She Said Destroy #2 Is In Full Sprint

She Said Destroy #2

Corallo, Kangas, Nalty, Ujimori
Vault Comics
July 3, 2019

I can describe She Said Destroy in a word: breathless. I commented on that last time, the way that the story moves at a breakneck pace, and it only continues here in the second issue.

she said destroy

When we left off, Winona had found themselves to be the Morrigan’s chosen one. When we see them again they are once again training with Raul, this time more seriously. There is a level of … aggression? Resentment? Disquiet of some sort, on Raul’s part. It appeared in the first issue as well, and it appears to be intensifying here. I can’t tell whether it’s a form of jealousy at Winona’s skill and new status, or whether it’s a simple sense of urgency in a dire situation. Either way, it’s palpable, and it’s little character moments like this that drive Corallo’s writing.

Thanks to a vision shown to Winona, we as readers are treated to a bit of backstory between the Morrigan and her would-be conqueror, Brigid. The conversation namedrops Christianity, which is interesting to me—the mere mention of it shifts the nature of this tale and what it wants to be; instead of a sci-fi opera theme with older pagan deities, it becomes a commentary that includes a religion still practiced extremely widely today. It’s a tantalizing little bit of information, and preciously little is done with it. I’m of two minds on that; while I love a good tease for future reveals, I’ve spent the better part of two issues now hungry for some worldbuilding (literally, I have yet to see an actual planet), some detail, some meat to make me really zero in on what this book is about.

What are the physics at play here? The metaphysics? The mention of a currently-practiced, established religion cements this story in both space and time; we know that wherever they are now, there is a relation to Earth, and to the people and theology of Earth. How tenuous is that cord? Do these people know of Earth? Do they remember it, whether directly or ancestrally? Does it still exist? Is it still inhabited? If not, what has happened to it? It’s funny how one word, one single word, can ignite all of these questions. Also, it’s not at all funny, and I demand to know now.

No, really, can you tell me where? We have like no landmarks here, we’re very lost.

Kangas’ art sits comfortably in the same style she displayed last issue, and it’s something I find I’m enjoying; she’s as breathless as the story is. Everything feels rushed and unfocused, but as a deliberate choice rather than the work of someone just trying to crunch a deadline. She makes use of two large splashes here; one to depict a moment of action between Winona and Raul, and another for Winona sitting alone, contemplating her role in the cosmos, or theology, or both. I questioned the physics earlier, and Kangas steps up to answer it a bit here, if only by providing a nonanswer, in the form of a stream of water behind Winona doing its best to give a hydric middle finger to the concept of gravity.

Nalty and Ujimori continue to turn in great work here as well; Nalty’s palettes hang out in the same space, but she still takes time to play with color-as-mood, altering tones dependent on surroundings and the individuals present. Despite Brigid’s status as “Lightbringer” for instance, and her followers’ penchant for setting things on fire, to actually be in her presence is a cold and foreboding thing. Similarly, despite the Morrigan’s status as a bringer of death, her followers reside in a paradise of lush greenery, and Nalty takes her time rendering that, too, filling it with warmth and brightness.

Brigid and the Morrigan both have a lot more dialogue this issue, and Ujimori is careful to depict the otherworldly nature of their speech, the way it is set apart from the words of their followers. She does this with colored speech bubbles that are defined more loosely, with wavy borders and arcs of colored lines separating from the body of each bubble. It gives the sense that even the act of simple speech carries an excess power that is trying to escape, a due and fitting manner for both deities.

Ultimately, I still feel like I haven’t learned much from She Said Destroy, but I’m enjoying the ride nonetheless. Though these characters are sketched in only the loosest outlines, they’re still present and I know what they’re about. Now I just need to see those depths filled in.

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Nola Pfau

Nola Pfau

Nola is a bad influence. She can be found on twitter at @nolapfau, where she's usually making bad (really, absolutely terrible) jokes and occasionally sharing adorable pictures of her dog.

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