Posted in: Comics, Review | Tagged: Amy Chu, dejah thoris, Dynamite Entertainment, fantasy, john carter, John Carter: Warlord Of Mars, Pasquale Qualano, sci-fi, Valentina Pinto

Dejah Thoris #2 Review: Beware the Great White Ape and His Many Arms

Dejah Thoris and her allies are attacked by a massive white ape, and, after a bloody battle, few remain to continue the mission. They cross many deserts in the hopes of finding Ephysium. Once things start looking up, yet another threat arises to take the lives of our heroes.

I know the basic premise of John Carter: Warlord of Mars, but, again, disclosure, I'm not a longtime follower of this property.

Dejah Thoris comes off as a fairly passive entity in her own comic. While it is nominally her band trying to locate Ephysium, she is greatly overshadowed by Sajad, the old war dog that knows more about the wastes of Barsoom.

As such, I don't get a firm grasp of Dejah Thoris as a character from this comic beyond "means well but is in over her head." The fact that this is her journey should put her more in the forefront, but Sajad seems to steal every scene.

There is plenty of action to go around, with the massive white ape in the opening and the other threats that arise in the last third. Again, the comic seems more interested in showing Sajad than Dejah herself.

The costuming is very swords-and-sandals inspired, and, as such, is very revealing. However, to the comic's credit, Pasquale Qualano's artwork never feels outright exploitative or cheesecake-y. Much of the framing is good overall, and the characters and monsters generally look quite good. A little more detailing could have been added to flesh out the world a little bit, but the art on the whole is solid. Valentina Pinto's color work is good. It holds a specific color theme throughout. It could use a little more contrast, perhaps by darkening Dejah's armor, but this is only a minor complaint.

Dejah Thoris #2 is a decently fun sci-fi/fantasy action comic. While the lead character is drowned out by the supporting cast, there is still some enjoyment to be had in watching Martians fight a giant white ape. I can recommend it to fans of the franchise and anyone who is out for a bit of fun. Feel free to try it.

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