Stone Star: In the Spotlight

by Jim Zub, Max Dunbar, Espen Grundetjern, Marshall Dillon

Genres: Fantasy, Graphic Novels
Pages: 123
Series: Stone Star #2
Rating:

Synopsis:

The nomadic space station called Stone Star brings gladiatorial entertainment to ports across the galaxy. Inside this gargantuan vessel of tournaments and temptations, foragers and fighters struggle to survive. A young warrior named Dail has been drawn into the ring and is trying to prove himself in the Grand Arena, but there are forces on the station determined to see him destroyed as revenge for his father's fighting legacy. Stone Star is a prison and a palace. It's a strange and dangerous home to orphans, criminals, and stowaways all trying to survive, fighting for a bit of fame and fortune before their time runs out.

Stone Star is an action-adventure spectacle bursting with colorful characters and pulse-pounding action! Grab your weapons, gritters, and join the fray!

The second volume of Jim Zub et al’s Stone Star went in a direction that was a bit surprising to me, and that actually piqued my interest a bit more — the plotline was fairly typical up to that point, and then it took what could’ve obviously been a plot device to drive characters apart and ruin everything and… okay, it still caused problems, but not in the most typical way. It gives us a bit more of a glimpse at the character of Volness and what he’s done, which is pretty cool.

Otherwise, the characters etc all continue to be exactly what you’d expect from this kind of story, the story beats are all pretty typical, etc. The art’s okay, and some of the character designs are pretty neat. I’m not totally in love, but I have to give it props for focusing on communication to build trust. Too often lack of communication (“if I tell him, it’ll only ruin things”) is a heavy-handed way to drive conflict in the story.

Plus, there are some interesting hints as to what Dail’s powers might mean. I’d read another volume if it came my way.

Rating: 3/5