Zatanna #3(of 4) - DC (2005)

Blah, blah, Grant Morrison is an amazingly good writer blah, blah we're not worthy blah a god who walks among men, etc. etc.

Now that that's out of the way:

Zatanna is the miniseries of all the Seven Soldiers minis that I have enjoyed the most so far and that's saying something!

#3 is the issue that brings Zatanna and her charge, Misty, fully into the stories of the other minis. Especially Shining Knight which is my second favorite. This issue builds upon the two before it and really brings everything together.

Morrison does some wonderful things, here. He manages to combine great action with powerful emotion. I love the feel of the magical world Zatanna and Misty travel through. Little touches like the blue-flame-wreathed skeleton who drives spirits to their final resting places in his bus really grab me. Zatanna takes many things in this world for granted that would freak most people completely out (e.g. exorcisims). Therefore, when something makes her freak out we know it's big.

Ryan Sook's pencils and Mick Gray's inks are superb. I don't possess the proper visual-arts vocabulary to express how well their work fits with Morrison's writing. They bring Magical Los Angeles to life and Nathan Eyring's colors make it sing. Zatanna looks competent, beautiful and a little sad. This issue is worth opening up just for the artists' portrayal of Ali Ka-Zoom, the Merlin of the Ghetto.

You can enjoy this miniseries without having read the others. You don't even have to be familiar with the DC universe's "continuity". I'm assuming these will show up as a trade at some point but, if not, hunting down the back issues of this would be worth it.