Reviews 

“Black Magick” #6

By | June 30th, 2017
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

Hello “Black Magick,” it’s been a while! The fifth issue of Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott’s “Black Magick” came out in February- of 2016. The new issue, and new arc, is sort of a reset for the series, flashing back to protagonist Rowan Black’s childhood, and her original awakening as a witch. A lot of “Black Magick” may sound really typical, but the creative team tell their story with rare subtlety.

Cover by Nicola Scott
Written by Greg Rucka
Illustrated by Nicola Scott
Colored by Chiara Arena
Lettered by Jodi Wynne
NEW STORY ARC What the hell is the deal with Rowan Black, anyway? For that matter, just how many ‘real’ witches are there? What is the bond that ties Rowan and Alex together? Is the series really coming back, or is this just the creative team messing with your heads? Yes, it’s true-the critically acclaimed series returns with a standalone story detailing how Rowan was awakened to her family’s legacy…and the enormous cost of being its inheritor.

“Black Magick” feels sophisticated, and not just because it’s mostly in black and white. The first arc followed Rowan Black, a witch and member of a secret coven, who is a cop during the day. The witch story and the cop story were both very good, rooted in strong characterization that quickly transcended the underlying genre work. By assuming you know how witches work and how cop stories work, “Black Magick” spends time in quieter moments- dinners between friends and family, conversations over paperwork, and gorgeously drawn coven meetings between witches from different walks of life.

The first arc, “Awakening,” was more of a mystery, but it seems that for the second arc, “Awakening II” we are taking the time to learn more about the world of the witches. We see Rowan’s thirteenth birthday, when she was officially initiated into the coven and made to experience all of the past lives of every dead witch in her ancestry- most of whom were brutally killed.

The heart-wrenching pages that follow are silent panels, where Scott stunningly captures that feeling: a thirteen-year-old, burdened with all the pain and wisdom of generations. Rowan finds herself crying for no apparent reason in school and at home, gets into fights with other kids, and dabbles in witchcraft without her mother’s approval. She challenges her teachers at school, mutilates toys, and generally is ill equipped to handle all of these new emotions- as any teenager would be.

The sequence is beyond words, so it doesn’t use any. It’s comics perfection. It clearly relies on Rucka’s scripting talents, but the effort is all Scott. As I describe the panels, I find myself getting lost in each one, noticing the expressions of every character in the background, picking up new ambient details in each little story. Every frame, as they say, is a painting.

The style of “Black Magick” has a lot to do with shadow and color. Almost every panel is rendered in heavily inked black and white. The only exception is the titular magick, which is rendered in haunting colors. This lets the book do cool things, like render a background character’s eyes or an errant candle in color, sending a quiet message to the reader. There’s not a ton of magick in this issue, but when it happens it is spectacular.

This may be a wait-for-the-trade series, but you should be reading it. It’s more than competently done. It’s a masterpiece. Greg Rucka is writing some of the best prose of his career and Nicola Scott is doing hands down, the best work she’s ever done. It’s a beautiful, harrowing book that finds the truth in fantasy.

Final Verdict: 9.4 – It’s been a long time, but “Black Magick” #6 was well worth the wait.


Jaina Hill

Jaina is from New York. She currently lives in Ohio. Ask her, and she'll swear she's one of those people who loves both Star Wars and Star Trek equally. Say hi to her on twitter @Rambling_Moose!

EMAIL | ARTICLES