A New Tale in Lordran’s Shadow: Dark Souls: The Willow King
It has been nearly a decade since Dark Souls III graced consoles, drawing hordes of Chosen Undead back to Lordran for one last attempt at lighting the bonfire. Now, Dark Souls: The Willow King comic series, set in a new sharp art style by Mann House, brings another corner of this dark fantasy universe to life, with some visceral scenes that may have fans on edge.
While the art style complements the storyline penned by Mann, much like old friends warmly embracing over a nightcap, The Willow King takes creative liberties, especially when the protagonist, Herad, speaks. Unlike the Chosen Undead of Lordran, who are limited to grunts, Herad’s voice adds a new layer to the narrative. He is accompanied by three hardy companions, each brimming with personality and their own baggage. A clever tip of the cap to the reference is made with Morgwyth, whose character echoes Tolkien’s Morgoth.
A strong plot device in The Willow King involves one of the party members who embodies their greatest impression of Solaire of Astora, channeling hope and delusions. This gives the artist an opportunity to showcase the duality between what Ustrad used to be—a beautiful kingdom—and what it has become—a sea of undead. Although inspired by the world state of Lordran, specifically Anor Londo, this plot device offers a much larger view of the world state and relates directly to the mental state of the world’s monarch, The Willow King. As Uthrel succumbed to abandoning his duty, his kingdom crumbled, and everything corrupted like its leader. This is storytelling excellence.
The Willow King is a fantastic addition to the mythos of Dark Souls. On one hand, it caters to fans of the trilogy and showcases a new land full of new lore to explore, complete with new possibilities and opportunities for storytelling. This excitement is further exacerbated by the revelation that there’s yet another kingdom added to the timeline of Dark Souls, and more Dark Souls is indeed a good thing.
On the other hand, The Willow King may feel confusing to some, especially regarding the story. Vague explanations in the later issues assume the reader has played the video games, and terms like ‘unkindled’ are thrown around without explanation—a stark contrast to the first issue which does a great job of indoctrinating the audience into the lore of Dark Souls. This was less of an issue in Mann’s previous series, Dragon Age: The Missing.
All in all, aside from some shortcomings, Dark Souls: The Willow King is a beautiful comic series that channels the energy of the Dark Souls mythos with a delicate hand. The bold new direction is welcome and tells a novel story introducing more plot points and expanding the lore of the Dark Souls universe without recycling the same region prevalent in the first comic series penned by Mann, and Dark Souls III.
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