A review of the World of Warcraft monthly comic, Issue #25. This review may contain issue spoilers.

No, really, do you want my comics? C'mon, are you sure? I mean, look at 'em! They're ... comics! They're made out of glossy paper! They have ink! There are colors! The word ensorcelled is used more often than should be allowed!

No? You really don't? ...I guess I don't blame you.

Overview

The final issue in the arc of the new Guardian, Med'an, this issue consists almost entirely of the battle between Cho'gall and Med'an. The rest of the cast is present as well, offering various roles of support and help through the raid battle.

I almost hate to say this, but I'm happy that this arc's over. It's not that I think the overall story was bad—heck, I LIKE Med'an—it's that its execution felt like it was treated as nothing more than a disposable licensed product by those in charge.

And that upsets me.

Writing

Nothing happens in this issue to change my opinions of the writing. There is a distinct dearth of thought-bubbles this time around, but those are replaced by whispers and the still chronic problem of repeating exposition.

Seriously, if you explain something to me on one page, you do not need to explain it to me using the same words on the next. My memory is better than that, honestly.

Case in point:

Cho'gall: Awaken, Anubisaths! For you are the lenses that will focus the old one's power.

Then, about five pages later:

Aegwynn: He protects the Anubisaths! They must act as the lenses for Cho'gall's power!

I wonder, are the lenses of power perhaps ensorcelled due to their diet of steel?

*grumbles*

And then there are the translations. Oh, the translation. Look, I think they're kinda cool done sparingly, or for effect every now-and-then. But when I have stop reading word balloons in the eye flow and jump down to confirm that the translation is, in fact, the same dang phrase over-and-over... I get irritated. I counted at least twelve translation boxes across the issue, and most of them were some variation on the phrase "Power I have! Power I share!"

There are many other ways to represent alternate languages, some of which have actually been used in previous issues!

Art

My disdain for the art has reached a new high. Or would that be low? Seriously, as with the last issue, the rough pencils and muddy coloring do nothing to define these characters to me. They appear, in many panels, as nothing more than loose scribbles blotched with a vague approximation of their specific color palette.

There's even a panel where they forgot to draw Valeera's body. I'm not joking. She's a floating head. Here, take a look:

See? Her body's supposed to be behind Aegwynn's arm, but it's not...

C'mon, guys, really? I can accept such a mistake from a hobby web-comic artist who's holding down a full time dayjob and multiple comics for no pay. I cannot accept such mistakes from a professional, especially a professional under a company such as Wildstorm / DC.

Plot Summary

The new Council, bereft of Meryl due his growing "felstormyness" (aka, the demon he's got within himself), travels to a location outside of space and time—known as the Twisting Nether—and imbues Med'an fully with the powers of Guardianship. Med'an, charged up, ready to go, and wearing his kickin' new half-plate "sleeves without breastplate" suit, portals himself over to Ahn'Qiraj to face off with the tiny-headed Cho'gall.

Cho'gall speaks and taunts and blathers. He then says some stuff about lenses, power, and his master, C'thun. He also has tiny heads.

Meryl, Valeera, and Aegwynn appear above Cho'gall, who doesn't notice them, and help Garona as she exits C'thun's dead body, [Base of Atiesh] in hand. Then Med'an appears, and there's a throwdown.

Dragonball Z style.

Okay, well, almost.

Because apparently really powerful beings need to shout out their attacks to use them, there is much screaming of "Lightning! Do this!" and "Vines! Do that!" as Med'an and Cho'gall fight. As Cho'gall begins to channel his really big eyebeam at the young Guardian, Med'an bubbles.

No, really. He bubbles. He creates a big bubble to seal in the magics... along with everyone inside said bubble. Yes, indeed, our heroes are inside the bubble.

So inside this bubble the magics start to bounce around wildly, and people get hit. In the picture above, specifically, we see Aegwynn get hit. I think Garona and Valeera get hit twice.

As this is happening, the demon inside Meryl grows restless and tries to escape. You see, he wants to take the [Base of Atiesh] as his own, so he pops out and follows the "flow of magic" to the location "outside of space and time" and begins to attack the Council by absorbing their energies.

Note, Kathra'malamadingdong at this point still doesn't have his own body.

AT LEAST VALEERA'S NOT ALONE!

*ahem* Sorry.

Stuff happens. Battle happens. Aegwynn, wounded by the ping-ponging bouncy bubbled energy, tells Meryl to take the last of her life force and give it to Med'an to help. Regretfully, Meryl does so. This successfully helps Med'an at the same time that the council pushes back the demon, Kathra'bananaboo.

Valeera (drawn with a body again), swoops in and tosses the [Base of Atiesh] to Med'an, who instantly cleanses it and restores it to its full form as Atiesh, Greatstaff of the Guardian. He then uses this to shove Cho'gall and collapse Ahn'Qiraj on top of him. Yes, it's another instant-cleanse, very much like what happened to the Ashbringer.

But hey, it's kinda cool, I think. The whole staff just *poofs* into existence.

And, yes, Aegwynn's still dead. Her final request was to be buried next to her son in Morgan's Plot by Karazhan. The cast does this and there is a moment of mourning.

As it wraps up, Meryl officially becomes the action figure by changing his name from Winterstorm to Felstorm and declares that he's going to go out and hunt the Twilight's Hammer. Garona agrees to join him and suggests that Med'an learn the ways of the Light from his uncle, that other action figure, Vindicator Maraad.

And they all live happily ever after. Except Aegwynn. She's still dead.

Oh yeah, I THINK the final panel indicates that even Cho'gall survived, but it's difficult to tell with the muddy artwork.

Closing

What can I say that I haven't already? Not much, I'm afraid.

I'll close this out by saying that I'm genuinely looking forward to the new format, with two comics done by two completely different creative teams. Here's to hoping that they can get a writer who understands the changes this medium has gone through since the '80's, and they find an artist who'll happily draw complete anatomy for all characters.

Please...