W.I.T.C.H. Part II: Nerissa's Revenge, Vol. 2

W.I.T.C.H. Graphic Novels #5

by Elisabetta Gnone, Alessandro Barbucci (Comic art direction), Barbara Canepa (Comic art direction)

Desperate to reclaim the power of Heart, Nerissa and her Knights of Vengeance put their schemes into motion, and the W.I.T.C.H. girls and their friends won't escape unscathed... Could this be their first true failure as Guardians?

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Fantasy, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Magic, Urban Fantasy

256 pages, Paperback

First published January 30, 2018

About the author

Elisabetta Gnone is an Italian writer. In April 2001, she co-created the Italian comic/magazine W.I.T.C.H. with Alessandro Barbucci and Barbara Canepa. The publication was later made into the television series of the same name. Gnone also wrote the children's trilogy Fairy Oak: Il segreto delle gemelle (The Secret of the Twins), L'incanto del buio (The Spell of Darkness), and Il potere della luce (The Power of Light). She expanded the Fairy Oak Universe with four more books, "The four mysteries": "Captain Grisam's love", "Shirley's wizarding days", "Flox smiles in autumn", and "Good-bye Fairy Oak".

information taken from wikipedia.com

Reviews

[Anne (ReadEatGameRepeat) · Rating 5 out of 5]

so much like the previous volumes I loved this one. the Nerissa's Revenge Arc is one of the most memorable and one of my personal favorites.

[daria ❀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

i decided to do a bit of a throwback and revisited the iconic magical girl gang of my childhood aka W.I.T.C.H. ✨

https://youtu.be/sWxYq8UjfZo

[Émi (Slavic Reader) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one had some cute scenes in it. Not surprised that the romance aspects are still my favourites, even though I'm reading these as an adult now. Also the guardian's friendship and its ups and downs. It's all very realistic for their age group. Young teenager stuff.

Story wise - it's going well. I'm interested to see if the later arcs get better or worse. Like, will they layer well onto past developments? Or will they not nesh greatly? I'm really interested to see. I do remember enjoying some of the later arcs more as a child, but also only seeing snippets of some, which led to curiosity that was never satisfied.

[Elena-Loredana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best volume as of yet. The comics did the Nerissa arc better, while the TV show did the Elyon/Meridian arc better.

[Alyssa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I can't believe Matt and Will are still not together.. this is taking forever!

[Anniken Haga · Rating 4 out of 5]

So close, but not there yet.
I'm talking about the rating. The last volume was up sniffing at 5/5, and so was this, but they didn't pull through. In the case of # 5 here, it's 'cause I found the story a little slower than in other volumes.
I think that is because of the love—focus. I get why it's needed and that it has a lot to say for the characters, but that's not why I read this series.
Still loving it, though!

[Panda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really like these issues because they talk about the previous guardians and they've always interested me. I had high hopes that we'd get to know even more about them in later issues but sadly we didn't. Also, how cute are the W.I.T.C.H.-girls and their boyfriends?
AND I love that they've included the girls' bedrooms at the end of these books. I've always been really interested in their rooms etc.

[Bookarune · Rating 5 out of 5]

As expected, it was a pleasure to reread this arc!

[Aisling · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Mirjam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loving this, minus the one storyline I keep coming back to. I almost feel like Nerissa's sidekicks are more interesting than herself but fair enough, it's a LotR style power symbol etc. I enjoyed it and will keep reading.

[Sarah Heilman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This Nerissa arc is really good, I like it more than the Elyon arc previously! Even though volume one is just wonderful. The creature that Nerissa creates out of hatred, Shagon, is really cool! I feel like his design is unique compared to other villains, and he feels more sinister than just a physically strong henchman, with that blank face and tentacle hair.

I liked learning a bit more about the previous Guardians and seeing their outfit designs! And sweet Hay Lin having a crush was very cute to read about. Lots of miscommunication and confusion between people in this volume, just like many others, and a lot of problems could have been avoided had they all just talked it out, but where's the drama in that right?

[Tiffany Spencer]

W.I.T.C.H Part 2: Nerissa’s Revenge (Vol 2)
This consists of the chapter books “The Darkest Dream” “Keeping Hope”, “The Other Truth” and “Whispers of Doubt.” Books 18-20. I’ll summarize these very briefly. If you want longer ones I’ve done each book.”

In the “Darkest Dream” W.I.T.C.H separates at Irma’s family’s beach house to go on other vacations with their families. Caleb finds Will and warns her that Cornelia is in trouble. Luba has gone after her in disguise as an “old friend” of her mothers. Meanwhile, Nerissa creates three allies to help her capture Caleb (Ember, Shaggone, and Tridor). Will and Caleb make to it there and she (Will) is able to transport the rest of W.I.T.C.H using the heart. She’s able to track Cornelia through Napolean (using her special ability with animals). Because of Napolean, Luba real identity is revealed. Then Nerissa’s minions show up. W.I.T.C.H try to fight them off but Will is distracted and isn’t covering Caleb so he ends up getting taken. Luba is taken to Kandrakar and put on trial. The Oracle decides to wipe the Guardians memories so they won’t go after Caleb and fight Nerissa. Oh also because Will has to create an astral drop so she can go with Caleb, her teacher (Mr. Collins) tells Matt when he calls he saw her go off with another guy on a motorcycle.

In “Keeping the Hope”, Hay-Lin meets Eric while rollerblading and her purse gets caught on his bike. He later finds her at the Silver Dragon and takes her on a date to look at the shooting stars. Matt sees all of W.I.T.C.H talking to Eric and hears Will say he has to sit by her (and holding her hand) and thinks this must be the guy Mr. Collin’s told him about, acts pissy, and walks off. He’s set straight by Eric tho during a basketball game when he tells him Hay-Lin’s the one he’s interested in. Meanwhile, Caleb is resisting giving Nerissa what she wants (the combined powers of all of W.I.T.C.H inside him). So she sacrifices her minions to put strength back in her and she transforms from a hag to the stunning beauty she once was as a Guardian. With a blast she knocks Caleb into a cold wasteland.

In “The Other Truth” Will confesses to Hay-Lin she’s worried that the heart will corrupt her like it did Nerissa. Hay-Lin shows Will a letter of her grandmother’s signed with an K and they deduce it’s from her old friend (and former guardian) Kadma. So they track her down to Will’s old home town. Will finds out she’s been watched over all her life by old teachers and other familiar faces. Kadma gives her an old diary of Halinor (another Guardian). Kadma is about to dismiss them but sings another tune when she hears the same tune as Hay-Lin’s been hearing. She realizes Nerissa is back and she needs to not resent the Guardians but to support them. Hay-Lin takes the diary to Eric’s grandfather and he says he’ll need some time to decipher it. Cornelia decides to have a slumber party and when they fall asleep W.I.T.C.H finds themselves inside Cornelia’s old dollhouse. Will traps Nerissa in a snow globe and Nerissa makes herself vanish (making the girls think they’ve defeated her).

In “Whispers of Doubt” Will stars to hear voice that tell her dark thoughts. First it’s the sales lady in the print shop that tells her Cornelia is more lucky than she’ll ever be.” Then it’s a sales lady that tells her “Don’t trust her friends or anybody.” This is when she sees Matt and Hay-Lin together and storms off. Hay-Lin has come to give her some news she learned from the Professor that there’s a star that disappeared. The last time this happens was a millennium ago. Somehow Hay-Lin connects this to Will’s birth. Yan-Lin sees events repeating and is told not to do anything from the Oracle. Still, she contacts Hay-Lin in a dream and reminds her of a riddle. What’s stronger the Oak or the Reed (the reed). “Mrs. Rudolph” divides Will from her friends and gets her to attack them but Hay-Lin figures out the riddle and instead of fighting her Cornelia talks her down. She sees the truth but tells them she’s not worthy to have the heart and rushes out of the school (after blocking them in). She confides everything in “Matt” but it turns out to be Nerissa and she takes the heart.

My Thoughts:
This was a really good plot! The only thing that didn’t add up was why Yan Lin thought “history was repeating itself”. Will wasn’t being corrupted by the heart’s power. She was being manipulated by Nerissa’s minion (Shaggone). I guess you *could* say tho that Yan-Lin might have feared Will would end up like Cassidy.

What I really liked the most about this was the illustrations. Whoever did the inside art for these deserves an STANDING OVATION! These are stunning! I was just flipping through it after I’d read it noting certain ones. There’s the one of Luba (66). The one of Hay-Lin and Eric on their date looking at the shooting stars (68). There’s one of Will in her W.I.T.C.H outfit with Nerissa’s face in the background (98). There’s a beautiful one of Nerissa after her transformation (looking like a BRATZ doll) (115). Then there’s one of Will, Irma, and Hay-Lin looking down at Nerissa trapped in the snow globe. There were also some cool ones of Cornelia and one of Irma’s legs dangling over into the panel underneath it.

Rating: 7

[Aqua · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Note: This review is for all three volumes in Part II (W.I.T.C.H. #4-6) since they are really a set*
A great follow up to the original Meridian storyline, these comics continue to not disappoint. The artwork is consistently beautiful, fully colored, the story progresses in a logical direction, and the guardians continue to grow into their roles. After Meridian was secured in Part I, the guardians feel a bit lost and no longer quite so unified now that their goal has been accomplished. Part II introduces a new villain, and tells the story of the previous generation of guardians, only briefly mentioned by Hay Lin's grandmother in Part I. The new villain challenges the guardians in new ways, and the five girls grow closer and more comfortable in their roles. It's a great continuation and I'm looking forward to more in Part III (coming May 2018).

That attention to detail...
One of the things I love about these comics is their attention to detail. Not only is the artwork consistently great, but there are frequently beautiful backgrounds to look at, and the artwork maintains consistency among its characters. Each of the five girls, and many side characters, have their own unique look and sense of fashion. I rarely see them wearing the same clothes, but their sense of style is always consistent and serves to differentiate the five main girls. They also all have their own unique personalities and thus far I have never thought they acted out of character. They are five distinct characters, and I love them all, which is hard to achieve when you're juggling so many main characters. You can tell a lot of effort went into these characters and this artwork and I love it.

Kandrakar
My one complaint is I'm not the biggest fan of Kandrakar. And they have a much larger role than they did in Part I. I've never liked it much when "chosen one" stories involve these essentially omniscient overseers who manipulate the chosen ones and even though they know all this information, they withhold it. If the Oracle says one more time "all will be revealed in time" or "it is not yet time for me to tell you [insert important plot info]" I swear... At one point the Oracle erases their memories of an incident for a couple months because "they are not yet ready" and the girls live out their lives normally without realizing anything is wrong until their memories are given back. It's weird and heavy-handed and stupid. At one point the Oracle says something like "we cannot interfere with people's decisions" when trying to justify why they are not taking action, when not a few chapters back they had manipulated the girls' memories to literally interfere with their decisions. It's infuriating. I would not miss Kandrakar at all if they were removed from the plot.

Elyon
If you liked Elyon, I know I did, she's a great character, I'm sorry to tell you her role has been significantly reduced. However, she still at least pops up from time to time.

The boyfriends
Just about all the girls have their own boy by this point, and sadly the plot relies on some of the worst tropes to create drama. I have lost count of the number of times one of the girls has seen their boy interacting with or hugging or talking to another girl, and without even asking the boy who they are (they're never another girlfriend of course, it's always a misunderstanding) they just instantly assume the worst and get mad. How did they not learn their lesson the first time, ugh.

[Selena Pigoni · Rating 2 out of 5]

So this series is getting frustrating. Generally, I like the story, but it's getting really hard to read.

You can kind of tell that Elisabetta Gnone, the actual writer of the series, is kind of a "fly by the seat of her pants" writer. There's a lot of "oh by the way" kind of story beats. Things introduced now that might have been good to bring up in previous comics to set stuff up that were probably just added now. That kind of thing.

This volume was also very heavy on the "tell, don't show" that made things a slog. Comic readers aren't idiots. You can get stuff across with the art. You don't have to explain what's going on in the panel if you laid it out right. Most of the square boxes weren't needed, the best example being a pair that said, "The heart of Kandrakar lights up and floats from Will's hand... settling in the ring the girls have formed."



I mean... I can see that from the art? Did you really need to tell me? I know it's a kid comic, but I think we need to give kids a little more credit.

The "tell, don't show" problem crops up a lot in this series, but it was so bad in this volume that it became slog to read. The pacing slows to a crawl. The panels are crowded with speech bubbles and narrative boxes. Action scenes limp along bogged down by talking and explanations rather than you know, action. Seriously, there are maybe 50 panels in this 250 page book that don't contain a speech bubble and/or a narrative box. It's enough to make W.I.T.C.H. a chore to read.

What's worse is, despite the sheer amount of text, the characters aren't talking to each other. People are always saying about MG and YA books that half the problems could be solved if characters would just talk to each other, and W.I.T.C.H. is no exception. You'd just think that, with the amount of miscommunication-based conflict they've had in past volumes (heck, just the last volume alone!), they'd have learned to, you know, talk to each other.

I'm just frustrated because I loved the TV show for W.I.T.C.H. so much as a kid, and to find that the source material is such a mess is just so disappointing.

[L'Abri des Pages · Rating 4 out of 5]

The beginning of an arc always takes at least one volume to set up. Luba member of the Kandrakar Council, tries to reason with the Oracle concerning the inability of the guards to do a correct job. Thus releasing a changeling, the group explodes and releases Nerissa without knowing it. We discover the story of the older generation of guardians, including Hay Lin’s grandmother, who shows that the series is maturing. The girls learn of Cassidy’s death, Nerissa’s descent into hell, Caleb’s torture, Luba’s betrayal and sacrifice, in short nothing very joyful. There is also a complex but interesting part about a constellation that would conceal the soul of the deceased guardian. All this punctuated by new male heads, to remind us that it is still about five teenage girls who sometimes need to return to a simple life.

Cornelia is the most broken because she discovers the pain and then the loss, the powers of the elements disappear, Kandrakar dies, Will risks seeing her life change.. A lot of sadness and yet, almost every chapter ends with a laugh or a smile from our group. This arc sees the gradual but effective change of their maturity, they remain positive at all costs and we have everything to learn from them. Even if I remain mixed about the battle against Nerissa, the story progresses and tell yourself that we are only at the beginning of the collection!

Do you like stories about difficult subjects?

Link to my Instagram post: https://www.instagram.com/p/Cca9USAoCRa/

[Lilith · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 /5 stars
[10 /10 stars]

- story [2! /2]
- worldbuilding & consistency [1 /1]
- art [1! /1]
- characters [1! /1]
- length & progress [1 /1]
- ending [1! /1]
- originality [1 /1]
- enjoyment [2! /2]

~quick thoughts~
• such a raw arc - sleep deprivation, angsty feelings from growing up and then lashing out makes for a great story and explains a lot about how some characters act
• the twist in the end with Will and Matt! I've probably seen it many times by now and it still gets me, what a way to instil comfort just to yank it out of one's grip and throw it out the window
• Nerissa's Revenge has always been a beloved arc of mine, I love Nerissa's design

~quick story summary per chapter~
• Chapter 17: Nerissa revives her corpse and wants Caleb's powers, the guardians fight Nerissa's soldiers but Caleb is kidnapped
• Chapter 18: The Oracle erases a few of the guardians' memories, Nerissa absorbs more power, Caleb escapes, the guardians regain memories, fight Nerissa and Luba sacrifices herself for him
• Chapter 19: Hay Lin starts hearing a song, former guardian Kadma gives them Halinor's diary, the guardians seemingly beat Nerissa in their nightmares but Hay Lin can still hear the song
• Chapter 20: Will gets progressively angrier due to Shagon's mind-poisoning and attacks the guardians, choosing to trust Matt who turns out to be Nerissa, as she finally obtains the Heart of Kandrakar

~long story summary per chapter~
Chapter 17
• the guardians finish their camping, returning home and Nerissa retains power over her corpse, looking old and mangled, grateful to Caleb for raising her and wants him brought to her
• Cornelia's mom's best friend visits them and Napoleon is unsettled
• Caleb visits Will, telling her Luba's pretending to be Cornelia's mom's best friend and they depart on a bike, with Will's astral drop staying home
• Matt, meanwhile, was calling Will's home and Mr. Colling told him he saw her get on a bike with some guy
• Will and Caleb travel to a place where Cornelia is staying for vacation, with Will luring Napoleon to the woods to get Cornelia alone, but Luba attacks and is instantly attacked by Nerissa's soldiers made out of lava rock and ice, called Embers and Tridart
• Will finally learns how to teleport the guardians to her as another soldier of Nerissa's, Shagon, appears and takes Caleb with him
• in the Epilogue, the guardians take regretful Luba to Kandrakar to be judged and to get some answers for themselves

Chapter 18
• as the girls end their summer vacation, Hay Lin tells them of how she met a boy named Eric this summer
• The Oracle makes the guardians forget a few important details, including Caleb as protection from themselves
• Matt sees the guardians meeting Eric and assumes he's the guy with the bike, getting jealous
• Caleb is being held prisoner while the guardians try to understand why Matt didn't say hello to Will and Eric ends up playing basketball with Matt
• Nerissa absorbs the power from her army and becomes fresh and young again, as Caleb escapes and stumbles upon Luba
• Cornelia dreams of this and the next day, they remember Caleb and Nerissa
• they go to The Oracle and then teleport to Nerissa to get Caleb, as Luba causes distraction and dies because she sacrificed her immortality to save Caleb

Chapter 19
• the guardians aren't sleeping well because of Nerissa's nightmares, only Hay Lin is rested and keeps hearing a strange song
• The Oracle tells Tibor that Nerissa stole Caleb's copy of the five powers and his spark of life
• Caleb is being kept in Obliminose Cosmos to recover and remember
• Hay Lin shows Will a letter of Kadma, another former guardian, that lives where Will used to
• Nerissa regains her strength with the melody that Hay Lin heard
• when visiting Kadma, Will and Hay Lin learn that Halinor, another former guardian, observed Will before the move, so Kadma gives them her diary
• Hay Lin whistles the tune, making Kadma dizzy as she tells them that was composed by Nerissa, being an alarm siren, meaning she's back, seeking revenge
• Halinor's diary is written in a language they don't understand and Kadma sends them a letter that gives them an idea of falling asleep in close proximity so they can counterattack Nerissa
• Hay Lin and Will give the diary to Eric's grandad to decipher
• the sleepover begins and soon they find themselves in Cornelia's dollhouse, chasing Nerissa and trapping her in the Heart of Kandrakar
• Nerissa tries to fight it and seemingly destroys herself, as the guardians believe as well, except Hay Lin that can still hear her song

Chapter 20
• Will tells Cornelia that the Heart has changed, weighing heavy as a rock and being scalding hot
• Eric's grandad says the diary speaks of an invisible star and Hay Lin rushes to tell Will but because she arrives with the help of Matt, Will gets angry and runs away due to her mind being poisoned by nasty thoughts sent by an evil shopseller
• Yan Lin visits Hay Lin in her sleep and gives her a riddle, trying to confirm she's right
• Nerissa tells Shagon to keep feeding Will bad thoughts
• Ms. Rudolph calls Taranee to arrange for a portal to Metamoor and is seemingly kidnapped or attacked by Shagon after the phone call
• Will hears the girls talking about keeping an eye on her and grows resentful, as Yan Lin reminisces of how similar tonight is to when Cassidy perished at the hands of Nerissa, with no help from Kandrakar
• at the party, fake Ms. Rudolph meddles with Will and the guardians, making Will attack them but Hay Lin commands them not to fight, making Will realize they're honest
• Shagon leaves Ms. Rudolph's body and runs away
• Will despairs and also runs away
• Matt spots Will crying and she decides to tell him everything, only for Matt to turn out to be possessed by Nerissa, finally getting a hold of the Heart
• Kandrakar prepares for the worst as the guardians tell Will they still trust her and they make up

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this volume Nerissa gets more properly introduced, as well as the other Guardians that served alongside her. Unsurprisingly, Nerissa isn't the only one who is bitter about her time as a Guardian (the Oracle knowingly let Cassidy die, Kadma doesn't want anything to do with them and Halinor appears to have died - though probably of age rather than something sinister).

It shows the difference in socio-economic standings between all of the girls. Cornelia being rich, and Hay Lin having to work at her parents restaurant rather than go on a holiday with her family. It tries to show the girls as friends outside of being Guardians, but for me it seems to confirm that if they didn't have their powers, they don't really have much else in common.

Will gets tricked into giving up the Heart of Kandrakar to Nerissa - who was possessing Matt (Will's love interest). She also told Matt all about being a Guardian, but I don't know how much of that he heard and understood as it doesn't follow up with that in the aftermath.

[Soobie is expired · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mi ero dimenticata di Eric… Beh, da un lato è comprensibile; dall'altro un po' meno perché tutti i personaggi maschili che compaiono in questi primi volumi sono molto ben riusciti. Quasi quasi Eric arriva di poco dietro a Caleb.

Avendolo letto quasi vent'anni fa - ma davvero son passati tanti anni?! - mi sembra nuovo ma, mentre sto leggendo le storie, i cassettini della memoria di scottiana memoria si aprono e arrivano sprazzi di ricordi lontani.

Nerissa è un nemico potente, di quelli che s'infiltrano nei sogni e nei pensieri. E le W.I.T.C.H. soffrono parecchio. Anche perché è una responsabilità enorme per delle ragazzine e Nerissa approfitta un po' dei loro sentimenti.

Jeez, I want all Will's frog-themes objects. The duvet, the alarm clock… I love frog, despite having a dingo as my profile picture.

I have the sixth book at home. Then I'll have to wait a couple of months till I can buy part three of the series. SIGH! I need a decent job.

[Andro · Rating 3 out of 5]

Palme d'or de la méchante la plus frustrante du monde, qui a une BÊTE de backstory mais qui est tellement clichée qu'elle fait beaucoup moins peur que les autres personnages, en particulier toute la clique de Kandrakar, qui commence à révéler son vrai visage.

Et Caleb qu'est ce qu'il est chiant, purée. Autant en leader de la rébellion dans la toute première partie il était plutôt cool, autant là en sidekick boy scout emo j'ai juste envie de le noyer avec le faux monstre du Loch Ness, là. Virez le moi avec tous les autres boyfriends et concentrez vous sur les héroïnes, elles sont beaucoup plus intéressantes entre elles et toutes seules qu'avec leurs mecs relous.

[Citybones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Increíble arco, con una villana muy interesante que expande el universo de las WITCH. Como no solo se enfrentan a los monstruos sino a las pequeñas cosas de la vida como vacaciones separadas, aparato de dientes o los crushes. Toman decisiones muy tontas, pero son adolescentes emocionales y hay que entenderlas.

[Elaine Pleunis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This novel has two of my favourite stories in it. Simply can't get enough of W.I.T.C.H.! I remember having to wait for them to come out every month. I love rereading these stories! Sweet childhood memories with a touch of magic ^^

[Catherine Fitzsimmons · Rating 4 out of 5]

I know I'm late to party on this, but I'm super happy that this series is finally being released again. The translation seems cleaner and it's great to finally continue the story. I hope we get to read it all this time.

[Severind Alexander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fun book that I enjoyed far too much. I'd never gotten this far in the series in the past so this was really enjoyable reading for the first time. I love the inclusion of former guardians and how we got to see more of the girls' personal lives.

[MV Isip · Rating 3 out of 5]

i remember the nerissa arc being my favorite as a child but upon re-reading, these middle volumes are just ok! the lore drops still feel incomplete (obsessed with the former guardians!🧚‍♀️) but things are starting to pick up. hopefully the final book lives up to it!

[Narra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review follows later

[Jess - The Hexed Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 Stars

Still loving these. The story, the friendship, the ARTWORK. I have all the feels.

[MoonlightCupOfCocoa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved every minute. Can't wait for the next volume.

[X · Rating 5 out of 5]

JUNE 2020: physical
the past guardian's story is amazing

[Danielle Hays · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely the best volume so far, especially that last chapter!! I can't wait to see what happens next, and I hope we get to hear more about the former guardians at some point.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably my least favourite which book so far