The Pathfinders Society, Vol. 3 - The Legend of the Lost Boy

With this graphic novel, we reach the third and final book in the saga of the Pathfinders Society.  It's been a fun, three-book ride, and this last book provides readers with a conclusion to the five kids' quest to uncover the truth behind the Merriweather mystery and the alleged "treasure" that the family was trying to find, as well as whatever really happened to Henry Merriweather all those years ago.  While each book has had its own self-contained portion of the tale, there is an over-arching story that makes for some interesting reading.

The Legend of the Lost Boy picks up shortly after the end of book 2, The Curse of the Crystal Cavern, as the kids - Kyle, Beth, Harry, Victoria (Vic), and Nate - find themselves mysteriously transported back to 1962.  Nate has had a very strange dream, where he finds himself on the ship, The Lost Boy, and a mysterious stranger warns him he must hurry because the path is fading.  What that means, however, is unknown - Nate just knows that time is running out.  The kids are concerned about finding a way back to their own time, and they eventually enlist the aid of Mildred Merriweather (who they knew as an elderly woman in their own time, but how is a pre-teen in this time) to help them out.  Which involves getting a cranky old man named Gideon, who used to be a pathfinder himself, to lead them to the ringing rocks.  He is reluctant, only agreeing to do so once they find a map that shows the way.   It's a dangerous trip down a treacherous river that seems to fight against them, and then a race against time to find the right rocks to "ring" before a deadly wind dragon takes them away.  And once they hit that right combination of rocks?  Well, let's just say the story gets really interesting from there...

Writers Francesco Sedita and Prescott Seraydarian stay spot-on with the characterization, and it is fun to read the interaction among the characters as they face new challenges in this book.  The story moves quickly, but not so fast that the readers feels like he or she has missed anything.  Steve Hamaker does a fantastic job with the art, although I will say something I noticed more in this volume than in the previous two is that it seems all of the eyes of his characters are opened wide nearly all the time, as if they are surprised or in shock.  I think that has a direct affect on the expressions of the characters, so there does not seem to be much variation from which the reader can tell the emotional state of the characters just from the art.  Thankfully, the art mixed with the dialogue and story help keep that from becoming too much of an issue.

Overall, this has been a fun series, and while the story provided a very satisfying conclusion, I do wish there were more stories to tell of these young pathfinders.  Perhaps Sedita, Seraydarian, and Hamaker will eventually come up with another tale they just have to tell, and we'll get a sequel series ... only time will tell!

RATING:  9 outdated camp uniforms out of 10 for a great mix of mystery, comics, and time traveling to make for a fun read!