REVIEW: ‘She Said Destroy,’ Issue #2

She Said Destroy is a new science fiction fantasy series from Vault Comics and is in its second issue. Written by Joe Corallo, with art by Liana Kangas, colors from Rebecca Nalty, letters by Melanie Ujimori, and designed by Tim Daniel, She Said Destroy #2 picks up after Winona and Raul made their way to receive a message from the Morrigan, to guide the witches of the Fey as Brigid’s troops make their way to the small area where the last remaining believers of the Morrigan make their lives. When they reached the beautiful and unreal area to ask for guidance, she said one word: “Destroy.”

In She Said Destroy #2 the Fey are preparing, sparring, and pushing hard to be able to take on Brigid’s forces head-on. While the training is already rough, Winona and Raul end up being rougher on each other, leading them to split. While their relationship was the crux of issue number one, this issue focuses more on building out the lore and showcasing the tenacity and strength of the captured witch in the face Brigid.

When Brigid begins an interrogation to locate the last of the coven, we also learn more about her survival and the rift between her and her sister, the Morrigan. Corallo does something interesting with this backstory. It turns out she survived because she synchronized herself with the monotheistic religion.

As a former scholar of religion, the ways myths ebb and flow into a new one is a topic of great interest to me. The majority of indigenous religions often only survive in syncretic bits through Catholicism or other forms of Christianity after colonial trauma and forced assimilation. To see that Brigid survives this way is both interesting and shows an understanding of shifting myths where gods become saints and saints become gods to worshipers.

She Said Destroy #2 is doing a great deal to create lore that pulls in the reader while also taking the time to spell it out for us. To be both immersive and filled with exposition is a tough feat to pull off but one that this series has been able to do.

As the power of Brigid is shown through her interrogation, it’s clear that the rest of the witches of the Fey are going to fight and some, if not most, will die. But while this issue leaves you feeling bleak for the witches, there is hope in Winona. Enough hope to carry the story into the next issue.

Kangas’ art in She Said Destroy #2 is still superb. It is a wonderful blend of whimsy and science fiction and Natly’s colors leap off of the page. As a whole, the artistry is perfectly in sync with the dialogue which makes the story cohesive from cover to inner pages seamlessly.

Overall, I will continue to highly recommend She Said Destroy to fans of comics, to fans of fantasy, and to fans of science fiction. It’s a beautiful looking series with a story that is shaping up to build out a whole world to fall in love with.