ENDGAMES

Rounding off a tale begun in NewsPrints
(2017), budding journalist
Blue continues to search for her robotic friend, Crow, as the long war between
Goswing and Grimmaea comes to a head.

Just 17 and blind, but determined
not to appear weak, Corazana Lina, newly crowned queen of Goswing, lays a fresh
claim to mines needed to fuel her rapidly growing fleet of flying warships. But
as Grimmaea is building an air force of its own and the mines’ range is also
home to a cluster of active volcanoes, widespread disaster looms…and,
ultimately, strikes. Meanwhile Blue, caught between opposing armies and
monarchs, weathers a rapid succession of dramatic encounters and narrow squeaks
as she brings her quest to a successful conclusion at last. Exaggerated facial
expressions occasionally give the figures in Xu’s bordered panels an
artificially stylized, manga-esque look, but the action is easy to follow, and
sharply rendered background details add depth and detail to the steampunk-ish
setting. The author weaves a strong anti-war message through her tale, casting
righteous shade on the evil, which both sides here practice, of recruiting
children for military service and playing up the importance of an independent
press. Though a bit unwieldy, her populous cast features several characters
with mixed ancestry (including Blue), a trans character, and one that is
constructed but human in all the ways that count.

An action-oriented closer,
conventionally tidy at the end but distinctive for its richly imagined world. (Graphic
science fiction. 11-13)