More of the island is revealed and the scale of the mystery grows.
Creative Staff:
Story: Cullen Bunn
Art: Juan Doe
Letterer: Dave Sharpe
What They Say:
The monsters of Shrae’s Ark are being hunted for sport. With Shrae missing, Khalee, Janris, Orrin and a small cadre of monsters set out to stop the hunters from killing them off one by one. But these monsters have never trusted each other, and the dangers they face may push their uneasy alliance beyond its limits.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The arrival on the island has definitely opened the series up to some new potential and I’m excited to see what more of these reveals will be. Cullen Bunn has been exploring things well in this series from the get-go with Juan Do elevating it thanks to some simply beautiful designs and colors. It’s just a perfect blending that creates something distinctive in a very crowded market. The arrival on the island has definitely shifted the story as it puts Shrae and his crew into a new position where they’re working with the monsters in order to survive since they’re both caught up in these mysterious creatures machinations.
With Shrae and Nex, they and the others rounded up by these tall and powerful looking creatures have found themselves being taken further inland to where there are structures that look very, very old. There isn’t much in the way of details to latch onto just yet with who they are, who is supporting them, and what they really are, but the way there’s a dozen or more angel wings hanging from trees and broken halos on the ground, it’s clear once again that another powerful force is out there in the mix even as the world flooded. Nex and Shrae aren’t exactly working together in a sense since both are prisoners but they’re also dropping the usual adversarial tone because they know that their survival may really rely on the other in order to get out of all of this. It’s a pragmatic unspoken approach and I love that it’s done that way.
Those that weren’t rounded up are struggling to figure out what’s going on and Khalee is definitely taking a central position in this. Her discovering that Rea hid in Shrae’s quarters has clued her into something that made the locals fearful, which we get a small taste of at the end as she’s taking power into her own hands. But it’s engaging before that to watch this ragtag style group come together after the losses recently, especially with a very angry Kruul, and heading inland to find out more of what’s going on and striking first in order to gain information. They’re cautious but they’re also not avoiding taking risks because they have so few options. The wariness between the human side and monster side is still there, more than what we see with the other group, but that comes from not being shackled I suspect.
In Summary:
Dark Ark delivers more intrigue here and expands on what’s going on a bit with the wings and halos that those more versed in the lore will get quicker than I. But the mystery is engaging as is watching how everyone is dealing with it. I particularly like Nex and Shrae with the way they’re observing and gathering information but I also love that Khalee is being a lot more forward and aggressive in making sure they survive or at least strike back some. Combine that with some gorgeous visuals, especially anytime that Kruul is around, and the greater mystery itself and I can’t wait to see more of what this arc of the Dark Ark has in store.
Grade: A-
Age Rating: 17+
Released By: AfterShock Comics
Release Date: February 13th, 2019
MSRP: $3.99
