WHITE LILY #5 – An Honest Review

In WHITE LILY #5, available from Red 5 Comics on June 30th, 2021, Lilya and Katya transfer to the Eastern Front for their toughest assignment yet on the eve of the Battle of Kursk.

The Details

• Written By: Preston Poulter
• Art By: Lovalle Davis, Walden Wong, Diana Greenhalgh
• Colors By: Alonso Espinoza
• Letters By: Taylor Esposito
• Cover Art By: Lovalle Davis
• Cover Price: $3.95
• Release Date: June 30, 2021

Was It Good?

It was okay. Not outstanding. Not bad. Simply okay.

When creators adapt historical events, there’s a requirement to balance telling a story with true-life events that sometimes require a little creative license. Reality rarely lends itself to a clean beginning, middle, and end.

That said, Poulter does a fairly good job filling in some of the blanks to complete the story using the real-life ending that fits well into his adaptation’s narrative. The dogfights and dialog are written to express the passion and urgency of each scene, and the ending is perfectly bittersweet.

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The art, likewise, keeps with a real-life feel but still infuses enough of the energy you can only get in comics to make this issue an engaging read. This is a good-looking book with the colors from Espinoza shining through as the standout feature.

You can check out the internal pages in our WHITE LILY #5 preview right here.

What’s It About?

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

Lilya and Katya arrive at Kursk on the eve of one of the greatest air battles in WWII. When they report to the base’s Colonel Shestakov, he subjects them to foul taunts and insults for being women in his military. Despite the colonel’s protests, Nikolai convinces him to give them a chance to fight.

Nikolai, Katya, and Lilya spend time in a bar talking about the battles to come. during their drinking, they share fairytales and parables from their respective homelands. Some of the stories are lessons about a person’s reach exceeding their grasp. Others focus on the good and evil of home life and marriage similar to Grimm’s fairytales.

You get the impression Poulter is using the stories as foreshadowing for things to come or lessons learned about Lilya’s trials so far. some of the stories lean clearly in the “making a point” direction. Others are not so obvious.

The next day, Lilya and Katya succeed in shooting down a German recon balloon — a difficult mission — and earn enough respect from the colonel to be given the title of “free hunters.” Free hunters are allowed to select their targets and create as much havoc as possible for the enemy.

Lilya and Katya make several damaging strafe runs against a German tank line during the decisive battle for Kursk, but Lilya is (possibly) shot down by German fighters. No parachutes or downed planes were found, and the real-life remains weren’t found until several decades later.

Katya makes it back to base but is distraught over not given clearance to start a search. Katya’s pain is amplified by the fact that she’s secretly in love with Lilya. Nikolay can’t allow Katya to continue flying in such an emotional state, so he puts her on administrative leave.

Katya takes the opportunity to go home and visit her mother. There, she opens up about losing someone close to her and eventually comes out to her mother. Her mother understands the pain of losing a loved one but she’s disappointed by her daughter being a lesbian. Katya decides to leave, feeling as if she has no one left in her life.

Katya returns to the Kursk base and demands to be put back on active duty. Sensing her determination, Nikolai agrees. We conclude the issue with Katya making the Germans pay with her last breath.

How Does It End?

Katya gives as good as she gets. A white lily is the last thing she sees. Russia honors its heroes.

Final Thoughts

WHITE LILY #5 is a somber yet fitting end to the real-life story of the White Lily. The art is excellent, particularly the coloring and the renderings of the fairytales. And the writing does a fine job conveying the spirit of fighters giving their lives for their country.

Score: 8/10