Dungeons & Dragons: At the Spine of the World #2

Based on the massively popular game and featuring a brand-new cast of characters, written by New York Times bestselling author AJ Mendez and writer/actor Aimee Garcia!

SYNOPSIS: As Runa, Saarvin, Patience, Amos, and Belvyre trek across the icy tundra in search of a hidden city whose magic could help save their own, they find themselves at the mercy of the blighted landscape… and hunted by unimaginable monsters.

Let me start out with a fair warning, I have never had the opportunity to play Dungeons & Dragons. Not for lack of trying, I have just never had the opportunity to join a party. My apologies if anything went over my head. That being said, as a fantasy/adventure comic, this series definitely ranks among my favorites. There’s something special about watching an RPG’esque story unfold with a party that comes together through matters of destiny. Aimee & AJ do a spectacular job of giving these characters a layered personality that I would expect to find running a campaign of D&D with my friends. 

The second issue of this series picks up with our party setting off on the adventure that for reasons we learned before, finds our characters banded together. Something I particularly enjoyed about these first panels is how well the creative team expresses the poignant reminder of how unforgiving the environment can be during a quest. 

As the party pushes forward to find shelter their conversation takes an awkward turn in respect to their options of warmth. For the sake of avoiding spoilers, let’s just say their time of rest is greatly short-lived. We get a slight understanding of the Chardalyn & those who might oppose our party of heroes. Thus we enter, what is in my opinion, the heart of this issue. 

Our party enters into battle! The art of the issue takes center stage here, providing a fight sequence through genius line work and coloring and set up through seamless panel sequences. Something I have most recently seen done by Hitch & Sinclair in ‘The Batman’s Grave.’ Trust me when I tell you, they rolled a CRIT 20 on this one.

Overall, whether you are a seasoned Dungeon Master or enjoy a great fantasy tale with great character development, the occasional humorous banter, and kick-ass battles will have you searching for the nearest LARPing community. This series has something to offer even the most casual of readers.