More curiosities afoot.
Creative Staff:
Story: Nalo Hopkinson
Art: Dominike “Domo” Stanton”
Colors: John Rauch
Letterer: Deron Bennett
What They Say:
Erzulie shouldn’t be in the Dreaming; in fact, she isn’t really sure how she suddenly got stranded there. Worse, she soon learns that she is no longer connected to her worshippers, which, for a deity, means only one thing: death. Against the advice of Cain and Abel, Erzulie steers her houseboat back into the rip between the worlds in an effort to return to her realm. But how will she find her way back, and what danger lies ahead in the otherworldly waters she finds herself sailing?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The opening installment of House of Whispers left me conflicted because there was a lot to like but it wasn’t what I felt was a good way to open a book. Down the line, to be sure, getting into the cast and how everything operates. The ending teaser page is what brought me back for a second issue and some of that is still true here. Nalo Hopkinson is providing for a very slow burn here with more verbosity than it needs which is dragging things along a bit but it’s helped by Domo’s artwork as there’s a lot of really neat things within this visually, with the locations and all the background cast. There are some fun things just in how it’s all designed and that makes it an enjoyable read from that perspective, particularly with the layouts.
With the Boat of Whispers having landed in the realm of Dream, which is undergoing its own problems as seen in The Dreaming, there’s a lot of chaos going on here in small. Erzulie is struggling with the fact that she’s now cut off from her source and she’s feeling things she shouldn’t, such as pain, and that’s almost putting her into a panic. Uncle Monday is helping some but there’s not much to ease someone into feeling like this. It doesn’t help that both Cain and Abel are now there as well and going on about almost destroying their homes, never mind all the chaos that the boat has brought. It’s amusing and fun watching all of this happening and simply seeing the way that Erzulie recognizes and panics about being in the Dreaming hits a certain sweet spot.
That actually comes in the form of her and Uncle Monday getting a smaller boat and trying to make their way out with the idea of coming back for the rest, but that just ends up with everything in worse shape (and the brothers more upset). There’s a lot of time devoted to the supporting casting waking up from the event and their attempts at understanding that’s more drawn out than it should be. We do get some decent time with Latoya and her family after she passed out and entered a coma. This has more going for it storywise since we see Latoya coming back awake after things shift in the Dreaming but she’s convinced she’s died and lost much of herself, leaving her feeling hollow. It’s a conflicting couple of pages in how it plays out but it sets up for some real danger in the real world and something strange and wonderful in the Dreaming with the “spark” that’s there of her.
In Summary:
I’m still in for a while with this book because I can see the potential of the book and the world it wants to explore but the flow of the book still has this feeling like it’s part of an oversized first issue. I like what we get from the familiar Dreaming elements that are included as they’re old time favorites and I’m very intrigued by everything that Hopkinson is bringing in with Erzulie and her ship. But as I said the last time around, it’s just not clicking in a way that really connects for me yet with the pacing and with just how verbose it is as I’m losing track of what’s important, especially with a monthly-run book. Domo’s artwork is a delight with so much to take in, especially in the Dreaming, that it’s a delight just to slide through the pages with all its detail and color.
Grade: C
Age Rating: 17+
Released By: Vertigo Comics via ComiXology
Release Date: October 10th, 2018
MSRP: $3.99
