Autumnlands #10

Autumnlands, Issue #10 sees Dusty and Learoyd traveling further into the ancient mountains, looking for the pathogen or magic that has been poisoning the sheep people.  As they approach the source of the trouble, two things happen. They come across more and more animals that have been changed, mutated (see cover), and Dusty's magic is getting stronger.  There's a priceless joke about primitive human beings coming out in election years. I don't know if this is a direct jab at Donald Trump or at the people who follow him, most likely the latter. Heck, according to some Bernie Sanders supporters, just about all the other candidates are subhuman.  Me, I'm a fair ways left of Bernie Sanders.  I don't like his plan to arm the Saudis, and I don't like his anti-GMO/anti-science stance. Although I might vote for Sanders in the primary, Jill Stein is my candidate.

Really, this title is a perfect storm of talent.  There is always plenty of attention given to the writing, and I've already spoke about Kurt Busiek's contributions to Autumnlands for the past three paragraphs, so let me get into some of the particulars of the artwork.  The lines growing stronger and thicker as the light fades away is always a good sign.  Benjamin Dewey knows what he's doing.  Jordie Bellaire takes care of the colors, adding to Dewey's spectacular work.  I also like the unique lettering by John Roshell and Jimmy Betancourt of Comicraft.  There are two main lettering styles: Dusty's narration, which is in all caps, and the dialogue, which uses upper- and lower-case letters.  There are a few variations, of course, such as italics.

Autumnlands is one of those titles that I like to guess what's coming next.  There are plenty of hints.  Dusty's magic is becoming stronger, so it's unlikely that they'll find something from our universe, like a nuclear power plant or a factory making weapons or trinkets, as cool as that might be.  There is the stone woman, who seems to be cracking and giving off energy, but who or what is she? More to the point, she looks human, like Learoyd and the princess he met a few issues ago.  I can't help but think that this arc has something to do with the human world, although my gut tells me this isn't the case.