New complications arise.
Creative Staff:
Story: Vita Ayala
Art: Olympia Sweetman
Colors: Rebecca Nalty
Letterer: Ariana Maher
What They Say:
“The Grand Old Army” The epic journeys persist, courtesy of VITA AYALA (Shuri, Livewire, The Wilds) and OLYMPIA SWEETMAN! Xena and Gabrielle find themselves amidst a deadly quarrel between The God Of Strife and The God Of Discord! The only way to save a village of innocents is for Xena to agree to lead an army against an incoming Roman legion. But Xena’s “army” is comprised of…the village elders!?
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
Getting into the Xena series is interesting as it brings back some of those hazy memories of the TV series, those lazy weekends watching episodes of it and Hercules and the kind of camp and seriousness mixed throughout it. I liked what Vita Ayala brought to the first issue in setting up the story and making clearer the bond that Xena and Gabrielle share since they don’t have to play by the mores and standards of that time and place. Olympia Sweetman also put together a good looking book with Rebecca Nalty which carries though here once again with a lot to like as the designs for the characters look great and the settings pretty details and interesting.
With a deal made with Discord, Xena and the group of elders are heading off on the mission assigned to them to help smooth things out. It’s not a bad thing because it falls under some of what Xena likes in dealing with Roman soldiers. They’re being sent to destroy Discord’s temples and apparently it’s being done under Deimos’ intentions, though we later learn that Discord’s child Strife is involved as well. Strife is just wanting to deal with the people that are here that shouldn’t be and is working his own machinations in order to gain an upperhand. Discord’s not exactly aware of that and is focused more on her own immediate goals and the kind of chaos that she can come up with. It fits her personality well and the friction with Strife is nicely handled.
A lot of time in the book is spent in dealing with the Roman’s and it plays well as you get Xena sneaking about to figure out what they’re up to while Gabrielle deals with the village elder to try and understand more of what’s been going on. Both of them play good roles here and it leads into a solid bond for the fight that ensues the next day where the Roman’s are dealt with far easier than one might expect. It’s amusing in seeing how it was basically accomplished thanks to bending of the rules that Discord set forth but that’s been the game of the gods for the longest time and turning it back on them is always fun. That we spend some decent time with the gods at the end to resolve the short term problem is interesting but it left me really curious as to how Discord will be handled going forward, or if she’s just going to be the occasional thorn in Xena’s side.
In Summary:
The opening issue of Xena was a pretty good time and this one carries it through for the most part but doesn’t quite connect for me in the same way. Ayala keeps the story moving forward well and I like the greater inclusion of the gods here early on to establish their involvement in general, though hopefully they’re not in every story as strong. Sweetman’s artwork is solid throughout and I really liked the way thea action in the mountains plays out and especially the sequence with the gods toward the end. It’s a solid enough book but it hasn’t fully clicked for me just yet.
Grade: B
Age Rating: 15+
Released By: Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: May 15th, 2019
MSRP: $3.99
