Dark Blood #3

Dark Blood #3

BOOM! Studios 2021

Written by Latoya Morgan

Illustrated by Moisés Hidalgo

Coloured by A.H.G.

Lettered by Andworld Design

When is the cure worse than the disease?

At first Dr. Carlisle's generous offer to treat Avery's chronic pain and injuries seems like a godsend, but the "magic bullet" cure he offers comes with an excruciating administration via spinal tap... and unexpected side effects.

When those manifest in seemingly impossible ways that terrify his family, Avery rushes back to the doctor for additional help, but will the second treatment truly work or only bring back memories of the war best kept in Avery's past?

Sometimes when times are right for it we get these powerful stories, stories that would be just as powerful if it were a biography style story or one like this where something extraordinary happens to the main character. Latoya has managed to master this now and then storytelling as we see the duality of Avery’s life unfold in some eerily similar ways and what we see and experience leaves a very visible mark upon the soul of the person reading it and if it does then well I’d almost say they are soulless. Because this is something absolutely amazing.

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 exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the narration, the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter does a marvellous job fleshing out the characters. How we see the personalities come to the forefront is extremely well rendered. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages revealing more and more of the story the more we become embroiled into these characters' lives.

How we see this being structured and how the layers within the story continue to emerge, grow, evolve and strengthen is magnificently rendered. I mean the layers open up avenues to be explored or are exploring what we need to know and this is so well orchestrated that it’s almost scary good. The depth, dimension and complexity we see add through these layers is exquisitely done. How everything works together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward is impeccably rendered.

The interiors here are absolutely lovely. The linework is clean, crisp and strong and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create the detail within the work we see is exceptionally well rendered. That we see backgrounds being utilised so prevalently is sensational because they do wonders in enhancing and expanding the moments. They also work within the composition of the panels to bring out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a masterful eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work show a phenomenal eye for how colour works.

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I’m in love with this story because of how intricately this is being told. Latoya has gotten me to care about Avery, what he’s been through and what he’s going through. This poor guy lives in a time when serving your country and coming back home doesn’t mean squat if you are a man of colour. Avery deserves respect and admiration for what he’s done and been through but these are much different times, actually we see the resurgence of this now so it’s not so different really, so while I get it that doesn’t mean I have to like it. You see how invested I am and that’s because of this stellar writing and truly astounding characterisation along with these interiors that leave me gobsmacked.