Image Comics reviews 11/23/22 – The Magic Order Vol. 3 #5

The Magic Order rarely struggles with being predictable, but with this installment writer Mark Millar made a dramatic shift in the status quo.

Convinced that Rosie will grow up to be the biggest threat the Order will encounter, Sanchez is taking the proactive approach and killing her now. Only problem was he didn’t account for Rosie’s unique safeguards.

And now that the Order knows Sanchez’s plan it’s far more likely it’s Sanchez that won’t survive to see another day. While that’s expected, the manner of the execution of his fate is shocking even for a title known for spectacularly brutal death scenes.

But the real twist is the reveal of a far more dangerous threat that someone in the Order’s inner circle has unleashed. This act will force Cordelia to make a decision that threatens to upend the Order forever.

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The great thing about this issue is how Millar continues to show how Magic really doesn’t make life better for the characters. If anything it just complicates their lives by offering a powerful temptation with a tantalizing proposition of making everything better.

Millar has given artist Gigi Cavenago free reign to conjure up some incredible pages with so much layered imagery. Cavenago’s pages are the kind you take in on first glance and then find so much more to look at on a deeper inspection.

Colorist Valentina Napolitano similarly does some heavy lifting balancing the brighter and darker hues.

It’s impressive how this volume still retains the spark of its predecessors without feeling like a watered-down lesser version. If anything, The Magic Order’s spell is as powerful as ever.

Rating: 9.5 out of 10

Photo Credit: Image Comics