Written by Rachel Freeman
The Power of the Dark Crystal is published by BOOM! Studios under their Archaia imprint. It is written by Simon Spurrier with art by Kelly and Nichole Matthews.
Based off of the original Jim Henson film, The Dark Crystal…
Ok, I don’t know about you, but I LOVE The Dark Crystal. I know it scared a lot of people when they were kids, but I was one of those who just watched it over and over. When they announced this comic, I was so very excited and it has met all of my standards. It lives up to its movie prequel. If you haven’t watch the movie, you need to. Go. Do it now. Anyway, I didn’t get to review the first 2 issues, so that’s why I’m telling you all of this now.
WARNING: IF YOU HAVE NOT READ ISSUES 1 OR 2, THIS REVIEW WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS
Alright, so here we are at issue #3. At the end of issue #2, we saw Thurma shatter the crystal. The Skeksis are free and the emerge almost immediately. They are hungry and they are as easily distracted as ever. While the argue and fumble around, Thurma is able to escape with a shard, but the Crystal Guard is also able to reach Jen and Kira before the Skeksis take notice of them. Also, as usual, the Mystics are like 0 help to the Gelflings. Meanwhile, Aughra has received her prophecy and scrambles to get the Crystal Shard back from Thurma before she gets too far.
Pros: I have loved every issue of this series so far. I love that old characters have stayed true, but that new characters bring something different to the table. I also love Thurma and her race of Firelings. They fit so nicely into this world Jim Henson previously created. I also like how conflicted I feel already. After 3 issues, I am attached to Thurma, I want to see her succeed, I want her to survive. But Jen and Kira are near and dear to my heart. I know what life was like before they restored the Crystal so, obviously, I want them to continue on as well. We know the prophecy says “One world dies, another made right”, however, this may not mean what we think it means. Even in the movie, the prophecy was vague and its truth was more complex than it seemed. I’m excited to read which direction they decide to go.
Cons: Kensho is….so weak right now. I mean, I get that he’s supposed to be nice, but he is just…utterly weak. Yes, he sacrificed his freedom to save his people, he gave up his stone to those Podlings to heal their baby, he doesn’t judge others and wasn’t afraid of Thurma, and I’m sure we will get more build for him, but just…I want to hear his actual thoughts and feelings. He is clearly a little upset with Thurma but she’s all, “but you said you’d do anything for people you love” and then he’s just suddenly ok with helping her? He sacrificed his life to save his people, who she may have just sentenced to death anyway! Then again, he wasn’t really given a lot of time to process considering the Chamberlin showed up all creepily.
OVERALL SCORE: 9 / 10
So far, the characters have stayed true. While they are creepy, the Skeksis are still also comedic with their bickering. And the new duo, Thurma and Kensho, are a very different dynamic than Jen and Kira. Make sure you pick up a copy from your local comic store!
Happy reading!
