GVN Talking Comics Review: Mad Cave Studios ‘Dahlia in the Dark’ Issue 1

Meet Donny Dahlia

Donny Dahlia once was very sought after in his profession. The reason for that was he was very good at it. But when your profession is a “hit man,” your reputation is only as good as your last job. And if you should FAIL at that job, there’s ALWAYS someone there to replace you. In fact, because of that, it sometimes falls upon YOU to train your possible replacement. As messed up as THAT is.

However, Donny wasn’t worried about that, back in the day. In his prime, he had been at the top of his game. Killing werewolves and the like was just another assignment and a paycheck for him. But he had fallen on hard times recently. So much so that hardly anyone offered him a job. Which wasn’t good. Because unlike many in the profession, Donny had a family to consider. Especially the love of his life, his estranged daughter.

Getting a Job

So, when facilitator Ollie Oleander called for him for a job, he was all for it. Finally, a chance to start to rebuild his reputation. At least that is what he thought until he found out it was a “UPS” run and he wasn’t even the driver. Instead, Ollie had him riding shotgun to Big Molly Bloom. The thickly muscled woman who had basically replaced him. However, at this particular moment, a job was a job and Donny couldn’t refuse the opportunity. Take a package from point A to point B, drop it off and get paid. Sounded simple enough. Of course, nothing ever IS simple. Not in THEIR line of work.

Drawing Attention

The reason for that was simple. For someone to pay for the delivery of a package with no questions asked, that usually meant that more than a few people were interested in the package. This delivery was no exception. In fact, this delivery had a lot of interest. From people who didn’t care about who got killed in the process. But that was par for the course in Donny and Molly’s world. Still, a quick delivery before things got ugly wouldn’t have hurt their feelings any.

Ryne

Speaking of ugly, it is a word that can describe what can happen when you get in the way of someone in doing their job. That person, or changeling in this case, is called Ryne. He had already killed another group of interested parties in this secret delivery. One less obstacle to retrieving the package. Next stop: Oleander’s.

Making Good Decisions

Ollie is a human. Or as other worldly creatures refer to as Ephemerals. Which in their way of thinking means, they aren’t made to last long. But Ollie Oleander would be quick to tell you, he knows how to play the game. Because of that, he has lasted a lot longer than most Ephemerals. Some of that is having the right connections and part of that is knowing when to spill your guts when threatened. So, when Ryne showed up, looking for the package, Ollie let him know what the situation was. Even after Ryne killed his loyal assistant. Poor Claudia.

Keep Living the Good Life

Seeing the lay of the land, Ollie told him who had the package, what they were driving, and the routes they most likely would take. In the grand scheme of things, staying alive and living the life he had established was more important than anything else. Including a mystery package. Ollie figured that Ryne was trying to stop the package to prevent whatever plans King Luna, King of the Fairies had in motion. That would keep their little war with the fairies going and allow Ollie to keep living the good life. So, good luck to you, Mr. Ryne.

Playing Both Sides

Which was not to say that Ollie didn’t call Molly as soon as Ryne left, to warn her. She and Donny had a Changeling in hot pursuit. More than likely others as well. They best be on their toes and deliver that package as soon as possible. Which is exactly what Donny and Molly intended to do. Once Molly got back from the restroom.

An Open Package

However, a monkey wrench got thrown into those plans. Especially when their back seat package suddenly started talking to Donny and opened from within. A young girl climbed out. She explained that she was Maya, daughter of King Luna. Loyalists for her father had arranged to kidnap her and send her back to the King. But there is a slight problem with that plan. Maya doesn’t WANT to go back. Not to mention the danger they were now in. So much for not knowing what the package is…

Thoughts

One of the beautiful things about a Mad Cave series is how quickly the creative team can get the reader invested in the story. This is important as a five-issue series requires the development of reader engagement in a short period of time. Writer Joe Corallo and artist Andrea Milana tackle this problem head on and vanquish it.

Building a Narrative

They start with establishing Donny’s former life and the importance of his daughter. By doing so, Corolla not only reveals the sensitive side of Dahlia but what he did to support her. However, they keep under wraps, at least in this early stage, what happened that put Donny on the outs as far as employment goes. No doubt to be revealed as the narrative continues.

Plus, there is Molly. Donny’s heir apparent. Molly’s physical appearance is enough to garner attention. There is a story there that I look forward to Corallo and Milana’s exploration of.

The Games Afoot

This is followed by revealing the competition involved in the job that Donny has accepted and showing what they are capable of. Especially their main competition, Ryne. He is obviously VERY good at his job, which at this point seems to be death and destruction. Who is RYNE working for? More questions that demand answers.

But if that isn’t enough, they are also laying the groundwork for what the conflicts are between the Fairy world and those they are combating. How does Maya fit in? Why did she leave her father in the first place? Nothing feeds a story better than a mystery. In this first issue of Dahlia in the Dark, the games afoot.