The Dragonslayer (1997)

The Dragonslayer Review

The Dragonslayer is the fourth volume of Bone comics written and illustrated by Jeff Smith. It was first published in 1997.

This volume follows the deepening hostilities in between the inhabitants of the valley and the Rat Creatures and their allies. Further secrets from Thorn’s past are revealed, and Phoney Bone appoints himself the town dragon slayer. This is my least favorite installment so far, but it’s still a great one. I found the tone a bit too problematic as it frequently switched from light to very dark, making for an aggressive whiplash.

But it does feature some very memorable moments with Thorn fighting Kingdok making for a very unexpected and dark turn. We get to hear about Thorn’s past even more here and it’s all very intriguing. Gran-ma Ben remains a mysterious presence and Thorn has become by now quite an interesting and brave character.

The highlight was that last issue that ended with a bang. It started off as comedic, but ended with a lot of mayhem. Phoney Bone has become almost irredeemable in this installment as his scheming has gone way out of hand. I am firmly rooting for Lucius from now on.

The Hooded One is such a striking villainous presence and I loved that subplot about a Rat Creature baby and the Bones taking care of it. I want more of that in the future. This volume is very much focused on action and mystery, leading to numerous large panels with no dialogue. Those were gorgeously drawn and truly epic, but I did miss the humor and strong dialogue from previous installments.

The Dragonslayer is a very strong entry in the Bone series that has its flaws, but it moved the plot forward in a very strong way. The highlights are its menacing atmosphere, artistic large panels and that climactic ending that was quite memorable.

My Rating – 4.4