Fire vs Water, with a side of the other stuff too.
Creative Staff
Series created by Elisabetta Gnone
Art Direction: Alessandro Barbucci, Barbara Canepa
Translation/Adaptation: Linda Ghio & Stephanie Dagg at Editing Zone
(Each chapter was originally published as a standalone comic book, and like most series each book has a rotating creator list consisting of artists, colorists, letterers, etc. The book credits everyone involved, but for brevity and my own sanity I’m only noting the leads.)
What They Say
W.I.T.C.H.: The Graphic Novel, Part V. The Book of Elements Vol. #03
An Enemy Redeemed?
To save Matt, the Guardians must track down the elemental gems required to open the Book of Elements, but no one ever said the task would be easy! Meanwhile, Cedric finds himself increasingly drawn to Orube…
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The girls of W.I.T.C.H. have determined a course of action to rescue Matt from the confines of the magic book. Doing so means returning the magical stone symbols to the book itself, but that means that they’re playing directly into the hands (pages?) of an evil entity. With a riddle as a clue to the location of a stone, they set out to begin retrieving the magical stones, which takes up the entire volume.
The girls have gotten better at learning how to disguise themselves. A dawning realization that they can use their powers to look older allows them to sneak away on adult errands without suspicion. The only real problem is hiding their fairy wings when they do. Coming up with excuses for trips and missing out on events remains an ongoing difficulty. A few lucky breaks come their way to get them where they need to be, but it’s still very touch-and-go.
As for the actual magical confrontations, their scavenger hunt results in each guardian facing their element alone. The others become entranced by the power of the rogue elemental forces. Hallucinations, paranoia, and other head games stymie the girls along their adventure. Illusion plays such a huge part of this volume that it’s often the force which has to be overcome.
The hunt takes the girls to all sorts of interesting locations. From an abandoned rocky island which used to be the location of a lighthouse to a thermal spa, the girls have quite the trip. Irma and Taranee get entire chapters devoted to their element, but Hay Lin and Cornelia share the final chapter of this volume. Even as each stone is recovered and returned to the book, the oracles of Kandrakar look on knowing that it’s all a trap. Yet, once again, they do nothing and just have to hope the guardians figure everything out on their own.
There’s surprisingly little outside drama in this volume. The real-world problems of school and home don’t factor in much. Will has to cover for Matt’s absence once, and Taranee and Irma have a small spat. It’s nice to step away from the teen drama for a bit.
Even though the blurb talks about Cedric, he appears in only a few pages of this volume, and only long enough to realize that he’s starting to like Orube. You have to wonder if it’s Stockholm syndrome or something more. He still wants power and revenge, he’s just now factoring in asking Orube to come along for the ride.
The artwork throughout this volume is extremely consistent despite the use of four different pencilers. I’m always impressed by how uniform the artwork can be between artists. Still, some are better at panel composition and layout than others and it shows in a few places. The translation reads smoother in this volume as well.
The extras for this volume are a look at Hay Lin’s attic and Irma’s bathroom. I’m guessing the theme is the girls’ favorite places in their homes.
In Summary
The girls continue to play right into Cedric’s plan at revenge, but he too is just a tool being used by an ancient evil. The usual petty bickering doesn’t hold the girls back for very long this time. The mind games evil plays are thwarted and the girls grow closer to giving the book exactly what it wants in exchange for Matt. The pacing for this long story arc is much improved over some of the previous ones, yet Hay Lin and Cornelia get the short end of the stick by having to share a chapter for their adventure. I wonder how Orube will react once she realizes that all of her babysitting of Cedric didn’t prevent the plot to capture Matt.
Content Grade: B
Art Grade: B +
Packaging Grade: A
Text/Translation Grade: A
Age Rating: All Ages
Released By: JY (Yen Press), Disney Comics
Release Date: June 18, 2019
MSRP: $15.00 US / $19.50 CN
