Malcolm Dragon and his family are on the move. Next stop, San Francisco! Your Major Spoilers review of Savage Dragon #266 from Image Comics awaits!

SAVAGE DRAGON #266

Writer: Erik Larsen
Artist: Erik Larsen
Colorist: Nikos Koutsis
Letterer: Jack Morelli
Editor: Gavin Higginbotham
Publisher: Image Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: July 12, 2023

Previously in Savage Dragon: Malcolm Dragon joins Special Operations Strikeforce and makes the move to San Francisco. A new adventure begins here: A new town, new friends, and new foes!

THE DECISION: CHAPTER II

Malcolm Dragon has been offered the opportunity of a lifetime, the ability to return home to the U.S. after being run out on a rail, AND leadership of his own super-team. His erstwhile dad, Paul Dragon is recovering from having a limb severed, but now has to consider moving his new wife to San Francisco (where, it might be interesting to remind readers, he used to live in his own world). Captain Tootsie turns down a job offer to stay in Toronto, while Malcolm’s oldest son, Jackson is angry at leaving his whole life behind. After a successful tour of San Francisco, Malcolm and Maxine decide to move. Of course, as they make their way into the city on their own, they get a good look at the parts of town that nobody thought to show them before the move, leading Jackson to ask the all-important question, “Can we go home again? Please?”

A FOREGONE CONCLUSION

On the one hand, there’s nothing like one of Erik Larsen’s patented “check in on everybody” issues, keeping us up to date, and aware that Malcolm will be working with both his sisters, that Paul and Alex are dealing with the sudden loss of their son, and more. The art is its usual self, showing off what Larsen does best, but there are a few things that gave me pause. The cover gives us Maxine in fetish gear, and there is a puzzling sequence wherein little Amy intentionally electrocutes a man without much in the way of context. After the tour-de-force madness of issue #264, leading into the action and exploding children of last time, this issue’s quieter focus on a family that needs to figure some things out is welcome.

It’s just a little bit puzzling to have all that semi-spoiled by the cover.

BOTTOM LINE: STILL A FUN RIDE

Still, the fun of Savage Dragon #266 is in seeing a veteran creator doing his thing, with all his peccadilloes on full display, and the decision to move Malcolm to Larsen’s hometown is one that opens new storytelling vistas, which gives us an issue that’s still well above average, earning 3.5 out of 5 stars overall. My enjoyment of this sprawling world, including the dark sides of modern city life, adult situations, and questions of how to afford rent, are those of a long-time reader, so I can’t wait for next issue’s 30th Anniversary issue.

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