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Creative Team – Gerry Duggan & Garry Brown(story & art). Chris O’Halloran(color artist). Joe Sabino(letterer). Elliot Gray(logo & designer). Virginia Duggan(editor). Rich Fowlks(production artist).
Published by Image Comics
Catch up with Falling in Love on the Path to Hell #4!
The Wedding that Never Happened
We start Falling in Love on the Path to Hell #5 with a look back into the past. Ogata Asami’s life before which involved her life as a committed student of Kendo, or the way of the sword. Asami had turned down suitor after suitor but her family had enough of her fighting spirit as they didn’t need a fighter, they needed her to be a bride. Her father, a violent man, attempted to force her into an arranged marriage which would have benefitted the family and earned favor with the Daimyo.
When the time came, she escaped on horseback, with her eye blackened by her father. When she left them behind, her father knew this would bring war, so he sacrificed himself with a blade to the stomach. But what her father didn’t know was that his sacrifice would mean nothing as the violence was just starting to begin.
Asami finds herself hiding from a poacher named Mohan and his men, who are looking for her and her new friend, MacRaith. MacRaith is a cowboy with an artistic talent that Asami finds herself attracted to. Asami isn’t the only one with romantic feelings as MacRaith seems to be in awe of her.y
While Asami and MacRaith are out practicing their defensive techniques while Asami is blindfolded, they find themselves under attack. The two finds themselves fighting against an invisible enemy who has the high ground when MacRaith uses his gun masterfully causing the enemies to fall from the trees. Once seeing the enemies, Asami allows them to live. This act of good faith leads the enemies to allow them to leave but they’re warned to stay out of the trees. Of course, this rubs MacRaith the wrong way which only leads to more chaos in the woods.
The Writing
I found Falling in Love on the Path to Hell #5 to be compelling in every aspect of the story. From Asami’s backstory to the little bits of lore we get about MacRaith, it all left you wanting to know more about the characters. I really enjoyed the unspoken attraction between MacRaith and Asami, which was written perfectly. It wasn’t written obviously and was much more of a vibe you could pick up on.
The Art
The art of the comics perfectly fits the ton throughout the read. I like how the backstory of Asami had much more brighter colors and abstract backgrounds while the present was much more realistic. The muted tones throughout the comic does a great job at making it feel grounded and puts you in the headspace of being in the story with the characters.
8.9/10
This article was written by me, Megan from Vigilante Vibes: A Marvel Podcast! If you liked my review, be sure to check out my other reviews! Let me know what you think of Falling in Love on the Path to Hell #5, or tell me what comics you’d recommend me trying out! Find me on my socials, and check out my Marvel podcast, Vigilante Vibes, by clicking here!
