Lady Pendragon: Pilot Season #1
Written by Matt Hawkins
Illustrated by Eru
Colored by Imaginary Friends Studios
Letters by Troy Peteri
Top Cow Productions
Cover price: $3.99; Available Now

When Lady Pendragon debuted way back in 1995, I think it was one of the few comic books that got lost in the shuffle. It had a pretty interesting premise and some pretty nice art, but in the presence of Witchblade, it does did not get the type of exposure it deserved. Now, ten-plus years later, Top Cow’s Pilot Season is giving Lady Pendragon the chance to take center stage of comicdon. The question is does it deliver?

The story of Lady Pendragon goes like this: writer Jennifer Drake discovers that she is a descendent of Lady Guinevere and King Arthur. When she unleashes the once fabled Excalibur from the stone, she unknowingly unleashes magic into the modern world, bringing back dragons and Arthur’s enemies Mordred and Morgana. This was five years ago.

It turns out, despite the problems caused by magic, mankind has found a way to maintain their dominance on the world. People learned to co-exist with magic and the magical creatures that come along with it but things are starting to go sour. Magic is slowly being outlawed, leaving Lady Pendragon to defend those who cannot defend themselves. I really enjoyed the whole concept and hoped it was put more in the forefront.

Now, I was sort of a fan of the series way back when it was out during the 90s and while this current story and dialogue is solid, I don’t think that the writer used Top Cow’s Pilot Season concept to its advantage. I think that writer Matt Hawkins had a wonderful opportunity to wipe the slate clean and start fresh with the character. Instead, he chooses to continue the story he had already laid out from the previous series. To catch new readers up, he takes almost 10 pages in summing up what happened in the previous series. I am not sure if this would attract any new readers, but it didn’t really do much for me. I am not a huge fan of rehashing what has already happened. I really would rather have read an extended version of the current story, which takes place 5 years in the future.

Lady Pendragon does have a bright spot in the shape of artist Eru. This artist is amazing. I was consistently thrilled and amazed by his work. If I ever consider buying this book, Eru would be the top reason.

The comic costs about $3.99 with some extras in the back including a director’s commentary on the series overall and on this current issue. If you enjoyed the comic or the series itself, you would be very interested in the commentary. Readers who are just passing by might want to skip it.

Lady Pendragon has a lot going for itself and I hope it gets a second issue. I would be interested in where this story ends up.