Rob reviews Once Upon A Time In Xanatopia Issue #3...
DC Horn and David Swanson are back with another issue of Once Upon A Time In Xanatopia. Subtitled 'The Existence Of Angels: Part 1', we get to see the further adventures of Nora as she attempts to grieve for her fallen friend and companion - Cherry.
OUATIX #3 picks up events a short time after those seen in issue #2. After their ambush within the generator field, Nora stands as the sole survivor. Cherry has been slain by the monsters, and Nora is left to deal with her grief and anguish. With Cherry's wife, Ann blaming Nora for her husband's death, the Paladin soon finds herself alone on the streets of Dor. However, trouble has a way of rearing its ugly head, and Nora is soon thrust back into the world of the Paladins and their devotion to their divine cause.
Choosing to suppress the thoughts of her childhood, Nora takes up the opportunity in dealing with some monsters in the mysterious "Statue Field". Shrouded in darkness, Nora then takes to this field that's home to various stone statues with no reasonable knowledge of their origin. What then follows is a dark and brooding battle as Nora goes toe-to-slithering-mass with the stone-faced monsters as the rain plummets down onto the strange field of battle.
Conclude the issue and we're thrown into more unknown territory. While it's not as shocking as Cherry's untimely demise, it throws what little we know about the world in an entirely new direction.
While this issue does feature plenty of action, its overall feel is a little more intimate as Horn explores the character in the aftermath of that battle. While the first two issues of OUATIX highlighted how much of a badass Nora is, it's here we see her vulnerability start to come through. Without Cherry to guide her, she's now alone in this world which is something that draws Nora back into revisiting her past and enlightening the reader about how the duo met. It's a touching scene that not only humanises the character but also touches upon how we deal with our grief in reliving happier times. It's also this feeling that drives this issue forwards as Nora attempts to throw herself back into her work.
Much like the previous outings, Horn uses Nora's self-monologue to convey her thoughts and feelings. This does mean that there's very little spoken dialogue, yet in doing so it perfectly sets the tone. As I mentioned above, this issue is as dark and moody as you can get. And whether it be the character beating herself up, or Swanson's rain-soaked imagery, it's hard to see any signs of a happy ending.
Speaking of art, while Horn continues to add heaps of depth to his central character, it's Swanson who has the job of bringing it all to life. While the previous issues have each featured some superb imagery, this issue has the best of the bunch. In matching the tone, Swanson utilises a palette of muted colours that's ever so slightly touched by flashes of light. The only colour we see is the bright white flashes of lightning or the brooding red of Nora's weapons and cybernetics.
The world of OUATIX is arguably the series' strongest and weakest point. While it's filled with these incredible sights of vast man-made lightning fields, and a cemetery-like field of stone statues, we're never given much exposure to how it all works. At times Horn does touch upon the inner workings of his world, but it's never fully explained and often feels pretty shallow. Give me an issue where we see the hierarchy of the Paladins, or who (or what) the Divine Viceroy Arc is and I'll be a happy reader.
However, the other side of this coin is that while the world is shallow, Horn makes up for it with an incredibly complex central character.
When it's said and done, OUATIX #3 is another great outing to this sci-fi fantasy series. The shift in narrative tone from action-epic to dark and moody perfectly captures the feelings of the central character and allows for a greater building of what lies behind that badass exterior. Away from this and the artwork continues to pop from each page as David Swanson takes us through DC Horn's superb creation.
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