As I have been reviewing Grimm Fairy Tales the last couple of months, I thought I'd jump in on this arc as well. I am new to the Wonderland series, but I've seen it around a lot and there's some pretty big hype about it too. And for not having a clue about what was going on, Wonderland lives up to all the talk. I wouldn't say that this issue was pivotal to the progression of the story but I can see the workings of a buildup approaching; especially when the story diverts back to earth. The surgeon's house is just plain creepy, but the reader gets to see a softer side. You actually start feeling bad for the guy. First his wife dies and he's starting over, trying to make the best of a sucky situation; seems like he's doing alright for himself and then his kids die. But you know there's some dark magic shit going on because they randomly drown in a pool after they have been tucked into bed by their grandparents. I'm hoping we start to see more of that aspect unfold but there was a reference made about Wonderland Asylum, so probably gonna have to check that one out to cause I love back stories. Erica Heflin knew actually what she was doing with that one.
But I think most of the fans want to know what's going on in the Wonderland realm, so let me give you a little taste of what to expect. Calie is now queen of Wonderland and her and her companions, Cheshire and the white rabbit are on the hunt for a little girl. This issue you don't get to see the little girl but they happen to come across a strange creature. At first they are bit blind-sided because they can't tell if it's from Wonderland or Earth but either way they kill it.
Which reminds me I almost forgot to mention that Calie is one tough chick with a lot of sass and I love it. I'm sure that's a must have attribute to be queen of Wonderland though. And she's not taking any bullshit from rabbit today. His story about how he got his paw chopped off is a little sketchy so I don't know what to expect for the next issue. He seems all evasive about it and makes me think that he's trying to hide something from Calie.
Let's talk about the illustrations and I'm not going to go into how it's problematic because I feel like I've been saying that for every Grimm comic I review. So if looking past that Wonderland has these bright and magical illustrations. I know that probably sounds cheesy but it does capture the whimsical feeling of Wonderland when juxtaposed to Earth's visuals. I'm digging the rendition of Cheshire too. He's actually kind of fierce and cute instead of the aloof existential crisis type.
Score: 5/5
Writer: Erica J. Heflin Artist: Vincenzo Riccardi Publisher: Zenescope Entertainment Price: $3.99 Release Date: 9/17/14 Format: Ongoing; Print/Digital