Thorgal: City of the Lost God

Thorgal: City of the Lost God
By Gzregorz Rosinski & Jean Van Hamme
Published by Cinebook

Cinebook's sixth Thorgal collection moves at a frantic pace, with events unfolding every couple of pages and tripping the unsuspecting reader into a false sense of security, but pleasantly so because the story is more often than not quite riveting.

Again Cinebook has collected two previous Thorgal books together, this time City of the Lost God and Between Earth and Sun.

They conclude the story began in the previous The Land of Qa collection, but this time each of the two books reaches its own satisfactory conclusion, while still being part of the greater saga.

City of the Lost God pulls few punches as it reveals the harrowing sacrifices made in honour of Ogotai. But not all of his worshippers embrace his bloodlust, and Hog, commander in chief of the Mayaxatl flying squadron is soon plotting with Thorgal and Kriss.

A plan is hatched and although things do not all go according to plan and Tjal pays with his life for his folly in the last book with, at least Aaricia doesn't end up having her heart cut out! While all, this going on, with Thorgal leaping into action here there and everywhere, he's also having flashbacks to his childhood and visitations by the nameless goddess.

Kriss tries to take a knife to the bloodied man-god that is Ogotai but his powers age her into an old woman. He then grabs Aaricia to take her into his flying vessel as witness for him conquering the world but Thorgal stops him, and the fact that they are space-travelling father and son is met with Ogotai, born Varth, going even more insane in his utter disbelief.

The aged man is finally defeated by an older looking Kriss, and the three survivors escape on the flying vessel intended for world domination.

An incredibly action-packed adventure, that slows down slightly where you might expect it to fail during the, not-too-unexpected, revelations concerning Ogotai and Thorgal's relationship, but still works exceedingly well. A pretty satisfying read to say the least.

Events continue to shift in the Between Earth and Sun book in this collection, but at a slower more philosophical though not leisurely pace.

Their deed now complete, Thorgal wishes to return home. Unfortunately with Tanatloc also now dead the Xinjin want to replace Thorgal's son, Jolan, as their own living god.

Backstabbing inner politics are found to have always been present in what at first seemed something of a South American Eden, our heroes are made to suffer a slow death under the burning sun and little Jolan is deceived into thinking his parents have left him.

An angered magic helmet thrown at a wall, a dark cave and an aged Kriss counting her gold prove to be the unexpected cavalry that help turn about fortunes, albeit only for a while. Still, the evil are vanquished and the good survive, and it makes a fitting extended epilogue to the previous book, while adding subtle subplots that I'm sure further books will expound upon.

In all, the Thorgal series feels like the epic adventures that were so popular in American and the occasional English strip in comics during the 70s, Rosinski's art certainly has some of that great flavor, and there's many who will enjoy seeing such work in print that they can read again.

For more on Thorgal visit: www.cinebook.com