Elsa Bloodstone has always been a difficult character to get into since she usually plays sidekick. Or, at the very least, Bloodstone is a mysterious character that pops in and pops out. In Tini Howard and Ig Guara’s new one-shot Death of Doctor Strange: Bloodstone, that all falls away. A tie-in to Death of Doctor Strange, this one-shot builds off the fall of the Sorcerer Supreme affecting Elsa’s life in a big way.
The preview and solicit give it away, but it is a spoiler to learn Elsa has a sister. Her brother Cullen is a pain in the butt, but what about her sister? Possibly more the of the same as we learn in this enlightening issue.
What this issue gets right is making it very apparent that the dynamics between the Bloodstone siblings is worthy of our attention. Right off the bat, Cullen and Elsa rub each other the wrong way, but they also care deeply for each other. They are siblings and must interact, but they’re also adults that don’t necessarily jive well. Add in their long-lost sister and there’s a lot of conflict and care going back and forth between them. The biggest win for this series is that it makes a case for the Bloodstone siblings to have their own series.
That’s quite an explosion.
Credit: Marvel
This issue also unveils magical and mystical elements well. It has a storybook feel with a key flashback, for instance, and it introduces some clever twists on the magical realm in the Marvel universe. There’s a darker edge to this corner of the magical realm and some complicated feelings about killing, or not killing, monsters.
Guara and color artist Dijjo Lima add a lot of wow-factor to the book too. Action has explosive energy, sometimes literally, adding a lot of energy and chaos to scenes that start quieter through dialogue. The opening action sequence introduces us to the life of Elsa Bloodstone well with a cool monster added in as a bonus. Guara also captures a lot of the hearts of these characters through their actions.
Joe Caramagna’s letters are great, particularly the tails on word balloons. There’s a sharp edge given to them that adds a bit of an attitude to the dialogue. There are plenty of great sound effects at work here too.
Dialogue can feel a bit heavy, with the pace slowing down to a crawl at times. That certainly adds to the explosive action moments that come out of nowhere, but there are sections that slow way down. It certainly takes a bit longer to read, adding to the value if you’re looking for a longer experience.
Death of Doctor Strange: Bloodstone is a wonderful surprise that will make you crave a Bloodstone comic series. It makes a case for Elsa’s life being well worth capturing in its own series thanks to the dynamics with her siblings and the angle it takes on magic.
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