve just been sitting on my shelf ever since.  (Just like From Hell, but I expect a far more positive reaction for this.)

Yeah, this is phenomenal stuff.  Reading this is like going home.  But unlike a lot of things that I first read when I was much younger, this is legit good, not just the fond nostalgic memories of a middle school kid.  It’s so well done that it took a while for me to realize why this is such an effectively entertaining comic - This first arc, for all of its drama, is a love story.  I can’t think of another comic that starts with something so unconventional.  (I’m not counting things like True Story Swear to God for obvious reasons.)  

And it totally works.  It’s a brilliant way of introducing all of the characters and the world that they live in.  The conflicts are mostly internal, not external.  Plus, it’s amazing to look at.  Wendy Pini art is gorgeously expressive from the first issue, and I find it hard to believe that this was her first comic book.  

That wolf is not happy.

Nothing like a best friend :)

The character design is excellent.  Everyone is instantly recognizable.

So much storytelling in these two pages.  So much joy.

The enthusiasm is infectious.

These four pages are such an emotionally satisfying culmination to the arc.

I remember this being good at least through the first five trades.  This is going to be fun.

Regret buying: No

Would buy again: Yes

Would read again: Yes

Rating: Really good