GVN Talking Comics Review: Mad Cave Studios ‘Tales from Nottingham’ Issue 2

A Tale from The Sheriff’s Past

In this second excerpt from Mad Cave’s Tales from Nottingham, the creative team of writer Anna Everts and artist Gabriel Serra were given a prime opportunity. A chance to explore a past event in the career of Everard Blackthorne, i.e. The Sheriff of Nottingham. They grabbed the proverbial bull by the horns. They told a story that not only expounded on Blackthorne’s detective skills, but also adapted one of the classic medieval allegorical fables. The tale of Reynard the Fox.

The Legend of Reynard the Fox

Those late Middle Age stories are largely concerned with the main character Reynard, an anthropomorphic red fox, who prides himself of his cleverness. These tales usually involve his deceiving other animals for his own gain or more importantly, avoiding the repercussions of his actions. His main adversary or targeted victim across the cycle is usually his uncle, the wolf.

Monsieur Reynard

In this case, the Fox is represented by Monsieur Reynard, the son of a particularly cruel and evil man who was recently hung for his crimes. Apparently, the son has taken over where the father left off. This puts the current Reynard on the Sheriff’s radar. It is Everard’s intention, along with his sidekick Sir Alan Dale, to track the man down and bring him to justice. Which puts the Sheriff in the position as the Wolf. Considering Everard’s usually attire of black and fur, this is appropriate.

Traps Abound

As the Sheriff and Alan ask around, they are directed to where Reynard was last known to live. The place seems deserted, so they split up to investigate further. But Reynard’s perchance for cleverness is put on full display. He sets a trap where a tree falls upon a startled Alan Dale, while seemingly trapping the Sheriff in the Cabin. It was a half-hearted attempt as Everard easily kicked out the door and escaped in time to see Reynard on the run.

Pursuing Reynard

He chased him down and the fight ensued. Reynard appointed himself well with both men giving as well as they took. However, when it seemed that Reynard had the advantage, he was struck down from behind by Dale, who had survived the tree falling on him. If nothing else, the Sheriff picks tough allies.

A Deal Offered

Reynard regained consciousness from within Nottingham’s dungeon. Everard was looking forward to Reynard receiving the justice he no doubt deserved. But Reynard had a story to tell. He knew of a plot to kill Prince John. But he would divulge this information ONLY if he was set free. The Sheriff had a counter proposal. Reynard would tell them his information and if and ONLY if he believed him, he might seek a lesser sentence for the criminal. With that as his only option, Reynard revealed what he knew.

Reynard’s Tale

He explained that a group of insurgents had plotted to kill Prince John. To accomplish this, they had gathered a large amount of gold to use to pay off guards for either cooperation or their silence. With that knowledge, Reynard explained that he decided to thwart their plans by stealing the gold. If they agreed to help him, he would tell the Sheriff and Dale where the Gold was hidden.

Skeptical

Everard was skeptical. One, that Reynard was able to pull off such a heist by himself, and two, that anything ELSE he told them was true. Because he didn’t meet the Sheriff’s burden of proof, he told Reynard that his comeuppance with justice would proceed as planned. They left him with the assurance that Nottingham would be short one more criminal by morning. They were not wrong.

There’s Devils and there’s a DEVIL

Because while “justice was coming,” Reynard had other plans. He made some noise in his cell, calling for the guard. He explained that his chest was burning and that a devil had appeared to him. The guard laid down his weapon and pulled open Reynard’s shirt to reveal bloody scratches on his chest. Surely the work of the devil. He would go to summon a priest. Alas, a priest would be needed but not for Reynard. He had retrieved the guard’s weapon and bludgeoned him with the club repeatedly. Reynard then retrieved the shackles keys and unlatched his chains. All that was left was to decide what to do with the unfortunate man’s body.

The Aftermath

As the next day dawned, Everard and Dale returned to the dungeon to escort Reynard to the King’s justice. But upon opening the cell, they instead found the unfortunate guard. Chained to the wall where Reynard had previously been, his body bloodied, and his head severed and in a bag. Reynard had left a note, written in blood above the corpse, “With Love, Reynard.”

Needless to say, Everard was furious. How could such a thing happen? And under the guard’s noses. But this was not the end of it. Reynard might think this but a game. But Everard was going to make sure it would a game he would lose. He would brand Reynard an Outlaw. As such, he would be the target of bounty hunters and lawmen through the countryside. Reynard would “be hunted like a fox for the rest of his days.”

Thoughts

The concept of giving the characters of Nottingham some background filler before the next volume of the popular series is a smart one. Starting with issue one’s exploration of Aya the Hashashin, and now a peak into the past exploits of the Sheriff of Nottingham. However, it’s the idea of combining the narrative with the fable of Reynard the Fox which pushes this beyond an ordinary filler into a clever homage to the tales of that time period. Even more impressive that Mad Cave and series creator David Hazan had brough in their newest creators to ply their trade on these established characters. All and all an impressive debut for the creative team of Everts and Sierra. I look forward to seeing what else they bring to the Mad Cave family of titles.

Mad Cave Studios Tales from Nottingham, Issue 2 by Anna Everts, Gabriel Serra, Josh Jensen and the incomparable Justin Birch is available now on their subscription website.