Once And Future #5
Duncan learns some hard truths in Once And Future #5, by writer Kieron Gillen, artist Dan Mora, colorist Tamra Bonvillain, and letterer Ed Dukeshire. Family secrets are revealed as the quest for Grail reaches a pivotal point.
After killing her ex-husband, Duncan’s grandfather, Gran explains the long term plan they had made- after ridding the British Isles of the last of the old monsters, they would raise one perfect knight. A Percival, just in case they ever needed to get the Grail to ensure the safety of the British Isles. Duncan’s grandfather started having grander ambitions for the family, though, and Gran shot him. Mary, who would become Elaine, the mother of Galahad, was also Duncan’s mother and ran off before Gran could find her. Gran has Duncan say that she’s like a mother and father to him and then shoots herself, becoming his Fisher King, and allowing him to cross into Otherworld to stop Galahad from getting the Grail. Using clues that Gran wrote out for him, Duncan gets to Galahad and get the Grail from him, bringing it back to heal Gran… only to find that it only actually exists in Otherworld. The threat of Arthur isn’t ended, though, so Duncan has Rose drive the three of them to Bath where he asks the Ladies of the Water for a weapon, and they give him Excalibur.
At first glance, the amount of coincidence in the relationships in this book seems a little too convenient, but that’s not really the case. Duncan, not knowing who his mother or grandfather are is explained as him being raised exclusively by Gran and other women elsewhere. While this still seems a little too cut and dry, it helps to realize that Gillen is writing about the power stories have over people in this book. This is a story about the power that stories have over people. Duncan’s grandfather filled Mary/Elaine’s head with the stories of the Grail and the power it could bring them, setting her on the path to resurrecting Arthur and getting the Grail for him. Gran had grown up learning and fighting the stories, so she made her own back-up plans that also followed the stories. Duncan, however, seems to be the only one who can make any change to the whole thing. While he exists as a part of the story, he doesn’t believe in them like everyone else. They are merely something he is in.
That’s why he can defeat Galahad and win his way to the Grail. That’s why he can go to the Ladies of the Water and be given Excalibur. He has a place in the story, but at this point, he’s trying to take the power back and not just let the story have its way with him. The stories give him power, but it’s him who makes the decisions and the moves needed to make things happen. He isn’t just following a plot but making his own.
There’s really not much new to say about Dan Mora’s artwork. It’s brilliant as usual, with lots of detail, strong linework, and character acting. Praise, however, should also be heaped on Tamra Bonvillain’s colors. In the hands of a lesser colorist, this would still be some good art, but in Bonvillain’s hands, everything pops that much more, especially the sequences in Otherworld. Her colors give these parts a wonderfully eerie feeling that perfectly captures the mood of that mystic land.
Once And Future #5 keeps up the blistering pace of the series while also answering a lot of burning questions that the end of the last issue raised. Gillen is writing about the power of stories in this book. But this issue also shows that the real power in stories comes from those who are in them. Dan Mora and Tamra Bonvillain are the perfect art team for this book, gelling together to create some fantastic art. With only one more issue remaining, Once And Future remains a triumph.
Grade: B+
