Black Cloak Volume 2

Black Cloak

by Kelly Thompson, Meredith McClaren (illustrator)

The second volume in the Eisner-nominated, delectable sci-fi/fantasy blend returns with an all-new detective procedural shot straight through its heart.Essex and Pax's last case brought horrible truths to light and almost leveled the city of Kiros. Now, five years since the “Essex Fire," Kiros has changed dramatically, and ex-Black Cloak Phaedra Essex is either the city's greatest hero or greatest villain, depending on who you ask. Meanwhile, Black Cloak Pax has a bloody new case, a rookie partner, and absolutely no leads.It's a very bad time for something ancient to have awakened beneath the city.Collects BLACK CLOAK #7-11

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Comics Manga, Graphic Novels Comics

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2025

About the author

KELLY THOMPSON has a degree in Sequential Art from The Savannah College of Art & Design. Her love of comics and superheroes have compelled her since she first discovered them as a teenager. Currently living in Portland, Oregon with her boyfriend and the two brilliant cats that run their lives, you can find Kelly all over the Internet where she is generally well liked, except where she's detested.

Kelly has published two novels - THE GIRL WHO WOULD BE KING (2012) and STORYKILLER (2014) and the graphic novel HEART IN A BOX from Dark Horse Comics (2015). She's currently writing ROGUE & GAMBIT, HAWKEYE, and PHASMA for Marvel Comics and GHOSTBUSTERS for IDW. Other major credits include: A-Force, Captain Marvel & The Carol Corps, Jem and The Holograms, Misfits, Power Rangers Pink, and the creator-owned mini-series Mega Princess.

Kelly's ambitions are eclipsed only by her desire to exist entirely in pajamas. Fortunately pajamas and writers go hand in hand (most of the time). Please buy all her stuff so that she can buy (and wear) more pajamas.

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Eh.



Something felt off? Like the story was kind of scatty this time around. I don't know. I felt lost a lot while I was reading, as though there were parts of the story that were underexplained. You know how an author can have a whole world mapped out inside of their head, and then they write it as though you were also privy to what's in their imagination, and just leave chunks of it out? As if we already know the backstory.
Anyway, that might not be the case here, but it was the way I felt.



The skinny gist is that this takes place 5 years after the events of Volume 1, the last city, Kiros, & its inhabitants have been through the wringer.
Pax and his new partner discover that there might be a serial killer on the loose and go to Essex (now a PI) for help solving the case.



The story is ok.
Like I said, I just felt like I needed a bit more explanation for some things.
And I still think the art is mostly blech.
Recommended for fans of the first volume.

[Frédéric · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little disappointing compared to the first volume. The motivations of the bad guys are terribly confusing and ultimately uninteresting.
Once again, the pleasure of reading comes from the characters and their interactions—and Meredith McClaren's superb drawings—but this time the effect is blunted and the result is a little dull and sad, like the post-disaster atmosphere of the city.

[Anna Quilter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definate SAGA vibes from this Volume ...both art and character wise...not story.
I was just about to write I should read Volume One..but I have...so I probably should read it again ...

[Matt Harrison · Rating 3 out of 5]

A welcome return of the series, but I must admit that volume 2 doesn’t quite hit the highs of the first volume. The world building is still great, and the artwork is just stunning throughout, but I did find this volume somewhat disjointed and lacking impact. It does read well as a single volume though and would still recommend to fans of series such as SAGA, with its unique blend of crime noir, fantasy, and sci-fi.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A welcome return to the world of Kiros, even if the mystery is even more undercooked than the first volume. Black Cloak's draw is truly in its character work and subtle world-building, and both of those continue to be on display here, especially as we pick up five years after the fiery conclusion of the first volume. Our characters (and Kiros in general) are still picking up the pieces of their lives, and now there's a new serial killer in town. Worse, the killer might be a fantastical beast? (Tragically, this piece is never addressed. Instead the killers are just some scientists from the first volume who you probably forgot.)

I'll admit: the conclusion is lame. And much of the book ends up being a "getting the team back together" narrative that honestly wasn't necessary. Remember that person from one page in the first volume? Well, they're back and they have a bone to pick. Same as all those other one-pagers. Everyone gets screen time, to the point that they're literally moving across town as an amorphous blob because the artist can't handle them all.

Yet still! I simply love this setting and I love the main characters. And I loved the mystery, until the bland reveal, at least. I'd very gladly return to for more Black Cloak.

[Liam Maddock · Rating 4 out of 5]

A strong follow up to the first volume. The author and artist finds a way to meld both SciFi and Fantasy in a way that is thought provoking, immersive and visually stunning. While the story is whole and can stand on its own the pacing was not as spot on as the first volume. It would have benefited from one or two additional chapters to allow itself some space to breathe a bit. All in all however a fantastic read.

[evesav · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was pretty much the same plot as before but with a different ending so…

[Lilly Ruiter · Rating 5 out of 5]

SO GOOD

[Travis · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll admit that despite my enjoyment of graphic novels, I'm not the best reader of them; I don't pay enough attention to the details of every panel and there is information that I'm sure I miss. But this seems like an especially common problem with this series, where I often find myself doing a double take trying to understand how a scene progressed as it did only to realize that, for example, a blur at the edge of a panel that seemed like smoke was actually a depiction of a teleporting character, an important detail and not just set-dressing. And sometimes the visual confusion remains unresolvable and I just have to keep reading until the dialogue clarifies things. Though I also felt a bit lost there, since the story assumes the reader remembers a bunch of personal information of relatively minor characters from the first volume and never takes time to slow down and explain things in detail.

All the complaining aside though, it is ultimately a comprehensible story, and one enjoyable for the art and characters. The resolution feels a bit of a let-down because of the lack of background info: the evil plot just doesn't feel particularly resonant or interesting since we don't know enough about the ins and outs of the setting or the people involved.

[Riley Pilgrim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Probably won’t keep up with this series if it gets a volume 3. I love a lot of Thompson’s stuff, but I really couldn’t get into this one. Meredith’s art is great, the world feels very alive, but the story here is so predictable and uninspired.

Oh no! The government is using another mythological creature to power stuff!! Who could’ve seen that coming!! Except this time the ending is much happier than volume 1. I just didn’t care for what was being told, and felt we were treading too similar ground. Much like volume 1, the world is more interesting than the story.

Lastly, this volume has way too many characters for me to care. There’s maybe three I found compelling, and the rest are all throw away characters or plot devices. I recommend checking out volume 1 to see if you vibe with this. Volume 2 was so disappointing, and forgettable.

[kaitlphere · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent continuation from the first volume. The story has the same themes and genre with McClaren's exceptional art. The city and characters have changed quite a bit in the time skip.

I like how both volumes open with a cityscape. In vol. 2 you can see how the city has expanded and it's less tidy and less restrictive.

I loved the little side story of Joya losing her wings and Phaedra giving Joya her old mech wings, which Phaedra had because she was raised high class. Then Joya uses the wings in the neighborhood most hurt by the fire, which was ultimately caused by the actions of the high class. I love the related issue 11 cover with Joya laying on drawn chalk wings looking up at birds in flight.

[Clint · Rating 4 out of 5]

Colorful fantasy noir with interesting world-building. The art remains odd and polarizing in a slightly older webcomic style (thick outer lines and cartoonish shapes and expressions) but I think I mostly appreciate it. The murder mystery feels like it could have used one more issue to end less in a rush, but in any case I’d still read a vol3 about another case a few more months later in this same setting.

[Ashmita Shanthakumar · Rating 3 out of 5]

The mystery and emotional story isn’t as good as the first one. Being in the world and the art and the new characters (shout out to Alden and his emojis) are all great! It’s also interesting to see the consequences of the fire, though I feel this is a good endpoint for this story.

Also I want a pet taka really bad.

[Mee Too · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think maybe it took me to long to read this second installment. I could not put all the characters in place, it felt confusing. Not a bad little murder mystery though, just felt like it was rushed and out of place.

Im not actually looking forward to more of these unfortunately.

2.8⭐️✨⭐️

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Like the art, like the writer, but this left a lot to be desired. I lost the thread numerous times as I was reading this in issues (monthly). The first volume was compleling and pulled me in and this one felt like they were running out of time and wanted to wrap it all up. Bummer.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this benefits greatly from reading immediately after volume 1. Paired together, the threads of consequences and magic and cute things all feel vibrant. Love the style.

[Andres Pasten · Rating 3 out of 5]

algo mas complejo de entender que el anterior, pero los personajes son increibles...

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Still a fun mix of fantasy and police procedural, but this wasn't nearly as good as the first arc. Feels a little like they might have used up their best story right out of the gate.

[SassieMolassie · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 2nd volume to this graphic novel was... fine. Not sure if I will continue the series though.

[Breña · Rating 4 out of 5]

Die Fortsetzung von Black Cloak folgt dem "Rezept" des ersten Teils, kommt jedoch nicht ganz an diesen heran. Dennoch ein gelungenes Werk.

[Nevin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't really get into Black Cloak volume 1, but it felt like the start of some interesting world-building. Now that I've read volume 2, I can say this just isn't for me. I never get to know the characters, the new bits of lore feel arbitrary, and I couldn't buy into the noir procedural structure. I had a difficult time following the story, and it didn't make me care.