Battlecats Vol.3 #1

Battlecats Vol.3 #1

Mad Cave Studios 2021

Written by Mark London

Illustrated by Michael Camelo

Coloured by Tekino

Flats by Ricardo Castillo

Lettered by Miguel A. Zapata

After the death of King Eramad III, Valderia is lost, and a perpetual state of violence has consumed the land. Valadar now sits on the throne and the Battlecats are without their leader, Kelthan. Now, Queen Adastril has taken charge of a resistance group, and her first order of business: recover the corpse of their fallen king.

If there is one thing to say about this series is that it never rests. One arc after another we see the continuation in the story and yet it feels like its completely new reader friendly. Honestly if I hadn’t been a faithful reader i’d be so into this just based off what we see here and I’d certainly want to know more. Which would more than likely lead you to finding the two previous trades to dig into. This world that Mark has created is so beautifully brought to life through words and visuals and with so many corners still left to explore it really is one of the more exciting places that we’ve seen created in comics a very long time.

I am loving the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceedingly well. The character development that we see through the narration, the dialogue, the character interaction and how they act and react to the situations and circumstances they encounter is sensationally rendered. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing more and more of the story we are drawn further and further in.

I am appreciating the way that we see this being structured and how the layers within the story continue to emerge, grow and evolve. These layers contain the amazing moments that turn the plot sideways, where we see the bulk of the characterisation and whether or not these impact the main arc or simply swirl around it what they do is add extra depth and complexity to the story. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is exceedingly well achieved.

I am a big fan of the interiors here. The linework is exquisite and how they work with the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create this gorgeous detail work is phenomenal. I really wish we’d see more backgrounds being utilised as they do wonders in expanding the moments but in how they work within the composition of the panels to bring us depth perception, a sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story is extremely nice to see but could still be better. The creativity and imagination on display leaves me gobsmacked. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkably talented eye for storytelling. The colour work is brilliantly rendered. The hues and tones we see within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work really does wonders in bringing these characters to life.

​

With the king dead all hell has broken loose and it’s up to the Battlecats to bring order to the kingdom once more whether it’s current corrupt and vile usurper of the throne likes it or not. It is a modern throwback soap opera type story with this whole take on the sword and sorcery fueled epic being told today’s sensibility makes it daring, dynamic and full of verve with a touch of gravitas. This is a magnificently told story with great characterisation and utterly charming interiors showcasing why Mad Cave has mad good books on stands.