The Stuff of Legend Vol. 2 - The Jungle #3 Review

Like they have done for every other previous issue, the creators from Stuff of Legend were kind enough to send me a review copy for my enjoyment. For those of you keeping track at home, when we last left our intrepid band of toys, they had ventured into the jungle, where they found all the animal toys and tension arose between the two groups. Will the two parties come to a clash? Will they work in unison? Hit the jump to find out.

The Stuff of Legend: The Jungle #3

Written by Mike Raicht & Brian Smith

Art by Charles Paul Wilson III

Color & Design by Jon Conkling & Michael DeVito

The animals of the jungle are not happy with toys trying to rescue the boy, who they equate with a lifetime of servitude. They are particularly resentful of the “Human” toys (such as Jester and Harmony, who have the shape of a regular man and woman). The jungle animals are deciding what to do with the new group of toys, and along the way we learn new bits of information regarding the world of Stuff of Legend, such as the fact that the Boogeyman is trapped in the darkness.

As a matter of fact, this issue is characterized by all the new information we learn, and considering we are on the 3rd issue of the series, it makes sense to start unraveling the mysteries that the team has crafted along the way. One of the tools that the team uses is Monty, the boy's first toy and the first one to make it’s way into the darkness, tell his story of how he got there in the first place. This tale is told through cave paintings that Monty has done, which is a pretty creative way to show us flashbacks without breaking the pace of the tale. Max the bear, Percy the pig, Quackers the duck and Scout the dog are the forced guests of the jungle animals, but things are going worse for the Human toys.

Jester, Harmony and The Princess are forced to fight for their survival as they are hunted through the jungle. There is one genuinely cool scene, where Jester channels his inner Rorschach (I half expected him to shout “You are locked in here with me!” through the scene). We also gain some knowledge as to what the the armies of the Boogeyman are doing after the attack of the Golems last issue. They are pretty bruised and battered, and The General seems to be suffering a crisis of faith. Only the zeal of Homer is making the troops onwards towards the jungle, to catch up with the rebel toys.

I mentioned above that there’s a whole lot of information being revealed, but that’s not to say that the creative team does not add more mysteries to the mix to keep things going and readers’ interest piqued. The last page alone has me eagerly awaiting for the next issue. The characters are as intriguing as ever, and at this point I have ran out of words to describe how gorgeous the art by Charles Paul Wilson III is.

Verdict - Must Read. Usually the penultimate issue in any series suffers from a slump, but that is not the case. This issue slows down, but only enough to let you catch your breath and realize how high this roller coaster ride of a comic has gone up, and preparing you for the big drop in the final issue of the series.

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