Last Time in ‘Dahlia in the Dark’
When last we left Donnie Dahlia, all hell had broken loose. Donnie had a confrontation with the mysterious agent Vera Sinclair and then with the even more mysterious changeling Ryne. Shots were exchanged and Ryne was taken down. Not by Donnie but by Sinclair. In the confusion, Donnie was able to take off once again with Maya. But he knew that whoever wanted her would be in pursuit. With that in mind, he decided to lay low in an undisclosed location until he could figure out their next move. At least that was the original idea. Until Maya came up missing before the night was over. Disappearing from the room they were staying in the midst of a driving snowstorm. Nothing ever seems to go easy in Dahlia in the Dark.
A Decision Made
While Donnie is trying to ascertain what happened to Maya, he gets a call from Ollie, his and Big Molly Bloom’s handler. Donnie tells him he is out of this assignment. Not that it mattered since the “package” they were supposed to deliver was gone. Ollie assured him that they could still accomplish their goal, but if Donnie leaves, he can never come back. That consequence was one that Donnie knew and accepted. Which didn’t mean that he wouldn’t pursue Maya. He promised he would help her and didn’t want to disappoint ANOTHER little girl.
The Council
But Ollie ALSO had plans after his call with Donnie. He contacted the Council to discuss what he knew. Just as he told Donnie, he assured them that the delivery could still be accomplished. Whether that included Maya was a different story. They reported that they were aware that Galvonus had acquired Maya and he appeared to be bringing her back to Luna Tower. Back to her father. They thought that if Demetrius would be satisfied with her return, things might be salvaged. Provided the OTHER part of the delivery is made. What THAT is remains a mystery.
Meanwhile, Vera had taken custody of Molly, at least initially, until she once again ran into trouble. Vera is NOT having a good day. A group of six officers met her at gun point and directed her to uncuff Molly and stand back. Molly was more than happy to be let free. She walked away leaving Vera to fend for herself. All’s fair in whatever this is.
An Exchange Gone Awry
While this was going on, the aforementioned Galvonus had met with a group eager to retrieve Maya. However, this apparently required a blood sacrifice, which the people he met with supplied with a stag. But just as Galvonus was starting to spread the blood in a circle, a wash of power intervened. Galvonus assumed that he was being betrayed by those he met with. But they swore to him that they were not responsible. It was in fact Maya’s response to her kidnapping…again! Much to the irritation of Galvonus.
Donnie Intervenes
However, the visual evidence of Maya’s power helped Donnie to locate them. He drove his car up, honking the horn incessantly, ALSO to the irritation of Galvonus. He sent the men he was meeting to deal with Donnie while HE dealt with Maya. In this case, for those men, it involved gunfire. Fortunately, such a confrontation was Donnie’s forte. If he couldn’t shoot them, he would run them over in his car. Either way he would go after Maya.
Galvonus Mistake
Galvonus, for his part, was impressed with Maya’s magical efforts but he knew she would be no match for his power. And all Maya knew was that she could NOT go back with him, even though she considered him her teacher. Her defiance again irritated Galvonus. It had not been his intention to hurt her, but if she insisted on resisting, he would have no choice. As he approached, his over-confidence proved to be his undoing as Maya called upon her power and impaled Galvonus with roots and limbs sprouting from the ground. She had not MEANT to hurt him either. But it happened, nonetheless.
Pondering her Selfishness
The results were that Donnie once again left with Maya. While she was grateful for Donnie’s assistance, she was confused why he still wanted to help her. He didn’t owe her anything. She wasn’t his responsibility and to make matters worse, people were getting hurt or killed. All because she ran away from her home and her father. She wondered if she was being selfish for not staying.
To Run or NOT to Run
Donnie listened but told her that she was not responsible for the decisions other people made. Sometimes, the best thing you CAN do is to run away. However, for himself, he was done with running. Although, he was talking about another situation entirely. He had let his daughter be taken from him. Under the premise that it was safest for her. And in his line of work, he understood that. It WOULD be safer for Amy if he was not around. His ex-wife CERTAINLY thought so. Now, Donnie is not too sure. If the past events proved anything to him, he missed his daughter. He had decided to do something about it.
Thoughts
Just when you suspect you might have a handle on what’s going on, the creative team of Joe Corallo and Andrea Milana assures you that you don’t. It started out like a simple case of an unhappy princess looking for some freedom. But there is a lot more going on here than that. Something that can cause a split between factions. Something so important that it becomes necessary to spill blood or kill if the situation warrants it. With Maya and now Donnie Dahlia caught in the middle.
Ollie is intertwined on both sides of the conflict. Whether this is for the benefit of a particular side or his own is unclear. But if taken at face value, its probably more for his own than anything else. Just another undiscovered piece in the Dahlia in the Dark puzzle.
One thing IS for certain. Maya knows more about what is going on than she has revealed so far. Other than the fact that her father is a ruthless man who will stop at nothing to get what he wants. How that involves Maya is unclear. But even more unclear is what the other part of the package is and how it connects with everything. Then mix in Donnie’s quest to reconnect with his daughter and you have a Rubik’s Cube of mystery still waiting to be solved. If that’s not enough to bring the reader back for more I don’t know what is.
Mad Cave Studios Dahlia in the Dark, Issue 4 by Joe Corallo, Andea Milana and Micah Myers is available now on Mad Cave’s Subscription site. Issue 5 drops April 26th. So, you still have time to catch up before then.
Senior Writer at GeekVibesNation – I am a 60 something child of the 70’s who admits to being a Star Trek/Star Wars/Comic Book junkie who once dove headfirst over a cliff (Ok, it was a small hill) to try to rescue his Fantastic Four comic from a watery grave. I am married to a lovely woman who is as crazy as I am and the proud parent of a 21-year-old young man with autism. My wife and son are my real heroes.
