Comic Review: Penny Dreadful #2.12

Synopsis: An ill wind blows through the streets of London…

The end has come. In the wilds of the Scottish highlands, it seems there is one last hope for the redemption of mankind, flickering in the darkness. As holder of the sable flame, Dracula, once a mortal enemy, now holds the fate of humanity in his immortal hands. Can he be trusted to extinguish the one he calls brother and stop the madness that spreads over the world like wildfire? Or will he be extinguished along with the rest?

While the future of the entire human race hangs in the balance, it is the future of one man alone that preoccupies Lily. Ready to lay down her life for the man she has always loved, she is determined that if the world should end this night, Ethan will not be condemned to eternal torment, not if she can stop it…

Review: With Penny Dreadful #2.12, writer Chris King completes this arc. I’m pleased to say he resolves the feud between Satan and Dracula. Despite how iconic both figures are, I found King’s iterations of them to be sadly tedious, and I’m ready for a different storyline. Fortunately, the author obliges, as he has various survivors of the battle tee up the next great saga.

Along the way, the couple I feared would be parted was. However, they did get to say goodbye, which is a lot in the Penny Dreadful universe, so I’ll count the blessings. I’m also thankful for the potentially awesome bromance King sets up for two of the differently alive contingent, especially since I didn’t think readers would be seeing one of them again. Here’s hoping King doesn’t squander the opportunities for these two the way he did with Dorian Gray.

Unfortunately, with the exception of a few bloody sequences, artist Jesus Hervas really didn’t have much to do in this issue, as the story involved a lot of talking heads. The issue was actually surprisingly static for an epic finale.

Written by

Chris King

Art by

Jesus Hervas

Colored by

Jason Wordie

Published by

Titan Comics