Is’nana the Were-Spider Vol. 2
Writer: Greg Anderson-Elysée
Artists: Walter Ostlie, Daryl Toh
Colourists: Kat Aldrich, Lee Milewski
Letterer: Joshua Cozine, Walter Ostlie
Publisher: Webway Comics
Review by Josh Rose
The son of Anansi the spider is back! Is’nana the Were-Spider Vol. 2 is the sequel to Is’nana the Were-Spider: Forgotten Stories where Is’nana fights Osebo the Leopard. I reviewed the first chapter of volume 2 a few months ago, so it’s exciting to finally be able to read the whole volume.
Is’nana is hunting new horrors that are possessing people. Unlike the first volume where there was only one horror, there are thousands of bees, wasps, and hornets possessing several animals and people. Is’nana not only has to stop the horrors from possessing more people, but cure them too. To stop the horrors Is’nana needs to find the hive’s queen, Mmboro.
I really, really enjoyed this volume. I feel like Greg Anderson-Elysée definitely found the voices for his characters (particularly Is’nana’s). There’s also a lot of character development. There’s a good deal of tension built between father and son, and they resolve their disagreements by the end. My favourite scene is when there’s a heart-to-heart between Is’nana and a human Gina. The scene brought tears to my eyes. Anderson-Elysée also brought in Haitan Vodou folklore to mesh with the West African mythology Anansi belongs to. I’m looking forward to the stories that will open up because of this link.
A lot of the horror in this book stems from the art by Walter Ostlie and Daryl Toh. The terrifying monsters that the wasps and hornets turn people into, as well as Is’nana’s were-spider form. That’s not to say it’s the only horror. Anderson-Elysée builds on that horror by using the fear of people losing their loved ones, particularly in the case of parents losing their children. Their use of shadows also helps to increase the horror factor. The colourists (Kat Aldrich and Lee Milewski) use a lot of red to help create that sense of alarm. The colours are dark and foreboding.
The Verdict: Buy it.
Is’nana the Were-Spider Vol. 2 is a great horror comic that introduces readers to some interesting folklore. Is’nana makes me want to learn more about the mythology of Anansi. And it’s great for people of color to see a lead character of color!
