Just when you thought it was safe to go out on a Saturday night … then the club scene gets too freaky!
Creative Staff:
Writer: Lou Iovino
Artwork: Sergio Ariño and David Lorenzo Riveiro
Colors: Grostieta and Hedwin Zaldivar
Letters: Taylor Esposito
What They Say:
Since she left Myst, Robyn Locksley’s life has been defined by the dizzying highs and crushing blows. She defeated a mysterious and powerful cabal bent on death and destruction and served as Maid of Honor at her best friend Marian’s wedding. But these triumphs were tempered by great loss. The deaths of friends Avella and Nicky continue to resonate through Robyn’s days, casting a shadow over all that she does.
This is the story of what comes next. It’s the story of Robyn on her own for the first time, making her way toward an uncertain future. But most importantly, it’s the story of a growing love affair between this unlikely outlaw hero and the greatest city on Earth, New York City – and how it saves them both.
Content (please note that portions of review may contain spoilers):
Things haven’t gone too well for Robyn since she reopened Nottingham Investigations, for it seems that all of the usual monsters that she normally tracks down have gone into hiding. But, a girl has got to pay the bills, so she is left with no other choice than to meet with a wealthy socialite who wants to track down her cheating husband. All she wants is to get some dirt on him and his obsession with freaks, and the best place to start is a nightclub in Harlem. If the blonde archer can find the evidence, the client will double the fee, so it should be an easy job. However, when night falls and the place in question is infiltrated, Robyn soon finds out that this mission is not what she hoped it would be, especially when she sees that the employees are Highborns.
As she slips inside, the consummate professional clumsy falls for a flash bang and is overcome by a new competitor dressed all in red. After a flurry blows are exchanged between the combatants, the scarlet clad woman lets her anger get the better of her and lashes out, tackling the intruder to the ground; once the worst of the grenade is over and her vision is clear, Robyn soon sees and hears a familiar face, it is none other than Britney Waters, the Red Agent. But before the friends can get reacquainted, the club’s guards barge in and try to subdue the pair. Fortunately, they are no match for feral strength and quick reflexes until the leader of the group arrives, forcing the flaxen pair to retreat. As her wounds are patched up, Brit tells her new partner about the group she now leads, the Highborn Initiative; it seems that they now both have the same objective – to free these enslaved captives. Now that they have reunited, how hard can this new case be against normal humans?
In Summary:
This issue was a great pleasure to read since it marked the return the old version of Britney, who has always been one of my favorite characters. When Lou Iovino brought her back earlier this year with Red Agent, I was glad to see her, but that series seemed to hold back her true personality in favor of the spy genre story; the version which I preferred is the portrayal of a woman conflicted by an internal struggle between human and beast, and as such, she is able to relate to those who cannot live a normal life due to their condition. While he did touch on that topic in the previous series, it was in this story which her feral persona shone through, and as such, the relationship of her bestial side and those who were oppressed by the humans. It is this unique take on the typical subjugation story which gives it a more tender undertone, seeing the employees as second class due to their inhuman appearance with Red rescuing them, a person with a foot in two worlds, understanding them both.
This story is wonderfully suited to Sergio Ariño’s art style – his sharp, crisp lines help to define the emotional stress on the character’s faces and at the same time, the frenetic action of the fight scenes are highlighted by those same dark stresses. You can almost feel the grittiness of New York, smell the stale stench of pigeons and barely hear the rythmic pulsing beat once you enter the club. But that only leads us into the most dynamic scene of the series, the fight between old friends, reminiscent of their first meeting: every dull thud of a fist landing, the sickening sound of a body impacting or the swipe of a claw noticeably missing, it all brings back those fond memories rushing back. But this tension is amplified by the wonderful colors of Grostieta and Hedwin Zaldivar, twisting the shadows to fit each panel until we land inside the sickening den of iniquity, for it is from here on which they bring all of the nuances into the story. The bright neon of the dance floor transfers beautifully into the fight, with the dark crimson of Britney contrasting wonderfully against Robyn’s drab forest green, all dancing within a sickening brilliant lemon yellow background. This skillful use of primary colors just intensifies the actions of the women, making Ariño’s illustrations jump out from the page even more than normal. Then to calm things down, David Lorenzo Riveiro’s somber art brings everything down to earth with his brilliantly detailed work, closing the book for another great issue.
Robyn Hood: I Love NY is moving forward into a marvelous series all thanks to great stories like this one and the wonderfully brilliant workings of the artistic team. With each passing issue, you can see Robyn slowly letting her hair down, but at the same time, you can still see the inklings of her violent past coming back. Since she no longer has the calming hand of someone to guide her, our flaxen archer is lashing out more, but it is even if it is disturbing to see human instead of monsters falling to her skillfully launched shafts. Hopefully, she will learn to rein in her more destructive urges while saving those who need her vigilante help.
Grade: A+
Rating: T (for Teens)
Released By: Zenescope
Release Date: August 17, 2016
MSRP: $3.99
