BURN THE WITCH, LIMITED SERIES: CHAPTER 4 - Kubo, You Son of Bitch...
BURN THE WITCH, LIMITED SERIES: CHAPTER 4 - If A Lion Could Speak, We Wouldn’t Understand 9.0 out of 10
Kubo, you son of bitch… It’s like you read my last chapter and catered this week’s chapter for me, personally. What the last chapter was lacking, this chapter made up for in droves.
I asked for differentiations on how spells work between the Pipers and the Inks; he gave that to me – while the Pipers seem to use verbal incantations, the Inks appear use “Release Codes” where there is a “spell in a can” that activates quickly upon a timed discharge.
I asked for depth in terms of the world; he gave that to me – a new type of Dragon was introduced in the form of a Marchen: One of seven dragons named after a particular thematic fairy tale (Snow White, Red Dress, Golden Axe, Bubbles, Sugar House, Band of Animals, and Cinderella). Essentially, a Marchen is a single specific dragon, with an individualized set of traits and abilities that are unique to it; they’re basically Legendary Pokemon.
Specifically, Elly is Cinderella (it was hinted at because of the “Ell”): Cinderella is the dragon that has six talons; can use Stealth Scale (an ability where the dragon disappears for a moment to reappear later on); molts in the moon light; has a crown on its head; and flaps sentient Star Ash that causes light explosions on contact with something tangible.
I asked for a better battle display; he gave that to me – Bruno, Noel, and Ninny worked together to cage Cinderella and use its own explosive power against it. That is the strategy and power conjunction I wanted to see from Kubo and he delivered it.
Moreover, Kubo added upon the parts of the story that are already great. Bruno has become my favorite character in this story by far because of how well Kubo is able to utilize him for the story. His design is simple yet spectacular and the way he uses is spells is striking: he’s a tagger and even uses a bandana mask when he goes into battle. His spells – called “Release Codes” – are contained within his assortment of spray paint; one Code even looked like word graffiti art. I’m not one to power scale but, it should be noted that Cinderella was one thing that was able to draw blood and noticeable damage to him so, his rank as a Director of the Inks seems earned. In addition, his character is far from one note – he seems to be chaotic good: he’ll do his job ultimately but, he’s not above bending the rules and catering situations to progress his career and standing; plus, he’s smart and has a rhyme to his bombastic reason. However, he is not above paying back and offering favors for those who help him (this is the most Grimmjow thing he’s done so far but, I still say he’s a fusion of Renji and Bazz B), even if it means he won’t get a promotion in term of rank and or reputation.
Aside from those immediately noteworthy moments and concepts, the chapter itself was just solid in terms of having things come full circle with the ideas and mechanics Kubo has introduced into this sect of the world. Kubo gave a great reason why Balgo should be kept alive in reference to the Marchen; Billy Banks Jr., is not a useless character and is actually far more competent and apt than he leads on (he seems to place certain pieces and people in particular places); also, the hints at rapport between Billy Banks Jr., and Sullivan Squire were addressed and teased a bit more (I am more interested to see how exactly these two connect with each other).
The connective tissue is there and that’s what I wanted from the story – it really feels like Kubo has put the story before any particular character and that is why the characters work because they serve the narrative.
At the heart of it all, Burn the Witch Chapter 4 is a 9 out of 10 chapter because of the way it not only made up for what it lacked in chapter 3 but also how it took those additions and tied them so sufficiently into the “finale” – there is enough here for it to just conclude while also having enough there to continue. The overall framework of how the story will go was established nicely.
One thing that was not made clear but, I wish was referenced is if the reason the Marchen are known to be so strong is because they ate a witch/wizard and became immortal. This was mentioned by the Disguiser Dragon Shelby back in the one-shot chapter of Burn the Witch and with the way Kubo wrapped this up so tightly, that could have been made clearer. Also, I didn’t notice Cquntnire Milieve’s scanty design until someone pointed it out to me: as he said “There's horny, then, there is unnecessarily horny”. It didn’t both me but, I can see how this can irk some people. Nevertheless, let it be known, this was not just return to form for Kubo; it was an ascension.