Courtney Crumrin, Volume Seven - Tales of a Warlock

And so we reach the end of the Courtney Crumrin saga - only, her story technically ended with Volume Six. With Volume Seven, Ted Naifeh, creator of this quirkly little magical series, takes a step back in time and gives readers a look at Courtney's Uncle Aloysius back when he was just a young man. What made him into the man that Courtney knew? Well, Tales of a Warlock answers that question...

Throughout this series, Aloysius Crumrin has been harsh, a bit stodgy, sometimes rather cranky, and every once-in-a-while protective. So, it's quite interesting to see Aloysius as a young man, cocky and free-spirited, yet at the same time, a man with a mission who is not afraid to use anything and anyone at his disposal to accomplish his goal. In this instance, his goal is to stop the misuse of magic, not only by the witches and warlocks in his own community, but by those outside of the community. Hence, his sudden appearance at the Anti-Sorcery Society (let's now discuss what the acronym for that would be...) and his willingness to help them out.

Or so it would seem...but as long-time readers will already know, there's more to Aloysius Crumrin than meets the eye. Naifeh provides his usual unique art style with this last book, and quite honestly, when I first started flipping through the pages, I thought Alice Crisp was a grown-up Courtney (which would have been interesting to see) - but alas, Alice is the daughter of the leader of the Anti-Sorcery Society, as well as the one person who catches Aloysius' eye. Only, he has his own agenda, and Alice is merely a means to an end. Or is she?

Naifeh continues with his brilliant writing, keeping the reader on his or her toes all the time. Nothing and no one is really what they seem to be, and even Aloysius finds that you can't control your feelings - but at what cost is the real question. Magic abounds in the story, as does evil and greed and jealousy and power - everything that makes us human, only amplified with the magical realm. Needless to say, by the end of the story, readers will learn a bit more about the magic of Hillsborough, as well as a bit of why Aloysius is the way he is in the present day.

And now the Courtney Crumrin saga has come to an end, and overall, I am completely satisfied. There was no huge cliffhanger or unresolved story, and this final chapter provided a great bookend to give us some history of Aloysius and Hillsborough. Kudos to Ted Naifeh for a story well-told, well-drawn, and well-crafted (and, for that matter, well-packaged!).

RATING:  9 field agents turned into ducks out of 10 for wrapping up this series in true style!