What we give birth to.
Creative Staff:
Story: Cullen Bunn
Art: Mirko Colak
Colors: Mirko Colak
Letterer: Simon Bowland
What They Say:
You’ve heard the story of Arthur, Guinevere, and Lancelot—a tale of love both courtly and true. Now envision that love unfolding in a version of Camelot crawling with demonic receivers and unnatural horrors! Love itself takes a dark turn as jealousies unfold and grim thoughts of murder and betrayal take root in the minds of kings.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Unholy Grail definitely caught my attention with the first issue so when the third issue come my way from AfterShock, I was definitely curious to see how things are turning, Cullen Bunn feels very at home in adapting this story with its darker edge and that comes through brilliantly thanks to Mirko Colak’s artwork and color design. It looks and feels like familiar fable and fairy tale material but it has such a darker edge and the richness of the details and the color design makes it all the more gripping and terrifying. Colak is also putting together some really great pages with the way they’re laid out and the flow of it which just makes it almost pulse-quickening the further you go and as the action and intensity ramps up.
This installment is one that does some heavy lifting as we get Arthur, under guidance from Merlin, instructing him on how to get the sword he needs from the Lady of the Lake. It’s a fascinating discussion in itself because of the manipulations that Merlin has in play but also because he makes it clear that a king is absolute, but there are those that are much older and have much to offer and be listened to for. Arthur’s encounter with the Lady is troubling in her insistence that his brief life be given to her in terms of an undying love, particularly since she notes how much he’s aged since they last met while it’s been a blink of an eye for her. His acquiring the sword gives him much of what he needs in order to be king and rule over these lands, though that’s not what the story is focused on once acquired.
The move forward to the wedding between Arthur and Guinevere certainly makes clear, as this series has, that it’s not going to belabor points that are a given to the lore. But coming after the time with the Lady it’s unnerving because you know it cannot end well and Merlin makes that clear in whispers to her. His working of the larger plan is quite disturbing as he orchestrates her to be kidnapped only to be saved by Arthur, though it was Lancelot that did the deed itself. That in turn brings those two together in carnal fashion and serves to give birth to what will be Morgana le Fay, something I’m really curious to see how it unfolds. Bunn moves through all of this quickly but still manages to make all involved interesting, even the minimal amount we get for Lancelot. Guinevere gets most of the attention from this arc after Arthur and seeing the way she’s presented here is definitely intriguing because of her self assured nature.
In Summary:
Unholy Grail caught my attention in a big way with the first installment and checking in on it here in the third just reinforces that there’s something fun to be had here, albeit in a dark way. My enjoyment of Bunn’s works are kind of hit or miss but this one is firmly in the hit category as we see this tale of the Knights of the Roundtable in a new way. The script keeps things moving, the characters are interesting to see how they react to what’s going on, and I love the darker take on it all. It’s Mirko Colak’s artwork that just elevates it to a whole other level, however, and is the kind of work that really needs to be seen and understood in how to approach this kind of project and others like it. I love the character designs and settings and just how everything is put together from top to bottom here.
Grade: A-
Age Rating: 17+
Released By: AfterShock Comics
Release Date: July 5th, 2017
MSRP: $3.99
