Isola 2

by Brenden Fletcher, Karl Kerschl, Msassyk
collects Isola #6-10
volume reviews one |two

Isola’s second volume isn’t my favorite book of the year so far, but it very well might be the most gorgeous.

Captain Rook and Queen Olwyn, still bound in her tiger form, continue their journey towards Isola in this second arc. The story is slow and disappointingly low on character development, but Kerschl and Msassyk more than make up for that with their Eisner nominated art.

This volume has more of a horror vibe as we meet a spider-like spirit after Olwyn, a village with missing children, and a witch who entrances Rook. Fans of horror, Studio Ghibli films, as well as the darker elements of Avatar: The Last Airbender and Saga will find a lot to enjoy here. (And wimps like me will still enjoy it too.)

The art team goes all in with saturated colors – from canyon oranges to spooky blues and purples – and compelling character designs. They also use white lines (which I referred to as “chicken scratch” in my notes) and alien symbols to show sound effects, an interesting detail that heightens the fantasy feeling of Isola. And I don’t know if Kerschl has been watching Aladdin on repeat, but the way he gives Olwyn so much expression as a tiger is fantastic.

If only Fletcher was also all-in on the story – and if Rook had as much personality as her tiger companion – Isola would be a home run. It’s hard to be invested in Rook when all we know is her loyalty to Olwyn, and once again, that she grew up on a farm. *SPOILERS* When the witch seduces Rook, we could have gotten a window into her past, which may have created some emotional payoff in the big secret Rook learns this arc: that Olwyn’s mother ordered her own mother’s death, and Olwyn knew about it the whole time. Instead, that revelation falls flat for the reader, and a lot of time is spent on a villain character who doesn’t make it out of the volume, instead of our protagonist.

Rook doesn’t yet feel fully realized to me, and while I love the gender reversals and the visuals of Isola’s world, it’s hard to stay invested when the characters remain half in shadow.

There are also still a lot of unresolved questions in this volume, as Fletcher continues to hint at the wider political intrigue, Olwyn (and her mother) and Rook’s pasts, and Hallum, a terrifying hawk creature. This is often a staple of fantasy world building, and how much this bothers a reader depends on how much payoff is worth (potentially a few years of) patience and unanswered questions.

Personally, I’m on the fence. The world building questions wouldn’t matter as much if I felt more invested in Rook. But tiger Olwyn and the art could be enough to get me through one more arc.