Legends of the Dark Crystal, Vol. 2: Trial by Fire

Legends of the Dark Crystal #2

by Barbara Randall Kesel, Heidi Arnhold

The final volume in the bestselling series inspired by the Jim Henson film! Lahr and Neffi travel to the crystal castle to rescue their friends and family, encountering the Collector Skeksis and others. With the Lord Chamberlain's secret assistance, the Gelflings escape, but Lahr must agree to a terrible price.

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Comics, Fiction, Comics Manga, Young Adult

208 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 2010

About the author

Barbara Randall Kesel is an American writer and editor of comic books; her bibliography includes work for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, CrossGen, Image Comics and Dark Horse Comics. Kesel is a very outspoken opponent of sexism in the comic book industry. She is known for her strong female characters, influencing her then husband Karl's work on Lois Lane in the Superman titles and creating Grace, the ruler of the Golden City location in Comics' Greatest World.

Kesel initially came into the comics world after writing a 10-page letter to editor Dick Giordano regarding the portrayal of female comic book characters. At Dark Horse, Kesel was part of Team CGW, responsible for most of the design and creation of the setting and characters in the Golden City location. She is currently part of book packaging company The Pack, alongside Lee Nordling, Brian Augustyn, Gordon Kent and Dave Olbrich.

Kesel has been nominated for the 1991 "Best Editor" Eisner Award for Badlands, Aliens: Genocide and Star Wars. In 1995, she was nominated for "Best Anthology" and "Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Material" Harvey Awards for, respectively, Instant Piano and Hellboy: Seed of Destruction. She won the 1996 "Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Work" Harvey Award, for Hellboy: The Wolves of St. August.

Reviews

[James Crawford · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lahr and Neffi are two Gelfling who have survived attacks of the Garthim (just as Jen and Kira would do in the future.) The two plans to stage a raid on the Crystal Castle and rescue captured Gelfling. After that there is a very interesting section dealing with intrigues among the Skeksis who are vying for power any way they can get it. The use of captured Gelfling for 'Gelfling essense' is also covered.

Lahr and Neffi get closer to the castle. Meanwhile Aughra is in her lab and says it will all end in tragedy.

Just like in The Dark Crystal, a male and a female Gelfling get to the castle and end up going down into a chasm. The only difference is Neffi makes Lahr a set of wings rather than carrying him down. Again, just like in the film the Chamberlain finds them in the tunnel.

Then, just like in the movie, there is another challenge. The only difference is that it's a trial by fire rather than a trial by stone. The Gelfling get away, but barely. Yet we already know what happened to them all, and that is they were all destroyed, ultimately, by the Skeksis because the movie established that Jen and Kira were the only two left.

There's also an artist's gallery and a lot of ads for other books.

[Abby Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would assume I am very biased about this series. 'The Dark Crystal' is my favourite movie of all time, so when I found out there was a manga styled series of two (it was supposed to be three - the series was never finished) prequels I jumped with excitement and bought them for a birthday present for myself. I read them both in a day and loved them! The held the same simple gentleness and 'good wins over evil' the film had. It made me feel a little more complete reading these books, and they are just as special as the film.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read and a nice addition the prequel adventures of the Dark Crystal. The prophecy that the Gelflings will destroy the Skeksis begins to be revealed in some more detail. We begin to see more about the mysterious link between the gentle Mystics and the greedy Skeksis.

My criticism of this volume centers on the artwork style. On pages featuring groups of Skeksis, I found it sometimes difficult to tell them apart from one another. My first impression is that those pages were too evenly gray-toned. I understand the Skeksis tend to wear very elaborate costumes, and in the movie some characters were not distinctive enough (I was very young when I first saw that), but a bit more contrast to key characters, and perhaps some more use of names as characters talked together, would help alleviate those issues.

Overall this was a fine sequel in The Garthim Wars. I waited very long time for this to finally arrive on shelves, and I do look forward to any future volumes.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

Again, the pictures being black-and-white makes it difficult to tell which Skeksis is talking in each scene. It was cool seeing SkekSil scheming against SkekLach, but the Trial by Fire was very anti-climactic. I did like the creature designs, and seeing all the Gelflings fight for freedom together against the Garthim. The end of the narration at the end feels very goofy and I'm not really sure how it's supposed to look. Again, these manga books don't really fit with the show or with the prequel graphic novels and YA novels. But they are fun reads.

[Riley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story continues!
In the volume the narrative is much more solid, if one we’ve seen a number of times. Still it allows for a bit more characterisation, which was lacking in the first volume. There could have been more but only so much can be done in one volume.
The art style still has its quirks, it’s nice but some parts distract too much.
All in all a good continuation with stronger applications, would have been nice to see the story develop, but it was cancelled after just these two volumes.
4/5 stars

[Aegelis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Expanding the Dark Crystal World, Excellent Conclusion

Volume 2 maintains the vibe of the movie as well as providing insight into the world of Mystics, Skeksis, Gelflings, Garthim, and other creatures. Conspiracy, intrigue, tradition, and ritual rip through the Skeksis while Gelflings seek a way out of entrapment. Full of action and emotion, a fantastic resolution to the tale. If I had one wish, the perfect change would be to have in full colour like the covers. Will be re-visiting again and treasuring on the 'top shelf' of my collection.

[Julie Akeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this!! Can't get enough of the Dark Crystal.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

As fun as the previous volume. The ending is foreseeable, but still enjoyable.

[Scott Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this more than the first volume. Here we get Skeksis, Mystics, and lots of nifty little creatures.

[Ren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This volume has more heart than the first one. Aughra shows up and has a little argument with a Mystic, true to form! It still feels put of place in Thra, but enjoyable nonetheless.

[R · Rating 5 out of 5]

LOVE this!! Beautiful artwork and an amazing story. It leaves me wanting more!!

[Lacey Louwagie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of what I said in the first review holds true here, too. I did find this story slightly more satisfying, but it was frustrating that the Skeksis all looked so much alike in black and white -- not to mention that their names are so similar, too! Still, the story is pretty simplistic, so it was still fairly easy to follow. They're all stabbing each other in the back, what more is there to know? ;)

[Jeff Valluzzi · Rating 2 out of 5]

This graphic novel had all the same problems as the first one; mainly, the art was not anywhere near where it should be in a Dark Crystal book.

The story was cliche but capable, but the art made some scenes confusing, especially scenes with the Skeksis.

The ending was disappointing and didn't really have much going for it. Overall, the two books made for a forgettable experience.

[Beck Frost · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again, the story is so-so or average with a lot of reminders of the movie....but the art...now that is phenomenal! The book is worth checking out just for the art and the art is what gives this book the extra star above average for me. And this one had an alternate cover art page listed in the back done by Katie Cook, so I can't wait to hopefully get my copy signed by her.

[Chris D'Antonio · Rating 5 out of 5]

I continue to be a glutton for anything that expands the world of the Dark Crystal and this graphic novel delivers on the setting and tone of the world which Jim Henson and a vast creative staff bright into being many moons ago. my only criticism is that there wasn't more of it to be enjoyed.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had trouble telling the difference between all the Skeksis. They are drawn with different details to their clothing but I would have had a better time if the art was in color.

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

Again...not much to say about this. It was quick, easy, and inconsequential. Holds value to those who wish to see a little more about the universe of the Dark Crystal.

[Crystal · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a good read, but since they decided not to make a trilogy out of it, the ending felt rushed and incomplete. The art work was great and it was nice to see more into the world of Thra.

[John Otte · Rating 3 out of 5]

The art was good, but the story was a bit weak.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

(see vol. 1 for review of series)

[estherbookster · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked the two main characters and their chemistry is pretty silly. I remember enjoying these graphic novels and wanting more.