Review by Frank Plowright

In the Grimm Fairy Tales universe Earth is the nexus between other worlds, those we know as the homes of fictional characters whose existence involves magic. After a battle severely weakening the forces of good an exceptionally powerful entity known as the Dream Eater was released, and in Volume One it proved extremely useful on Earth dealing with terrifying threats and restoring their victims to life. However, those with greater knowledge, such as the witch Baba Yaga, with whom this continuation opens, see the being as an existential threat. She’s searching for a weapon, but without any qualms about using torture to discover it, worrying her ally.

The art has been a big problem on Grimm Fairy Tales and associated projects, but The Dream Eater Saga largely features the best the company has to offer, although on the opening chapters here that can still be ordinary. Shamus Beyale, for instance, begins well in evoking the lands of Sinbad, but by midway deadlines have obviously caught up and the art deteriorates. A problem afflicting too many artists is a lack of imagination that sees them telling stories by relying so often on pages with little other than faces as exemplified by the sample art from Alex Sanchez. It leaves Randy Valiente (sample right) as the star turn for managing so much more and making it look attractive, which astounds considering his poor work on the regular series. Sanchez is the worst for exploitative illustrations, while Roberto Viacava’s work doesn’t match his pages in the first volume.

As before Raven Gregory co-plots with Joe Brusha and Ralph Tedesco and scripts most chapters herself. There’s a noticeable downturn when Dan Wickline scripts a chapter, with some really awkward phrasing. Otherwise, as before, the plot continues to build efficiently while looking in on multiple characters.

So far Earth’s protector Sela Mathers hasn’t been seen, but once she’s introduced she’s pivotal until the end. Her chapters expand the Grimm worlds further by providing an origin for the cosmos and some grounding for a bunch of characters introduced in the parent series. Alongside that we learn why the Dream Eater, who’s seemed pretty useful so far, is a bigger threat than anything they’ve disposed of.

The finale drops a number of good surprises. Given the way he was used in Volume One readers may be disappointed that the Dream Eater’s presence is restricted to the finale, but he certainly throws his weight around there. As ever with projects associated with Grimm Fairy Tales one might wish for better art, but the writers ensure The Dream Eater Saga is a well constructed thriller all the more impressive for working with so many characters.