Blackwood: The Mourning After #2
Kevin Rossi
Recap
As Blackwood College prepares to bury Dean Ogden, the students plot to raise Dennis from the dead, requiring them to take a trip to the morgue. This doesn't leave any of our heroes much time to deal with feuding security teams, a missing mummy chimp, and a conspiracy of traitors planning Blackwood's destruction.
Review
Blackwood: The Morning After #2 will be a gem of the summer. Readers won’t even be mad that they’re back in school at Blackwood College. It is only issue #2 and so much is already happening. The students sneak into the morgue to steal Dennis’ body. I really enjoy the shenanigans the students get into together, because they really seem like a team of friends. The way they go about things really seems like the way students their age would too. That means they don’t always think things through. The horrible part about the morgue is that they did not know which drawer his body was in, so It took a couple of tries. The idea of sneaking into the morgue was risky and crazy, but the reality of actually getting in and then looking for the body was shocking. Shocking in a good way, though. The series has a lot of these moments that reminds the reader that there are horror and supernatural elements, not just magic.
Something that I cannot praise enough is Dorkin’s writing. The group of students the series is centered around feel like they are actually students in real life. The way they speak and interact with each other feels so realistic and current, and this is only complimented by Veronica and Andy Fish. Having the characters so believable works surprisingly well with the setting. Having a school based around magic and the supernatural will immediately bring something like Hogwarts and the world of Harry Potter to mind. With Blackwood:The Mourning After, the world contains all of these fantasy elements, but the characters and setting are so well done that everything feels familiar.
Veronica and Andy Fish’s art is a crucial part to this book. Dorkin’s writing is spot on with capturing a contemporary voice, but the Fish’s completely seal the deal. For one, the colors are some of the most gorgeous that I have seen in a book. They are simple but full of life.The students would fit right in around an actual college town or city. It feels like they aren’t drawn to look like students, or what people think they look like, but they simply are students. It is little details like this that show the brilliance of Veronica and Andy Fish and make Blackwood:The Mourning After such an enjoyable series.
Final Thoughts
Blackwood: The Mourning After #2 is a blast to read and perfectly balances reality in a magic setting. Dorkin's talent shines in his characters; the students don't feel like caricatures. The Fish's art is the frosting on the cake — you can't get enough.
Blackwood: The Mourning After #2: Spooky Teamwork
- Writing - 9/109/10
- Storyline - 8/108/10
- Art - 9/109/10
- Color - 9/109/10
- Cover Art - 7/107/10