REVIEW: ‘Wynd,’ Issue #6

Wynd #6 marks the start of a new arc in the BOOM! Studios series by James Tynion IV, illustrated by Micahel Dialynas with letters by AndWorld Design. As Wynd, Prince Yorik, and the rest of the crew escape Pipe Town, they are trying to get in contact with The Duke’s son, Yorik’s cousin, to help get them to Northport. But King Yossar and his new allies from the Vampyrium in Orthok are set on capturing Yorik back and killing everyone else in his company.

I quite enjoyed the setup for the next chapter in this fascinating saga. The world is getting larger, meeting new factions, allies, and threats. The stakes feel greater than in the first volume, and I’m very ready to see how the characters and the plot progress. The mystery of Wynd’s origin and entire self are still confounding, as shown well in the opening flashback sequence and some creepy visions of Wynds. The Vampyrium are wonderfully creepy and seem poised to make for a greater threat than just the Bandaged Man alone ever posed. Having all of them clad in black and red bandages makes it feel like a whole army of Bandgaged Men will be on the prince’s heels.

I just only wish I could have seen more of the main characters in this first issue back. Between the framing, in the beginning, negotiations between the king and vampires, brief scenes where we see the status of some previously injured characters still in Pipe Town and meet Queen Penelope for the first time, and a few scenic panels, it isn’t until more than halfway through the issue that we catch up with Wynd, Yorik, Oakley, and Thorn. Everyone else is interesting, don’t get me wrong, but I wish I saw more of the main crew.

What we do see, though, continues to excite me. I think there is Wynd and Yoriks’ dynamic, while not shown enough here, is poised to be the best. Meanwhile, Oakley and Thorn get a few moments to show their undying love for their own best friends is a potential bond between themselves. I don’t quite know what to make of Yorik’s cousin yet, but their relationship is bound to either be hilarious or annoying based on his gregarious nature versus Yorik’s cloistered one. What I do love, though, is how awkward Wynd was when he gets some attention from another new character. He can’t tell the difference between flirting, friendship, and otherwise, having really known just about nobody his age besides Oakley all his life, and I’m all here for that. Relationships of all stripes are confusing, and I hope that those confusing feelings keep getting explored through many characters.

In the art department, I still don’t like that Wynd has seemingly been aged up. It’s not a trope I really appreciate, especially when it’s done as a way to make sexual relationships between certain characters feel more appropriate than they otherwise may have been. Wynd’s face is much longer and even more angular now, and he looks like an awkward teenager, too goofy for his own body compared to the cute kid he seemed like originally. It’s just a jarring change, though, that I’m sure I’ll get used to by the next issue.

The scenery is pretty, though, and I really enjoy the design of the Vampires. They’re just as creepy as the Faeries were majestic in the previous arc, and I hope we get to see them both on the page at the same time down the road. I’m not sure how I feel about the explicitly Chinese design of their boats. The red and the shape of their sails immediately invoke China, and while the Vampires do hail from the west and not the east in Wynd #6, I hope that the analogous design stops there, or else a thin line may have to be walked not to cross into orientalism. There are a few moments where word bubbles are used to depict tone, using wavey lines to show the King’s fragility. I wish that there was more of that diversity in bubbles or typeface used to perhaps show just how gregarious the Duke’s son is, how bubbly his consort is, or how menacing the Vampires are.

Wynd #6 is a strong start to the next arc in this exciting series. It lingers too long on things outside of the main characters, but it does set up an expansive new direction for the next several issues for both the characters and the plot.

Wynd #6 is available now wherever comics are sold.