“The Final Battle” (part 2)

EDITOR's NOTE: Sabrina the Teenage Witch #99 will be on sale at comic book shops on Janurary 7, 2009.

As the Magic Realm prepares to celebrate Four Blades Day, Sabrina and her friends face the challenge of the Elementals as they try to persuade the great beings to help them save the Queen. Meanwhile, Hilda tries to keep the Magic Council from discovering she’s part of the new Four Blades group.

In contrast to last issue’s focus on various revelations and relationships, part two of “The Final Battle” ups the action quotient. Oh, there are still pertinent bits of information tossed out. In fact, the villain of the piece makes a statement about Sabrina and her powers that I can’t wait to see explained. And the inner workings of the Magic Council are enough to make anyone go “Brrrrr.” (I think Del Rio’s making a subtle political statement with the Czarina of Defense.) But the focus of this issue is on Sabrina and her friends proving they’re ready to take the final step into rebellion. What I especially like about the Elementals’ test is that it’s about the mind as much as the spirit. Too much depends on these teens for them to run off throwing magic wildly about. Del Rio uses their challenge to show her readers intelligence has to direct power for it to be effective.

The ending is an incredibly effective cliff-hanger that’s going to have readers frantically flipping the pages searching for more while wailing, “Noooo!” Del Rio packs a lot of emotion into the scene’s three pages. Readers have been following this storyline for 41 issues now and this event packs a wallop. But I think even if you picked up this issue randomly and hadn’t read Sabrina before you’d still get some feel for how important this moment was. It’s on the page in the characters’ words and in the art.

Speaking of art, after having Lindsay Cibos for a couple of issues, it’s almost jarring to see Del Rio’s interpretation of the characters again. They have a sharper, leaner look under her pencil, but that works well with the action of this issue. Llandra and her merman boyfriend Narayan look especially good here. When in merman form, Narayan has a sleek, supple look, while in human form he’s got a tigerish energy. In fact, in one panel he reminds me a lot of D’mer from Colleen Doran’s A Distant Soil.

One of the standout pages of this issue shows the four teens using their powers. The page is divided by a stylized “X,” the four legs being made of vines, wind currents, flames, and waves. In each section the individual character uses an elemental talent they rarely call upon. Jim Amash’s inks emphasize the emotional strain they’re under, as their eyes are closed in concentration and their muscles are tensed. Jason Jensen’s colors add a rich vividness to the scene. Sabrina’s hands glow green with earth magic as behind her the panel shades from violet to rose to gold. Narayan is surrounded by yellow, orange, and red flames that shade upwards to violet. Shinji floats in a mist green that turns to a purpled-blue, while Llandra is wrapped in gold and brown. As with Amash’s inks, the colors add a layer of emphasis that highlights the emotions on display. That’s something a traditional black and white manga can’t do as well. Would the same page look good in black and white? Thanks to Del Rio and Amash’s skills, yes. Would it have the same power to move the reader? No. Pages like this one prove that Jason Jensen plays a major role in this book.

Solid plot. Great art. Beautiful colors. It all adds up to another can’t miss issue.

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