Once And Future #17
The Grail is found in Once And Future #17 by writer Kieron Gillen, artist Dan Mora, colorist Tamra Bonvillain, and letterer Ed Dukeshire. All of the carefully laid plots are coming to a head in this lively, action-packed issue.
Elaine confronts what her son has become as Sir Hempleworth and his men open fire. She calls over Lancelot, who can stop all of the bullets with his sword. Just as he's about to attack, a dragon bursts in, killing one of the soldiers, and Lancelot attacks it, sensing a worthy foe. Galahad escapes with Elaine, and Gran and Duncan meet Hempleworth, who lets them know why he's here and that Rose is safe. Meanwhile, Rose finds a hidden shotgun and follows the path Hempleworth took into Otherworld. Gran, Duncan, and company realize that everyone is after the Grail and go after it. Arthur speaks with Merlin as he weakens, and Galahad takes Elaine to safety before she exhorts him to get the Grail after finding a message from Merlin. After he leaves, she builds a fire and speaks to Merlin through it, and finds out all of Merlin's recent manipulations of events, including that Galahad doesn't recognize her and is horribly changed. She swears revenge, which Merlin knew was inevitable as she's playing the role of Nimue. As Rose begins her journey through Grail Castle, Gran, Duncan, and Hempleworth find Galahad getting the Grail and try to stop him. Rose gets there to help, but Galahad escapes. Rose finds the dragon that fought Lancelot and removes his sword from it. The dragon is grateful, and they ride it to catch Galahad.
Gillen has been laying down multiple plots for the past sixteen issues, and this one is the culmination, where they all start to melt and intertwine. Gran makes a great point in this issue- the story has gotten so twisted that no one knows how it will turn out-; all they can do is play their roles. This even extends to Merlin, who has been manipulating events from behind the scenes, twisting the stories up. Every player has a role to play, and certain things must happen. Narrative inevitability sweeps everyone along. Even Merlin knows the danger he's in, but he also knows that this plan is his only hope. Nimue will get him no matter what, but if Arthur survives and has the Grail, he'll live again.
This issue is pretty exciting from start to finish, rapidly cutting between scenes and building things up, moving all of the players to their ultimate spots. Even something that seems random, like the dragon showing up, plays into the plot. It's a great bit of writing Gillen has pulled off in this comic, weaving so many disparate threads together and doing it all in one issue while also keeping the whole thing exciting and fast-paced. It's become a trademark of this series, and this issue proves again just how great Gillen's story craft is.
Dan Mora and Tamra Bonvillain knock it out of the park yet again with this issue. There are so many great art pieces in this issue, from the opening action sequence with Galahad, Lancelot, the soldiers, and the dragon on forward, that it's hard to pick any stand-out part because it all stands out. Mora and Bonvillain's amazing Sympatico relationship works wonders in this issue, the pencils and colors working together to lay out some amazing visuals.
Once And Future #17 is an action-packed banger that ties all of this series's plot threads together in perfect fashion. Gillen keeps everything exciting throughout the whole issue, keeping the pace high while also letting the plot become known. Mora and Bonvillain continue to be one the best penciler/colorist teams in the comics, laying down some amazing visuals. Once And Future looks to be moving towards its inevitable end, and if this issue is any indication, it'll be a great ride.