Review – The Many Deaths Of Laila Starr #3
Review – The Many Deaths Of Laila Starr #3
Written By: Ram V
Artwork: Filipe Andrade
Publisher: Boom! Studios
Variant Covers: Mirka Andolfo and Dani
Available: 15th June 2021
Variant Covers
Synopsis
More years have passed when Laila Starr, the now-mortal reincarnation of the avatar of Death, once again crosses paths with the future creator of immortality. This time at a party where the young man will have a life-altering experience that will shape him for years to come. Will Laila change his path in this one night or the other way around?
Writer: Ram V
Have you ever wondered about the brief life of a cigarette? Nope, me neither but Ram has and using this inanimate object as the catalyst around which this issue progresses is both ingenious and a little strange.
Most of the world (and me) despise smokers and the impact they have on both themselves and others, but let’s put that to one side and chat about Issue 3.
Laila’s third life is filled with hedonism, she drinks, smokes, has sex and enjoys nightclubs. As she strikes a match her cigarette relays the story of Darius, now a teenager, and how he and his best friends Zaffar and his first girlfriend Danika. They hang out in an abandoned pillow factory and drink, smoke and spray the walls with slogans like “Dicks on walls is the purest form of art”
After a fight with his friend a riot breaks out a Zaffar is killed or died as a result. A despondent Darius then loses his girlfriend as he can’t get over this loss.
The issue is full of symbolism with the cigarette symbolising the fragility of human life, fire symbolising death or change and Darius’s encounter with Laila symbolising love and loss. It’s a sad, deeply upsetting issue highlighting how youth’s exposure to love and loss changes us.
Artwork: Filipe Andrade
The hedonistic feel of this issue’s opening few pages jars with the later story of Zaffar’s death. The pastels and smoky panels almost made me cough they were that thick. Bodies are stretched out thin and lithe enjoying the party in the background.
The relaxing pastel colours draw you in to the pages immersing you deeper, allowing you to forget the struggle between death and Darius and live in the minute.
Overall Thoughts
Another great issue, as above my only issue is the preoccupation to still make smoking look somehow cool. It 2021 and I’m bored seeing movies, music and comics telling how cool I could look if I smoked. If I park my objections to smoking, this sad tale adds nicely to the gentle tapestry that Ram and Filipe are weaving. It’s the kind of issue you read three times to ensure you don’t miss anything. Oh and stop smoking, those things will kill you.
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If you enjoyed our review of The Many Deaths Of Laila Starr #3, leave a comment or rating. Thanks to Boom! Studios for another free preview issue.
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