House of Whispers #10 – Nalo Hopkinson, Dan Watters, Writers; Dominike “Domo” Stanton, Nelson Blake II, Artists; John Rauch, Colorist
Ratings:
Ray – 8/10
Ray: As the first year of this Creole-accented fantasy thriller approaches its conclusion, the stakes couldn’t be higher as Mistress Erzulie engages in a twisted game of stories with the spider-God Anansi in House of Whispers #10. Anansi is losing his patience with the game and wants to consume Erzulie whole, but she baits him into hearing one last story – starring Anansi himself. This cartoonishly-illustrated tale – in the good sense – tells the story of Anansi as an old-fashioned trickster with a Looney Tunes vibe, as he out-foxes a sinister wolf and feeds his village, until the wolf catches up with him. The art style is unique, and the story takes you by surprise as it takes darker and darker turns.
However, Anansi isn’t a fan of any story where he loses and quickly tightens the screws on Erzulie – as well as putting the young girls at the center of this story at greater risk in an act of revenge.
That segment is probably the best of the series, as Toya, Maggie, and Habibi are trapped inside the belly of a monstrous Wyvern. The creature effects are excellent, and I wasn’t expecting them to summon another dragon as a way out of this fix. However, the story takes a much darker turn when Habibi and her guardians return to the real world and Habibi is convinced to turn against Erzulie.
That weakens Erzulie’s base of worship, allowing Anansi to take control and imprison her – seemingly defeating her and gaining her power. That also strips her husband of the little remaining power he has, condemning him to being trapped in the boat. The Corinthian, who has masterminded almost all of this, seems to have claimed victory – but there’s a lot of story left to be told. House of Whispers is the densest of the four Sandman Universe titles, but it’s one of the most intriguing so far with some unique stylistic shifts.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
Disclaimer: GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
