“Please stop shooting at the indigenous creatures, Rocket!”
“Then tell the indigenous creatures to stop trying to eat us!”
I don’t know what distribution shenanigans caused us to get a new issue seven days after we got the last issue, but I’m not complaining! Keep reading for a review of Strange Academy #8.
Small spoilers below for this issue. Great big spoilers for previous issues.
After the huge, life-changing events of last issue, this is a quiet chapter, a chance for everyone to catch their breath. Doyle gets to talk to a counselor about not being dead anymore, Emily and Doctor Strange talk about how she can be protected from the magic she absorbed, half the class practices a harmless spell in third period, and the other half of the class is running for their lives from giant alien creatures trying to eat them alive.
Uh, so maybe not that quiet.
I love all the conversations; finding out what Doyle thinks about being the son of Dormammu, how Doctor Strange struggles to talk to students like children instead of seasoned superheroes, and what Rocket thinks about hanging around Earthlings. (Spoilers: he’s not a fan.) I liked all the details, like why Doyle’s counselor is an expert on not dying, what Emily’s new ring is made from (…awww…) and why the class has to wear helmets on the alien planet they’re visiting. (Earth cooties, basically.)
We also got a little more information on the voice Emily heard several chapters ago. I feel like I should probably know who it is, but I haven’t guessed yet. But with Emily’s habit of jumping first and thinking later, I’m betting she’s eventually going to open a door that everybody knows should stay shut.
But of course it’s the art that’s my favorite! The style is so luscious, very painted and detailed. The colors are rich and vibrant, the skin tones are lovely, and the action is intense and dynamic. But the expressions make me laugh every time. The look on Groot’s face when Rocket’s saying “..oh yeah…” is the best. (Side note: can we have a new Rocket and Groot series drawn by Humberto Ramos? Please?)
