Reviews

My chief complaint with novellas is that I want them to be longer, and I think that extends to this novella-sized graphic novel. The story of Grog (goliath barbarian) going missing and then finding himself in a great deal of trouble that his friends need to help him escape from is... simple. It feels pretty cut and dried, though I did like how Percy (human gunslinger) was introduced. The introduction of Scanlan's (gnome bard) unrequited love for Pike (gnome cleric) was cute, too.

I want to stress that I truly did enjoy the story, but it didn't keep me guessing. This might be because of a switch in writers, since Jody Houser has replaced Matthew Colville (who co-wrote Volume One alongside Matthew Mercer). With Volume One, there was a bit of a mystery going on and I was significantly more engaged, but here in Volume Two the different subplots felt much more disparate. I think I would have been more frustrated with my uneven amount of engagement if I wasn't already hooked on the webshow and invested in these characters (Vax, the half-elf rogue, is my favorite).

The art style remains consistent, since Olivia Samson continues her excellent work here in this second volume. Panel layout was also pretty consistent with the first volume, but the standard layout was sometimes usurped by a more dramatic style (to great and wondrous effect) for dramatic moments.

Overall, though my response specific to this graphic novel series is pretty lukewarm, I can't deny that I hugely enjoy the webshow itself and the voice actors who've created it. I have hope that future installments of this series will be more complex and satisfying.

skyllarduncan's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

4.0

danilanglie's review

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4.0

I think this is a lot stronger than the first volume! The character voices are a little smoother and feel similar to what I'm used to at the table. I will say, that if I'm going to compare this to The Adventure Zone graphic novel series, TAZ does it better. It's really apples and oranges, and I know they're not trying to do the same thing with their series, but with Critical Role's attempt, I feel like I'm reading something set in a fairly generic fantasy setting, with some fairly generic characters... they don't come to life for me the way it does when I watch Vox Machina sitting around the table playing D&D. The comic doesn't lean in to its origins as a tabletop game, the way TAZ manages to do.

I really liked Pike and Percy's introductions, especially Pike, who managed to be sweet without cloying, and badass without turning into a cliché. I loved seeing the group split up and getting to highlight some different dynamics, too. Keyleth has been a surprising fave to me in the comics, since i think her naïve outlook could be too extreme, but there's a nice balance between her knowing what she's doing and contributing to the group, while also having that wide-eyed wonder that allows her to be something of an audience insert.

I'm glad they're doing a Volume III, and I'll get around to reading it when it's collected in an omnibus!