SACRED SIX #8 – The Honest Review

SACRED SIX #8, available from Dynamite Comics on April 21st, 2021, travels back in time to see how Nyx stepped off the path of destructive fire demon to find out what her human half is all about. What she learns has painful consequences during the battle for Ashthorne.

The Details

• Written By: Christopher Priest
• Art By: Stephane Roux, Fritz Casas
• Colors By: Mohan
• Letters By: Willie Schubert
• Cover Art By: Lucio Parrillo
• Cover Price: $3.99
• Release Date: April 21, 2021

Was It Good?

Yes. This issue, as with the previous one, is very Nyx-centric, and you get to learn a lot about her history, her motivations, and the way she handles herself in certain situations. Despite her demonic origins, she has a lot in common with both Vampirella and Chastity in the tough-as-nails personality department.

For the story itself, (again, as with the last issue) not a lot of forward progress is made on the plot. However, the wealth of learning about Nyx balances out the lack of story, but Priest needs to be careful not to tip into filler issues.

The art is decent enough. There’s a distinct art shift from the prologue with Nyx in the 16th Century to the modern day in Ashthorne. This reviewer felt the prologue art was stronger, particularly in the effective combination of color shading and line hatching in the inks. The main story art isn’t bad at all, but the prologue art is better.

You can check out the art for yourself before you buy in our SACRED SIX #8 preview.

What’s It About?

[SPOILERS AHEAD]

We begin where we left off with Nyx in the 16th Century after she chooses to embrace her human side, at least for a time (catch up on how well her father took the news in our SACRED SIX #7review.)

Nyx wakes up in the collapsed building, still on fire. Her golden staff that replenishes her power is missing and she finds the crying baby that lured her into the building in the first place. When she leaves the building holding the baby, she’s confronted by soldiers who make the mistake of confusing her with an ordinary woman. When she dispatches them and takes their clothes and weapons, she heads to where the soldiers say her staff was taken.

What’s important about this flashback is how much you get a feel for Nyx as a character. She’s no-nonsense. She’s formidable, event without her powers (or clothes). And there’s some amount of heart in her to save a child and keep it safe on her trip to Germany. Nyx’s response to the child doesn’t present as a motherly instinct but as a desire to not see an innocent come to harm.

Cut to not-so-present-day Ashthorne in a more recent flashback where Jordan remembers a sweet bonding conversation she has with her papa, the police chief, right before her first date with Malik. The scene sets up the deep bond Jordan has with the police chief and why it makes his death so personal.

Now, a comatose Vampirella wakes up in the Sacred hospital while she’s being molested by a pervert orderly. It’s gross, and I’m not sure this was necessary, but Vampirella serves out blood-drinking justice instantly, so we can move on quickly.

Back in Ashthorne, Chastity, Nyx, and Drakulina (still disguised as a little girl) try to convince Jordan and Malik to let them out of their jail cell. Nyx, in particular, wants to get out to get her golden staff back. Drakulina picks the cell door lock and walks out to go to the bathroom, calling Jordan’s bluff that she doesn’t have the guts to use the gun she’s holding. She also warns Jordan not to light the magic candle he’s holding because… nothing good comes from lighting a magic candle.

Here’s where things get so erratic, it’s very difficult to follow (a common criticism of Priest’s writing on this run.)

Nyx jumps Malik, demanding her give her the staff which he doesn’t appear to have since he’s only holding a candle. Malik drops the candle and it rolls under the desk. When he goes under the desk, it’s pitch black. Black enough for him to light a lighter to ignite the candle see, and when he lights the candle, he’s face-to-face with Pantha in her animal form.

“Wait,” you say. “A small room full of six people and nobody noticed a very large panther under the desk?” you say. It doesn’t make sense, but we’ll go with it.

Drakulina, in the bathroom stall and talking with her familiar rat, senses the power of the candle and bursts out of the stall in her natural form. The Ashthorne mayor arrives and Malik gives him the golden staff he found under the desk. (Why was the staff under the desk? What else is under there?)

With everyone assembled, Leviticus and the forces from Sacred attack the jail at the same time Vampirella arrives from the hospital. There’s a brief firefight with the Sacred soldiers, but they quickly leave as Levi declares this was just a warning attack. Good people must leave Ashthorne before Sacred comes to destroy the town for good.

At the end of the skirmish, Leviticus and the Gardener (named Adam) greet each other. It’s unclear if they’re friends or enemies, but it’s clear there’s some type of truce of understanding between them.

Back in the jail, Nyx stays behind to let the fire consume her. Malik runs in and offers her the staff he first offered to the mayor. We end the issue with quiet before the storm.

How Does It End?

Vampirella clearly missed something. Nyx gets her mojo back. “MALIK!”

Final Thoughts

SACRED SIX #8, available from Dynamite Comics on April 21st, 2021, succeeds in fleshing out Nyx as one of the lesser understood characters in Vampirella canon. The art is mildly inconsistent but not enough to be jarring, and the main story works up until the erratic and chaotic ending.

Score: 6.5/10