The main series may be over, but with Kirby: Genesis!: Dragonsbane #3, the tribute to the late, great “King of Comics” continues. Here’s the official description from Dynamite:

Spinning out of KIRBY: GENESIS, Sigurd Dragonsbane and his band of champions explore the astonishing Mythlands, where the heroes and legends of every cultural tradition now reside. But there’s someone terrifying waiting for them in the dark, dank forests of Eastern European folklore…and if she has her way, their journey might end right there! Plus: The mysterious meaning of the Soothsayer’s prophecies-revealed!

First a confession, which probably won’t earn me many friends: I don’t care for Jack Kirby‘s character designs, or, in this case, Kirby-style character designs (and I’m phrasing it mildly to be polite). The cosmic characters inevitably look like they’re from the 60s or 70s and always look ridiculous.

What makes all this even more frustrating in Dragonsbane is that the story is presumably set in the Middle Ages, so the appearances are anachronistic in addition to being goofy.

All that said, Robert Rodi delivers a decent script. His dialogue in particular made me happys as he manages to sound appropriately quaint and antiquated while being humorous, without verging into silliness. I do question a few choices, like having the characters stand around chatting idly while their friend is attacked, but the writing is generally good on a page by page basis. (The overall plot seems mediocre, but I can’t say too much, as this is the first issue I’ve read.)

With the exception of the aforementioned character designs (which I’m pretty sure are Alex Ross’, styled after Kirby) Fritz Casas‘ art is beautiful. The figure work and level of detail are great. His inking is even better that his pencil work, as makes some of the images moody and very memorable. Casas’ style also has a vintage feel, which certainly seems appropriate, given the Kirby connection.  Salvator Aiala‘s colors are a major contribution in that regard. Casas does recycle images a bit, but it’s generally minor.

With good writing and great art (my personal prejudices aside) Dragonsbane #3 is another fine edition to the Kirby: Genesis! family and to the Jack Kirby tradition.

3.5/5