In BELLE: DRAGON CLAN, available from Zenescope Entertainment on August 18th, 2021, Belle’s day of apartment hunting takes a fiery turn when a dragon rider shows up to remove Belle as an obstacle to the Dark Princess’s plans.
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The Details
- Written By: Dave Franchini
- Art By: Julius Abrera
- Colors By: Juan Manuel Rodriguez
- Letters By: Taylor Esposito
- Cover Art By: Igor Vitorino, Ivan Nunes
- Cover Price: $5.99
- Release Date: August 18, 2021
Was It Good?
If you like a (slightly) oversized issue that’s almost entirely a knockdown brawl between a superhero in a spiffy super suit and a firebreathing dragon, then this issue is fantastic. Throughout these Belle on-shots, our main protagonist has struggled to find her place and a sense of normalcy when she’s forced to fight beasts of all sizes to protect the innocent. Sometimes the inner-self-reflection gets a little repetitive from one-sot to one-shot, but no one can argue you don’t get a true sense of the character and what she’s feeling.
Franchini knows the Belle character, as well as anyone, and the consistency from issue to issue is commendable. That said, the steps Bell takes toward figuring out her place in the world are starting to drag on. That’s partly due to the gap between issues and partly due to her self-discovery taking a back seat to the conflict at hand, namely ordered attacks by the Dark Princess. It’s not a bad thing to know what the character is thinking, but it would serve the character’s growth to move her progression a little quicker.
As for the plot, it’s a simple and straight as you can get. Dark Princess wants Belle dead. Dark Princess sends a dragon rider to kill her. And then they fight.
The simplicity fo the description isn’t meant to be flippant. It really is that simple. Again, it’s not a bad thing to have a simple plot as long as the details tell the story, and we do get some helpful knowledge through the action.
The art is fairly standard Zenescope house style. It’s as good or better than most publishers on the market today. Characters are well-drawn, the colorwork in this issue is excellent, and it’s a visually appealing issue overall.
What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD – Click here if you just want the score without spoilers]
Belle and Mell are out looking for an apartment because Belle is tired of sleeping on Mel’s couch and she no longer feels comfortable putting Mel in harm’s way with her beast-fighting activities. when Belle finds n apartment she likes, the two have a heart-to-heart about Belle’s desire to move out. there’s no indication the two are anything more than just good friends but the seeds are there if the writers want to take the Mel/Belle relationship in a different direction.
As they talk privately on the apartment balcony, a dragon ridden by a human appears, wreaking havoc on the city. Mel urges Belle not to tackle a challenge this big alone, implying she’s aware of Van Helsing and other earth-based Zenescope characters, but Belle cant’ risk waiting with innocents getting attacked on the street below.
Belles suits up in her new (and not fully understood) super-suit she kept from her last mission with C.H.I.P. (Read our Belle: Sirens review to find out more). The suit gives Belle some strength enhancement and armored protection which she uses to snatch civilians from the dragon’s claws.
Recognizing that defense is not enough, Belle goes on the attack and leaps on the dragon’s back to go after its rider. Once the battle goes mano-a-mano, it lasts for several pages until the dragon’s injuries force the dragon down in the Pine Barrens (Southern New Jersey). We conclude the issue with Belle interrogating the weakened rider, a surprise recovery, and a new discovery about Belle’s suit.
Final Thoughts
BELLE: DRAGON CLAN is the type of all-out brawling action so sorely missed from the modern crop of action comics. The art is solid, the pacing is brisk, and this issue successfully executes on telling part of the story through the fight. If these one-shots can pick up the pace on Belle finding herself and her inner confidence, this will become a top-notch collection.
Score: 8.5/10
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