We’ve got the final impressions of Feathers and Plunder this week, as both series wrap up – though, sadly, Sam was not all that impressed with how things ended with either series. Arcadia continues to be compelling and unique with its second issue and Broken World makes a strong debut.

A heavily skewed BOOM! Studios pull list for this week, we enjoyed most everything we read. Let us know what issues you picked up in the comments and if you enjoyed any of the same series we did (hint hint: Arcadia).

Sam’s Reads

The Woods #13

Author: James Tynion IV
Artist: Michael Dialynas
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Source: BOOM! Studios DRC
★★★★☆

Holy time jump, Batman! A year has passed since the last issue which ended with the Bay Point kids forcing a diplomatic end to their impending capture and conscription. After Karen killed Adrian their path home basically disappeared and the kids finally pulled themselves together and began to build a home for themselves. They’ve been incredibly successful at it and everyone is adjusting. Doctor Robot even gets himself a little ascot. But after Karen discovers a strange emblem on a massive beast she slayed (because that’s how she deals with her grief – killing things) we find there might be a new threat on the horizon. And as far as Nigel and Sander are concerned it’s a threat that needs to be fled from because fighting means certain death.

Honestly, I keep myself free of spoilers and previews so I was a bit surprised by the time jump. But I suppose the Bay Point kids building their little society would be kind of boring after awhile. I’m hoping we get to see a bit more about how they structured everything. And maybe how everyone has really been coping – other than Karen’s crazy and Isaac’s issues. Still, awesome issue. Glad that they didn’t actually get off planet at any point. I’m in for the long haul and as much as it sucks for them to be trapped there I’m glad they are!

Feathers #6 (of 6)

Author: Jorge Corona
Artist: Jorge Corona
Publisher: Archaia
Source: BOOM! Studios DRC
★★★☆☆

We’ve made it to the final issue. Feathers is, sadly, wrapping up. When he last saw Poe he had turned himself over to the mysterious piper who had been collecting and killing all of the street kids. Unfortunately, his sacrifice is in vain. The Captain of the Guard turns out to be the culprit and he’s maniacally trying to collect feathers of his own to gain some sort of savior status I guess. I don’t know. That wasn’t entirely clear. But it all wraps up quickly when Bianca and Pop come to free Poe. He recollects his feathers (somehow) and simply kicks the dude into a pit. That’s it. That’s how it all ends. We don’t really get much in the way of answers. All we get at the end is an ambiguous commentary by two celestial actors on how Poe has begun to bring the city and the maze together.

Honestly, I’m a little disappointed in this issue. I really enjoyed this series. But ultimately I think the story wrapped up too soon without really giving us any finality. The major antagonist was dispatched far too easily and a lot of the conflict got swept under the rug. I’m glad Bianca and Poe are still friends. I’m glad the mice are alive (even if they’re still on the streets).  I just had hoped for a lot more than a quick resolution and some halfhearted hint that the story could continue at some point.

Plunder #4 (of 4)

Author: Swifty Lang
Artist: Skuds McKinley
Publisher: Archaia
Source: BOOM! Studios DRC
★★☆☆☆

All right, so, Plunder is the second series that I read this week that ended and I can say that I wasn’t really disappointed in this one at least. Of course, the reason for that is probably because I had very low expectations of the series generally after the second issue.

In the end, Bahdoon finds himself the lone survivor on board the ship. If I really felt connected to anyone in this series I might have cared that everyone else died but everyone was more or less forgettable. After facing off against the Leviathan and ultimately defeating it, he escapes from the burning, sinking ship only to choose death in his guilt for his actions and past. I get it. It’s supposed to be poetic or something. But really, it was just kind of ‘meh.’ He chooses to drown instead of grabbing the ladder from the rescue helicopter? I’m pretty sure they’d have just come down that ladder and rescued him.

It’s a decent enough ending for a book that was otherwise pretty plain.

Neverboy #4

Author: Shaun Simon
Artist: Tyler Jenkins
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
Source: Dark Horse DRC
★★★☆☆

Things are getting real this issue and I mean that literally. While Neverboy is trying to keep his family together Julian is out there basically destroying imagination as we know it. After finding his way to the diner he basically starts torturing the staff and enslaving any imaginary friend he can to use as his muse for his art gallery displays. Unfortunately since he’s a human messing in the affairs of the imaginary he’s making everything come apart at the seams and warping poor imaginary friends into decrepit abominations.

Certainly unique, Neverboy continues to throw curve balls. It’s such a weird dynamic sometimes splitting between Neverboy’s family drama and the larger issues facing the imaginary community. But it works. At some point Neverboy is going to have to make that decision to give up his imaginary family or not. Meanwhile someone’s going to have to take care of Julian, too. I’m waiting for this build up to come to fruition and for Neverboy to truly come into his own. It’s been a great ride so far.

Sam Wildman is a co-founder and co-editor at Nerdophiles. Honestly, if she were a student at Bay Point she probably wouldn’t mind the whole being lost in space thing. @samaside

Kylee’s Reads

Arcadia #2

Author: Alex Paknadel
Artist: Eric Scott Pfeiffer
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Source: BOOM! Studios DRC
★★★★★

More questions than answers were introduced in Arcadia #2, but I find myself not caring about the answers in lieu of getting a closer look at the rich, layered world that Alex Paknadel has created with this series. The writing doesn’t pull any punches in demanding readers’ full attention and the time afterwards to unpack what was read.

We’re introduced to Giacomo’s point of view, which is interesting considering he might be native to Arcadia – not that the people who police Arcadia think it’s a neat thing. Nor are they all that impressed with Lee existing both inside and outside of Arcadia. Between this family drama, we’re introduced to a few other quirks in the machine, including a Homesteader that can import code to create things and a dead body in Arcadia with no I.P. address.

Each piece of the puzzle makes things more intriguing and if you haven’t picked up Arcadia yet, you’re missing out on what is probably the best new sci-fi series of the year.

Broken World #1 (of 4)

Author: Frank J. Barbiere
Artist: Christopher Peterson
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Source: BOOM! Studios DRC
★★★★☆

The character-driven narrative of Broken World takes an otherwise familiar plot – a mass extinction event – and makes it a compelling read. With humanity preparing to make its last stand in outer space, the undesirables (as decided by the government) are left behind.

Elena Marlowe, college professor, wife, and mother, is one of those people denied the trip off of a doomed Earth, though she does her best to outsmart the system. Likeable and relatable, questions about her mysterious past hang over her head. With a twist ending and a relatively short series run, readers are bound to get answers soon.

Read our full review here.

Kylee Sills is an associate editor at Nerdophiles. She really wants to talk about Arcadia with everyone. Do you want to talk about consciousness and the ethics of virtual reality?! @kyleewho