From excitement to despair, Amy faces the fact that her parents may have been up to no good. Does she have what it takes to face down Lord Opal alone? Find out in Amethyst #6 from DC Comics.
AMETHYST #6
Writer: Amy Reeder
Artist: Amy Reeder
Letterer: Gabriela Downie
Editor: Andy Khouri
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: December 16, 2020
Previously in Amethyst: The princess wakes and finds herself someplace new. The prince – the fake Prince Maxixe is there. She jumps at him and nearly flings him over the edge of the floating island they’re on, but cooler heads prevail. They’re in Emerald, where people are friendly, but Amethyst soon goes to Diamond to face the agents of the law on Gemworld. They tell her that her parents faked their deaths and encased themselves in amethyst all to take over the throne of Gemworld. She, Phoss, and Maxixe run as Amy considers the idea that her parents really were bad. They flee to Aquamarine and travel underwater to Mount Ruby. That is where her people are trapped – and that is where Lord Opal is headed!
THE FIGHT AT THE SUMMIT
Amethyst #6 opens at Mount Ruby. As Amethyst considers gemstones and their powers, and trying to rescue her people, Lord Opal climbs up the side of the mountain using a construct made from his castle. There’s a cool tie-in with the first issue as Amy remembers things she read from the Crystal Healing book her parents got her. Maybe it wasn’t about her Gemworld, but there still may be some wisdom she can glean from it.
Opal arrives; Amethyst throws him back over the edge, but this only buys her a few minutes. Opal is nothing if not persistent. But Phoss joins her, as do the people of Aquamarine. And then the forces of Diamond show up – but only to observe. But Amy’s true gift is more than her ability to use gemstones – it is her ability to form friendships. The outliers from Emerald also arrive, shortly followed by the Banned. And then Opal slams into her with his construct.
Maxixe and Phoss keep fighting, when suddenly Amethyst rises up again, remembering that black tourmaline banishes negative energy. There is a huge explosion – and suddenly it’s all over.
Amy’s parents arrive. Amy has saved the day; she excitedly introduces herself as their daughter – and they politely apologize; their daughter is only a baby, after all. It is not until they confront Citrine, asking for an explanation, that she notices that the house jewels Amethyst was wearing are no longer there. The forces from Diamond arrive just in time to take her parents into custody, thinking she defeated them. Here she is, thinking briefly that she’s the hero, and everything else goes wrong.
But in every end, there is a new beginning. Amethyst still has the friendships she has forged – maybe in the end she has something different, something unexpected she still brings to the Gemworld.
NOTHING WORKS OUT QUITE AS EXPECTED
As Opal makes his way to the top of Mount Ruby at the opening of Amethyst #6, the reason he is in a construct is because he is still bound to his throne. This makes his ascent ingenious and the fight rather entertaining. He is still formidable, bringing in a large chunk of his castle means he can bring blasters along, and the crablike construct means he has pretty good mobility. In their fight, Amethyst jumps on him from behind, and this is where he doesn’t hesitate to body slam her.
I also liked the twist at the end. Amy’s parents are lovely and regal. Everything is set up for the “happily ever after” ending, but we still have several pages to go. Talk about subverting an ending, and Amy responds every bit as dramatically as we might expect from a young woman, especially one who has been through a lot recently. And then to find out that she also happened to destroy the amethyst. Talk about having unintended consequences to deal with!
BOTTOM LINE: A PRINCESS GROWS UP
Amethyst #6 pulls on the previous issues to deliver up a satisfying ending to the story, one just open enough to make it feel like she really has some kind of future before her. She has done some growing up, and she has actually learned how to step up for herself when she doesn’t have the privilege of royalty handy.
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Amethyst #6
Nothing has been quite what Amy expected on this trip, and the surprises continue.
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By day, she’s a mild-mannered bureaucrat and Ms. Know-It-All. By night, she’s a dance teacher and RPG player (although admittedly not on the same nights). On the weekends, she may be found judging Magic, playing Guild Wars 2 (badly), or following other creative pursuits. Holy Lack of Copious Free Time, Batman! While she’s always wished she had teleportation as her superpower, she suspects that super-speed would be much more practical because then she’d have time to finish up those steampunk costumes she’s also working on.