Kaya #9 // Review
She’s a great warrior. She’s being hauled off by a giant bat-like creature with four red eyes. Normally, she could handle something like this, but she’s lost the metal arm that might have been her greatest weapon. Thankfully, she still has her teeth, and the bat creature DOES have a tail. There’s clearly some kind of way out of the immediate peril in Kaya #9. Writer/artist Wes Craig follows through on the momentum that he’s established over the course of the past few months with another fun exploration into sci-fi and fantasy with some beautiful visuals.
There are robots to the north. Mutants are invading to the east. Things look pretty grim. The robots are looking to wipe out the humans altogether. Uneasy alliances between a couple of groups are holding everything together, but it doesn’t mean a whole lot if they can’t find a good way to defend themselves. A couple of different lizards argue about whether or not to help Kaya and her brother. Maybe they should just leave the humans to their fate. Or maybe they could be absolutely crucial to maintaining survival for so many people. Time is running out.
For the most part, Craig keeps the action moving without bogging the page and panel down in too much drama. There is a hell of a lot of politics going on in this issue. It all feels kind of immaterial to what's going on in the foreground. If the political end of the world of Kaya was a little bit more integrated into the immediate action, it would be more compelling. For her part, the title character is someone who remains really interesting. And it's easy to feel a connection with her as she has fallen into great danger far away from the magical arm that has served as her central locus of power for so much of the series so far.
Craig’s art remains compelling. There is a great deal of momentum to the action, which clearly distinguishes between everyone on the page. This is quite an accomplishment considering there isn't a whole lot of time with the characters, and there isn't much of a chance to really get an emotional connection with them to care how the combat turns out. Craig puts it to the page in a way that feels emotionally engaging. Kaya’s scenes are given more than enough space to allow the reader a deep emotional connection with her, which serves the issue quite well.
As large a canvas as Craig is working with, it's interesting to note that it still feels pretty small. There are benefits and drawbacks to this. It's cool to enter a fantasy world like this and have an immediate grasp of all of the forces at work. However, fantasy thrives on the notion of immensity and power. And everything seems just a little bit too small to really grant a substantial sense of wonder. Every now and then, some things hit the page in just the right way to deliver the magic. The giant bat that’s hauling around Kaya at the opening of the issue is a good example of this. Craig needs more moments like this to maintain the wonder.
