REVIEW: THE WITCHER: WITCH'S LAMENT #4

The Witcher: Witch’s Lament #4 is a story of revenge, rape and a Witcher trying to find the white in a world painted shades of grey. Geralt of Rivia is every nerd’s power fantasy being both a powerful warrior, adept mage but most of all a vicious monster hunter; giving Geralt such a diverse set of skills makes him a great problem solver in other people’s stories and the final piece of Witch’s Lament knows that.

The Witcher: Witch’s Lament is my favorite kind of comic book because it expands on an already established video game world for those who just can’t get enough of the series. This comic feels like a natural extension to CD Projekt Red’s Witcher series to the point where it seems like a side quest right out of the games. I don’t say that as a putdown; the opposite actually saying this comic feels like it could be a part of one of the best Role-Playing-Games of the decade is the highest praise this writer can offer.

It nails the tone and writing style of the Witcher world, but the art leaves a lot to be desired, starting with the cover art who thought it’d be a good idea to have the hero’s head cut off and sitting in a basket as the main attraction? They say you don’t judge a book by its cover, but this is a confronting and disturbing state to see Geralt in; I don’t mind seeing those covers where villains are clutching Batman’s empty mask, but this is too far. The cover sets the tone for the rest of the actual story; while it’s well written, it tackles some very heavy subject matter about possession, sexual abuse, and the burning pyre that is the drive for revenge.

Part four sees Geralt getting tangled up in the schemes of a Laima who has tricked and manipulated him at several stages in previous issues, and now he’s at her mercy after a fierce battle with her enforcers. The Laima doesn’t want to kill Geralt despite having a burning hatred for men after all the suffering she has seen at their hands; it’s a nice touch that our antagonist does not instantly hate Geralt despite her distaste for his entire gender. It makes her characterization more complex and gives the story the shades of grey vibe The Witcher is all about.

Getting back to the art, it’s hard to tell what is exactly going on in these scenes as the action lines are confusing, and there’s so much black the panels are a mess of actions making it hard to tell what sequences the activities take place in. People, including Geralt himself, looked very ugly at times, and I found myself only being able to decipher that The Witcher was casting spells because my brain linked the very badly depicted image to the strong visuals of the video game. I’m sorry to say that the art fails to display the action clearly in the action sequences and makes the combat a confusing read.

Overall the book ends on a chilling note and still feels very on point with the writing and tone. I feel this more stylized art can work for static scenes, but it leaves a lot to be desired during the action.

“Like a quest pulled right out of the games; The Witch’s Lament is a worthy addition to The Witcher universe.”

Final Score 3.5/5

Writer: Bartosz Sztybor
Artist: Vanesa del Rey
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics