Rescuing Rose’s parents leads to Bath and a monster straight out of Roman mythology. What other surprises await in this Otherworld of legend? Find out in Once and Future #21 from BOOM! Studios.

ONCE AND FUTURE #21

Writer: Kieron Gillen
Artist: Dan Mora
Colorist: Tamra Bonvillain
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire
Editor: Dafna Pleban
Publisher: BOOM! Studios
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: October 27, 2021

Previously in Once and Future: England has merged with the Otherworld, and life is different and exciting. Bridgette, along with Duncan and Rose, moves the residents of her retirement home to the Grail Castle for their relative safety, as long as they avoid any monsters. The resurrected Arthur meets the other Arthur on the field of battle, only to have his undead army routed by Lancelot. He flees with Merlin. Rose confronts Bridgette about bringing her own parents to the Grail Castle and safety. Bridgette recognizes the dysfunction in her family – and how important her memories are. They head to Bath.

AN INTERLUDE IN BATH

Once and Future #21 opens in the Bath, which was founded by the Romans, and in the Otherworld, that history is very much present, such as a Gorgon walking down the street. Rose is in her element while Bridgette comments that dealing with a Gorgon is better than dealing with a god. As a modernist, this isn’t Duncan’s era, but he recognizes people turned to stone when he sees them.

They reach Rose’s parents, and they are both still alive! In fact, they are charming, affectionate people. Her mother has plenty of tins of food on hand, and her father took advantage of this to make the empties into a mirrored shield. Her father also is a classicist.

But when they step outside, they are confronted by a knight, Eliod of Camelot, who recognizes Duncan and Rose as Percival and Gawain. He tells them about the second Arthur and demands to know if they are going to stand with their king…or die! Instead, they are staying on their own. They run toward the temple and run into the Gorgon.

The mystical waters of Bath are still mystical, but their Roman aspect is so strong that now the waters lead to the Styx and Hades. It is no longer the way out, but Bridgette has the idea of enticing Eliot to fight the monster, which does distract him just long enough.

With Rose’s parents safe at the Grail Castle, Bridgette prepares to leave with Duncan and Rose. The two Arthurs are on the brink of a civil war, and they can sense the locations of Gawain and Percival. The others will be safer if they do not stay. Bridgette madly scribbles out a bunch of helpful notes about what to do, or not do, in the Grail Castle. She is leaving Jack in charge. He insists he is just a nurse, but he is used to taking care of people and putting up with crap. Little do they know that Nimue is watching!

FUN WITH THE CLASSICS

The art of Once and Future #21 does a wonderful job of bringing this fantastical world to life. The discussion about the Gorgon leads to a full-page panel showing the aftermath of his passing – panicking people with a variety of reactions all turned to stone, some unfortunately smashed on the pavement. It’s fair to say that we expect to meet the Gorgon again, but I love that they also use the Gorgon to distract the knight.

The fight between Eliod and the Gorgon is dramatic and has its own twists. The Gorgon has a bow, so it has the advantage of a ranged attack. Then Eliot throws something at it. We don’t know what it is at first, but it appears the knight, presumably undead, understands something about Gorgons. He plucks out his own eyes so he doesn’t need to worry about being turned to stone. It is delightfully awful.

BOTTOM LINE: THE POWER OF STORIES

Once and Future #21 continues to expand the mythology of the world which creates so much space for the plot to take new and intriguing turns. The characters may take on the roles of heroes, but they never lose their sense of the absurd along the way.

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