A Journey For The Ages: Reviewing ‘The Hunger And The Dusk’ #6

Life provides various paths for the taking. Sometimes the path forward requires a small trip down the paths already traveled.

Backstories, first meetings, and loves-not-meant-to be-are found upon those paths in The Hunger And The Dusk #6, the last issue of the current volume. It’s an emotional journey from G. Willow Wilson, Chris Wildgoose, Msassyk, Diana Sousa, and Simon Bowland.

If we’re going to take a hiatus from the adventures of the shaky human/orc alliance, an issue spotlighting the life of Gruakhtar “Tara” Icemane is a solid place to leave off. A deft writing hand is needed when it comes to creating any wholly original story. Hitting all those development beats causes the audience to fall in love quickly as if they have known the character their whole lives. When done well, a character can feel fully fleshed out before ever getting to beats that will fill out their backstory.

Wilson is exactly that type of character-developing writer, whether it’s original works of her own or picking up the worlds others created. While the moments depicted within this issue might have furthered attachments to the character, they were not necessary to create that bond. I say this because what had already been delivered by Wilson sealed that deal issues ago. Basically, this one is the whipped topping added to a favorite dessert. It’s already delicious and loved but that little something extra just makes it even better.

Weaving flashbacks within a piece that continues to move the overall narrative forward is not easy. Too much and it pulls from the story one is trying to tell. Not enough and it feels empty and devoid of reason. Like Goldilocks, it’s all about finding that right balance where flashbacks and present-day inform and support one another. This issue should serve as a great learning experience for those hoping to reach that balance because this one most certainly does.

All the periods we visit are grand and dynamic because that is what Wildgoose brings artistically. A style that is very big, bold, and full of a bit of animated whimsy. Allowing the space to have a sort of lighter fun feeling to it while being very deep, dark, and rich with vast details. Every bit of emotion feels raw and true, etched clearly upon the faces of any character we spend even a panel with at any given time.

There isn’t a ton of action here, but what moments we get feel real. Tara has to fight against human raiders who threaten to rape and harm her. We see the healer in action — her movements slick and fast — against the more lumbering hard-hitting ways of her attackers. Wildgoose gives every moment the heaviness it needs while making sure it moves and breathes in powerful ways.

Around it all are colors that feel quite natural and right, alongside those that are bigger, brighter, and stand out. It’s a fantasy realm and Msassyk and Sousa make sure it has that feeling, but also feels grounded in many ways. Lighting effects are so spot on, as the aforementioned fight scenes are at night and each moment feels authentically dark and foreboding as well as confining. There is no extra lighting to make sure things are brighter, it feels like genuine night.

It’s this care and detail that is seen throughout. Each character, space, and item we encounter has its own colorful identity. Things in the same space complement each other but there is true-to-life variety as far as the eye can see. No two spaces feel alike, and they never should. These are different realms and homes for different types of beings.

Highly emotional stories in a print format must be felt in a variety of ways. For comics, we need to see and feel every beat as we gaze upon the characters. That’s not all though, because to have the complete package we must hear it all as well. Bowland excels at this, letting each bit of dialogue or caption fully embrace whatever feeling is scripted. Allowing us to hear it all within these voices that we will never actually truly hear, but within our minds, we know exactly what they must sound like.

On top of that, it must all flow around the rest of the artwork, standing alongside it without detracting or confusing. Here it flows just like a river, smooth and powerfully through each page. It fits like a glove with all the rest of the creative contributions. Showing what just a bit extra really can unleash on the page.

The Hunger And The Dusk #6 is now available from IDW Publishing.