The Dresden Files: War Cry #3
Written by Jim Butcher and Mark Powers
Art by Carlos Gomez
Colors by Mohan
Letters by Bill Tortolini
Cover by Stjepan Sejic
Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: August 6, 2014
Cover Price: $3.99

How do you take what is arguably the best urban fantasy book series ever written and make it better? Well, you create a comic series to help tell some of the other stories that didn’t make it into the books, that’s how! The Dresden Files: War Cry #3 marks the center of this story which takes place directly after the novel Dead Beat. And as usual, Harry Dresden is in a pickle, only this time he’s not completely to blame.

in the first two issues we see Harry and his three proteges en route to defend a group of scholars in the Midwest. Arriving on the scene a little late, they are almost immediately set upon by Red Court vampires. Hundreds of them, as a matter of fact. Harry being Harry, he notices that the scholars, the White Council’s Venatori Umbrorum allies, are adamant in their refusal to retreat. Upon searching the building, they discover why: there is a Shoggoth in the cellar. The supernatural equivalent of nuclear armament, this creature exists to feed and destroy and is outlawed on pain of death. And that’s where this issue picks up, with Harry changing his game plan just a tad.

Harry Dresden is never one to play defense for too long. Sure, he may turn and run — self preservation is a wondrous thing — but he’s a bit more of a brute. A self-proclaimed brawler, in fact. So when he gets backed into a corner and the numbers are against him, he turns to the old adage of the best defense is a good offense. It’s during one of these attacks on the vampires that he is able to glean even more information. But even as he defends the house of scholars, another force is making its way onto the perimeter and killing vampires as it goes. Is this another ally there as “backup” or another enemy after the Shoggoth? The answer is revealed in the final panel of issue three and you’ll never believe who it is!

As always, Jim Butcher does an excellent job with his famous wizard. It seems Mark Powers does the actual adaptation for the comic from from Jim’s story, breaking it down to fit the needs of each panel and page. Together they bring Harry Dresden to a whole new audience and create fans that might not otherwise have discovered his adventures. Carlos Gomez does a great job bringing these literary characters to life. Clean crisp linework that is the perfect accompaniment to these great tales. Indeed, these men are a truly talented trio of creators that continue to entertain and enthrall their readers.

An exciting story that seems to be action-packed pretty much from the get go, this third installment of the five-issue War Cry storyline is the turning point of the tale. I would suggest grabbing the first two issues if you can but it’s still possible to jump in here. Buy this comic, you’ll love it. Of course, I would definitely recommend the book series, too, if you haven’t read them. But this comic series is an easy decision; it’s definitely worth the purchase price and then some.