This issue of Grimm Fairy Tales, written by Joe Brusha, focuses almost entirely on the story of Oberon, a tale about a human who marries a fairy princess. Shortly after their marriage, the fairy princess grew ill, causing her husband, Oberon, to go looking for a way to cure her. He travels to Camelot, where he learns about a powerful emperor who will help people for a hefty price. However, because Oberon loved his wife so much, there was no price he wasn’t willing to pay. The emperor told him the cure would be found in the feather of the last golden eagle. Without even asking what the payment would be, he set out to climb the mountain that would lead him to the magic feathers, making him the first human ever to complete the task. When he delivered the feathers to the emperor and demanded he cure his wife, the emperor threw him in the dungeon and thanked him for making him even more powerful. While in prison, Merlin saved him and offered to help avenge his wife if he joined him. After Oberon agreed to work with him, Merlin created a spell that gave Oberon the power of controlling the troll king and all his people.
Skye and Sam come across this tale as they are searching through scrolls trying to discover any link to the disappearances. Upon reading this, Skye believes that the vanishings are caused by trolls. While searching for the answer, Skye and her friends happen upon a magical tunnel. Are there trolls living inside? If there are any trolls living there, will Skye and her friends be able to escape their clutches? And will they finally figure out what has been causing the disappearances?
My favorite part of this issue was hearing the story of Oberon. His story is sad but beautiful and the illustrations by Leo Rodrigues and Jason Muhr are amazing. The expressions on the characters’ faces were spot on, and the artwork really draws you in on every page. The vibrant coloring by Jorge Cortes and Robby Bevard make it look like something from a movie. Especially the opening scene where you see the forest and the waterfall. It looks like absolute paradise. It seems to me that the graphics become more stunning with each issue. Grimm Fairy Tales #17 is available for purchase June 27th, 2018.
-Amy Walker-LaFollette