Review: Skyward Vol. 2- Here There Be Dragonflies

Quick Summary

Pros: The story here is interesting and has a lot of tense and exciting moments. The world of this comic continues to be captivating all on its own. The artwork looks good and helps enhance the book’s overall appeal.

Cons: A portion of the narrative ends up being devoted to a rather lackluster love triangle.

Overall: A fun storyline and charming visuals help give the second volume in this series just as much appeal as the first volume. It stars great characters, has plenty of exciting moments, advances the overall narrative of the entire series, and, most importantly, continues to develop the awesome world in which this comic is set. It makes a few mistakes when it comes to adding unnecessary relationship drama but is still appealing outside of these moments. Anyone who enjoyed the first volume should continue reading here.

Story

Skyward Vol. 2: Here There Be Dragonflies, by Joe Henderson, continues many of the positives of the first volume while also managing to advance the plot in an interesting way. It stars a charming cast of characters who are forced to jump from one tense situation to the next. Along the way, readers learn even more about this comic’s incredibly captivating world and also get to see the larger narrative of the series develop even further. Not every portion of the story is great but the positive portions definitely outweigh the negative ones. In the end, this helps make this another solid entry in an interesting series.

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The majority of the storyline in Here There Be Dragonflies is pretty solid. It places the main characters in danger right from the start and has them heroically overcome this danger as the comic continues. This involved them fighting for their lives against a horde of giant bugs and a group of people at the end of their ropes, all of which is tense and entertaining. In addition, while all of this is happening, Willa’s quest to restore gravity is slowly becoming more important and tangible, which helps build some additional interest in the next volume.

The only places where the story stumbles are the portions focused on the comic’s lackluster love triangle. The relationship between Willa and Edison is so undeveloped that having her show interest in another person doesn’t feel as significant as the comic makes it out to be. Plus, the relationship between Willa and Lucas starts and ends so quickly that it ends up feeling more like a distraction than anything else. Luckily, the love triangle is only one of the many focuses in this book so it doesn’t weigh down the narrative too heavily.

Throughout this entire collection, Here There Be Dragonflies also continues to expand the incredible, zero-g world in which this comic is based. The comic starts by showcasing trains that simulate gravity throughout the ride, goes on to explain how a lack of gravity led to bugs evolving to massive sizes, and even explains how farming has changed in such a radically different reality. All of this allows for some really neat moments that readers are unlikely to find anywhere else, like zero-g battles against giant bugs, which make this comic more enjoyable overall.

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Art

Like the story, the artwork in Here There Be Dragonflies continues many of the positive elements from the previous collection. Lee Garbett’s stylized depictions of the characters and locations is great and adds a lot of charm to the comic as a whole. Plus, Garbett’s creative approach to the world of Skyward allows it to feel as unique and interesting as the story makes it seem. Since the world of Skyward is one of this series’ most significant positives, having it feel creative and authentic is very important. All in all, this is a good looking comic book that provides an accurate reflection of what is going on in this series.

Continuity

Skyward Vol. 2: Here There Be Dragonflies continues the story from Skyward Vol. 1: My Low-G Life (Review).

The story here continues in Skyward Vol. 3: Fix the World.