The Girls of Dimension 13 #3

The Girls of Dimension 13

Aftershock Comics 2021

Written by Graham Nolan

Illustrated by Bret Blevins

Coloured by Gregory Wright

Lettered by Carlos M. Mangual

Things heat up as the girls are separated and wind up in different dimensions! Pitch fights for his life against Ditko! Abby and Cece, stuck in a dimension that seems upside down, meet the Abstractors, and Savannah and Nadira find Anna Nightlinger. But are they too late?!

This is an interesting little book. The girls have certainly adjusted to the idea of being witches or at least possessing at least one special ability, usually I think of elemental gifts concerning air, earth, fire and water. Having gone through the mirror and we’re at the opening of this issue. I really like seeing how they’ve already bonded with one another even though they are so different and come from different places. There’s a mystery about what happened to Anna and this along with discovering what they can do has lit a fire within them and while it’s very quick it still has this amazing impact on the reader. There is a positive message that goes along with the story that doesn’t hit you over the head it’s more subtle than that, it does come through at least for me.

I adore 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 is sensational thanks to how we see the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how they act and react to the situations and circumstances that they encounter. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing more of the story along with the twists & turns along the way we find ourselves drawn further in and connecting with these girls.

I really like the way that we see this being structured as well as how the layers within the story continue to grow, evolve and strengthen while new ones emerge depending on the avenues that are explored or opened. The layers within the story is where the strongest characterisation as well as the unexpected moments that happen while exploring these dimensions. What this does whether they work in concert with the main arc or simply swirl around it add this 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 immaculately rendered.

The interiors here are creative and dynamic. To explore these dimensions takes such creativity and imagination to make them come out as beautifully as they do. The linework is fabulous and how the varying weights and techniques are being utilised to create the detail work that we see is superb. Backgrounds being utilised as creatively as they are and how they work within the composition of the panels bringing out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story is delightful. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a magnificent eye for storytelling. The colour work we see is absolutely delightful. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is amazing to see.

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This really is moving along at such a beautiful pace. There’s still so much story still to go and the world that is being created here is just the tip of the iceberg and I can only begin to wonder what the submerged section of that iceberg looks like. While I am enjoying this immensely I’m also imagining what else could still be out there waiting for them. This is quirky and fun with these amazing and diverse young women where the interior artwork so adeptly brings them to life.