What if the world wasn’t as we saw it, but different? What if there were realms within time and space that are very familiar to us through the annals of literature and/or gaming? What if it was these worlds that made things safe for us here on Earth? Now, what if those worlds have begun to be poisoned by evil and the delicate balance between these realms and our own hang in the balance? You throw these questions together and you have the basis for Quest. Quest is the beginning of a huge crossover event from Zenescope Entertainment’s Grimm Fairy Tales line. Quest is the first story to be followed by “Code Red” in December, “Dark Queen” in January 2014, and will be in continual action with the other Grimm Fairy Tales’ secondary titles such as Robyn Hood, Neverland, Inferno, and Wonderland: Clash of Queens as 2014 progresses. It will all lead up to Zenescope’s 100th issue of its primary Grimm Fairy Tale title during the summer of 2014 promising to be the most spectacular event in Zenescope’s history that may bring about the end of the entire Grimm Universe as we know it.
In Quest, there are in fact, four distinct realms that we all know well. Those realms are Neverland, Oz, Wonderland, and Myst. At one time these realms were at peace and harmony living the “fairy tale” existence, but that was before the evil Malec and his Dark Horde invaded Myst and corrupted everything in sight, breaking up the continuity and the camaraderie of the four realms. The realms are scattered about with a populace of pure “Highborn” magical entity birthed beings and a more mixed “Falseblood” birthing that consists of many half human types. With Myst in disarray, a rag tag group of heroes have assembled to try to bring unity back to what once was in the land of Myst. Aisling, a rogue princess has assembled the likes of Blake, the quintessential “pretty boy” knight who has fallen on hard times, his partner Bolder, a dwarf who has been banished from his homeland due to acts of his brother, and Druanna, a wood nymph who gives them guidance on their “quest” in search a mystical artifact that can reverse the tide of evil that is growing.
I have only encountered the Grimm Fairy Tale line in passing, with this being the first issue of this universe that I have read, but the artwork won me over instantly. This is top notch artistry by Sergio Osuna with fine coloring that renders this comic worthy of readability even before I turned the first page. It certainly is pretty to look at. As I did begin to read however, I did enjoy the story at hand as it has a proper mixture of humor, action, and dialogue capably written by Patrick Shand. I was a little put off by the narration at times though as it seemed to explain too much here and there (i.e. “So and so did not speak, as his thoughts were subdued”, stuff like that). But all in all Quest was worth the investment and it is a good opening to what is expected to be quite a colossal event taking place during the next year in the Grimm Fairy Tale Universe. It should be a fun ride.
Score: 3/5
Writer: Patrick Shand Artist: Sergio Osuna Publisher: Zenescope Entertainment Price: $3.99 Release Date: 11/27/13