In a time of ancient gods, warlords, and kings, a land in turmoil cried out for a hero. She was XENA, a mighty princess forged in battle. The power, the passion, the danger… her courage would change the world
Creative Staff:
Writer: Genevieve Valentine
Art: Ariel Medel
Colors: Nanjan Jamberi
Letters: Rob Steen
What They Say:
After being hidden from the wrath of the gods by Ares’ 25-year enchanted sleep, Xena and Gabrielle awoke and battled Olympus itself to save the soul of Xena’s Daughter! In the aftermath, half the gods are dead, and Xena’s allies are in exile: Ares powerless and banished. Aphrodite missing. And while Xena and Gabrielle are in Rome’s favor, the world they’ve returned to is not…
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
Xena is a property that many may remember, and it’s been gone for a good long while. That idea by itself makes this comic hold a bit of mystery. Given that Xena and Gabrielle have been asleep for 25 years and that Rome has taken hold of the land, things were definitely going to be different, but just how different is surprising. The Roman Empire has taken over much of the land, and Genevieve Valentine has used these first two issues to show us just what kind of world Xena now inhabits. Most of her allies are dead or powerless now, but Xena seems to be considered some sort of ally to Rome. We’re only at the second issue, but already, the world Xena is in now is starting to unfold more. Her old allies, The Harpies have changed quite a bit, even thinking her a Xena impostor last issue. It’s clear that after having been gone 25 years and having the Roman Empire take over so much has not done much good for relations. The set pieces in this comic are great, and they match the story well.
The scene where Xena and Gabrielle briefly fight the Harpies is a great one, combining both action and sadness in a way. Xena does not want to be fighting these women. They were her allies once, and she probably feels like they can be again. It’s an exciting scene because Xena is finding that what was once a group of allies is now a group of untrusting warriors following in the footsteps of the previous Harpies. These women remember Xena and Gabrielle less fondly, with the women not fully trusting Xena and some, like Chilapa, having some grudges to bear. It’s a short but chilling scene, but one can’t help but feel bad when Chilapa mentions that she no longer rules the Telaquire Amazons, who are gone, but Chilapa bears a grudge against the true queen that abandoned them, making mention that Gabrielle was once Queen of the Amazons in question. It both shows how much has changed and been affected by the absence of Xena and Gabrielle and also how their absence has affected others. It’s clear from the interactions with the Harpies that the band of warriors has been negatively affected, but it seems the land has as well.
Valentine’s story weaves its way back to the history of Xena, with both this issue and the last one delving into the idea of how much the world has changed during her sleep. Rome took great advantage of this, which is evident by this issue. The Harpies are being apparently framed for massacres they weren’t part of, and Xena, along with Gabrielle, more or less exploring this new world to an extent. The highlight of the issue has to be Xena and Gabrielle at the Harpies’ camp. There, Genevieve Valentine shows us just where things are going. The scene where Gabrielle is confronted about the visions of Xena she’s been having is both chilling and powerful. Gabrielle essentially provides the reader with the knowledge that things are about to get much worse for our title character that she may have previously thought. The Romans and the Harpies may not be the only thing to worry about soon. Ariel Medel’s art stands as pretty well done. It’s easy to tell what Xena and the other characters introduced this issue are doing. Nanjam’s colors are also pretty well done, distinguishing clothing, people, and objects. The surroundings are able to be told apart quite well, though some may consider the art style a bit blocky at times.
In Summary:
Xena, Warrior Princess #2 has placed our hero in a precarious place in a new world. Valentine has done this well, though. She builds strong main characters in Xena and Gabrielle and pretty good supporting ones in Chilapa and the Harpies. There’s a lot of exposition this issue, other than the initial fight scene, but it all serves to highlight the world better. The team behind the book makes it engaging and gives us a good fantasy world to look at, while showing how it has changed. While the supporting cast may not be able to hold their own book, their background is certainly interesting enough, and it will be very interesting to see how Xena furthers her relationship with these Harpies going forward. We’ve set up a lot by now and we’re moving forward to a new objective, so I can’t wait to see what future twists and surprises come up for Xena and the others. This was, like the first issue, a very good read once more.
Grade: B
Age Rating: Teen+
Released By: Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date : May 18th, 2016
MSRP: $3.99
