BARBARELLA (VOL. 2) #8 – Review

BARBARELLA (VOL. 2) #8, from Dynamite Comics on March 23rd, 2022, challenges Barbarella and her friends to repair an abandoned spaceship in the hope of escaping the Lady and her army.

The Details

• Written By: Sarah Hoyt
• Art By: Madibek Musabekov
• Colors By: Ivan Nunes
• Letters By: Carlos M. Mangual
• Cover Art By: Carla Cohen (cover A)
• Cover Price: $3.99
• Release Date: March 23, 2022

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Was It Good?

BARBARELLA (VOL. 2) #8 is an odd issue in an otherwise fascinating and largely positive series. It’s odd in that the issue is effectively a part 2 of one extensive scene, and the events that happen through the scene are silly.

On the one hand, Hoyt has been amazingly consistent in portraying the titular character as more important and capable than merely a beautiful woman who uses sex appeal to get her way. Barbarella, under Hoyt’s skilled hand, is a shrewd diplomat and adventurer who uses sex appeal as one of many tools at her disposal.

However, here those tools are used in strangely unexpected ways. The issue focuses on Barbarella’s escape from an unfriendly planet, but the execution of the escape seems bizarrely unbelievable and occasionally inept.

In one portion of the scene, Barbarella and friends frantically work to repair a decommissioned spaceship to leave the planet using chewing gum. Yes, you read that right. Chewing gum.

In another portion of the scene, clears away a pursuing army regiment by performing a lecture on the evolution of sex, confusing the army so badly they decided to leave. While the concept is amusing, it doesn’t make sense in a world where the entire population is under the control of a ruthless despot who rules by fear.

The story has its ups and downs, but there’s no denying the effectiveness and captivating eye candy of Musabekov’s art. It’s as beautiful as Barbarella, and every page is nearly stunning with the level of rich detail, elevated more by Nunes’s coloring.

Keep scrolling for a closer look at the covers, or Click Here to jump right to the story description with some spoilers.

What’s It About?

[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]

If you don’t recall where we last left our hero, first read our BARBARELLA (VOL. 2) #7 review.

We begin with Barberall, Taln, Vix, and George the dinosaur at the salvage yard trying to frantically repair an old spaceship to escape. The Lady’s army has arrived to surround them, and time has run out. Barbarella quickly gets an idea and projects a hologram of herself to begin a lecture to the approaching army about the evolution of sex and love to the asexual dinosaur people, complete with visual aids. The lecture is so confusing to the single-sex species, they decide to leave to process the information.

The lecture buys Barbarella time, and her team finishes repairing a ship with large quantities of chewing gum. They take off, but the weight of everyone onboard, including George the dinosaur, forces the ship to crash after a short distance.

We conclude the issue with an attempt to infiltrate another spaceport, another confusion tactic, and another escape attempt.

Keep scrolling for a closer look at preview images of the internal pages, or Click Here to jump right to the score.

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