The Ending And What An Ending Means With Coda #12
by Josh Davison
[*Mild Spoilers Ahead!]
Serka has found Sir Hum’s diary, and the last entry has left her frozen and in tears as the battle against the Murkrone rages around her. It seems like the Murkrone is now unstoppable, but the rage that this tragedy leaves within Serka causes her to fly into a berserker rage and may just be enough to turn the tide…with some help. Meanwhile, Sir Hum himself is still under the mind-control of the Murkrone, but he may just have had a contingency plan for even this dire situation.
Coda #12 brings the BOOM! Studios maxiseries to a bombastic and satisfying ending. A good ending is a hard thing to stick, but Simon Spurrier and Matías Bergara manage to craft one with this issue.
The battle between Serka and the Murkrone is the solidification of both the two halves of Sir Hum and the two paths going forward for the world of Coda on offer. The Murkrone is duplicitous and selfish like Sir Hum, and she wants to control the world and narrative going forward. Serka is kind and compassionate, also like Sir Hum, and she wants to allow the world to choose its own future.
This all sounds quite broad and maybe a tad impersonal, but Coda #12 still has a very grounded and human story at its heart. Sir Hum and Serka’s marriage seemingly self-destructed a few issues back, as Hum was trying to fundamentally change Serka. He feels immensely guilty about that, and Serka finds the signs of his genuine contrition throughout this issue. Whether it can still work or if they will both even be alive to patch things up…well I won’t reveal that here.
The comic does have some things to say about narratives and what they do for the world, and they are genuinely interesting observations.
Bergara’s artwork thoroughly sticks the landing as well, giving Coda #12 an explosive aesthetic that takes advantage of the strange fantasy elements at the story’s disposal. He captures the more quiet moments quite well too. The color art, with assists from Michael Doig, also holds steady, giving this comic just the right palette and atmosphere that it needed.
Coda #12 gives the Spurrier and Bergara series the emotional and exciting ending it deserved. The comic is smart, heady, engaging, and all-around fantastic. This one gets a strong recommendation. Give it a read.
Coda #12 comes to us from writer Simon Spurrier, artist Matías Bergara with color assists from Michael Doig, letterer Jim Campbell, cover artist Matías Bergara, and variant cover artist Chris Visions.
Final Score: 9.5/10
