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The Order of the Stick #2
No Cure for the Paladin Blues
Leaving the dungeon probably seemed like a such a good idea at the time.
The Order of the Stick: No Cure for the Paladin Blues continues the adventures of six stick-figure heroes as they leave the dungeon behind (they blew it up anyway) and explore the great outdoors in more than 200 full-color comic strips. In this second volume collecting Rich Burlew's smash hit webcomic, comedy and action collide as the unwitting members of the Order of the Stick find themselves caught between the Good Guys and the Bad Guys in what turns out to be kind of a big universal struggle thing. It's complicated, but there are crayons involved. As you have come to expect, The Order of the Stick delivers strip after strip of hilarious satire of roleplaying games and the fantasy genre in a world of spoiled teenage sorceresses, uptight paladins, and a small white cat named Mr. Scruffy.
The Order of the Stick: No Cure for the Paladin Blues continues the adventures of six stick-figure heroes as they leave the dungeon behind (they blew it up anyway) and explore the great outdoors in more than 200 full-color comic strips. In this second volume collecting Rich Burlew's smash hit webcomic, comedy and action collide as the unwitting members of the Order of the Stick find themselves caught between the Good Guys and the Bad Guys in what turns out to be kind of a big universal struggle thing. It's complicated, but there are crayons involved. As you have come to expect, The Order of the Stick delivers strip after strip of hilarious satire of roleplaying games and the fantasy genre in a world of spoiled teenage sorceresses, uptight paladins, and a small white cat named Mr. Scruffy.
248 pages, ebook
First published November 1, 2006
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221 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 55 reviews
February 22, 2012
If you largely want gag-a-day strips, you're going to be disappointed, as the story moves more into an overarching design which eventually turns into an epic. But the strengths of OotS in this book move smoothly from the spoof aspects and comedy into character and a strong grasp of continuity. It never forgets its roots, but in this book, it grows to something more than it had been in the first volume
May 16, 2012
No Cure for the Paladin Blues is the second collection of The Order of the Stick webcomic and contains strips #122-300, plus a number of new comics and author commentaries.
OotS has become an epic tale and is the most consistently excellent webcomic there is. As of now there are about 850 strips of the webcomic, 4 print collections and another 3 print only books.
This being the second volume I am going to assume anyone reading this review is familiar with the basic concept of OotS. If you are not I highly recommend going back and starting with the first collection (Dungeon Crawling Fools).
Particularly since Paladin Blues is where our story starts really starts to build. While humor remains a vital (and generally excellent) part of the comic, there are less "D&D jokes for the sake of D&D jokes" than in volume 1 and the humor is intertwined more tightly with the escalating story. Volume 1 was a dungeon crawl, and while it had a decent progression it was in some ways a prologue. We've met the main players and now the Order leaves the dungeon and begins to face a much larger world (with much larger threats).
Roy has to find a reason to keep his party together now that they (incorrectly) think they've accomplished the task he hired them for, and various consequences from volume 1 will plague our heroes. This leads to Roy starting to learn what it really means to be a leader, as well as the expected rip-roaring adventures. The Order (and the readers) learn a great deal about their world, a major threat, and what their next mission should be.
We also see glimpses of other characters and forces putting their own plans into motion. The threads and conflicts that will be woven together in future volumes begin here.
Familiarity with D&D will add depth, but is not necessary to read and enjoy. D&D parody humor is still used, but less so than the first volume and the comedy grows more organically out of the characters and situations from here out.
As always OotS's art uses "fleshed out" stick figures. See the cover for an example. This "simplified" art style is used to great effect and fits the comic perfectly, and even with this style you can see the evolution and refinement of the art compared to volume 1.
I highly recommend Order of the Stick in general, and No Cure for the Paladin Blues is an excellent follow up to Dungeon Crawling Fools that raises the stakes for our heroes considerably and gives the first glimpses of the sprawling epic it would become.
OotS has become an epic tale and is the most consistently excellent webcomic there is. As of now there are about 850 strips of the webcomic, 4 print collections and another 3 print only books.
This being the second volume I am going to assume anyone reading this review is familiar with the basic concept of OotS. If you are not I highly recommend going back and starting with the first collection (Dungeon Crawling Fools).
Particularly since Paladin Blues is where our story starts really starts to build. While humor remains a vital (and generally excellent) part of the comic, there are less "D&D jokes for the sake of D&D jokes" than in volume 1 and the humor is intertwined more tightly with the escalating story. Volume 1 was a dungeon crawl, and while it had a decent progression it was in some ways a prologue. We've met the main players and now the Order leaves the dungeon and begins to face a much larger world (with much larger threats).
Roy has to find a reason to keep his party together now that they (incorrectly) think they've accomplished the task he hired them for, and various consequences from volume 1 will plague our heroes. This leads to Roy starting to learn what it really means to be a leader, as well as the expected rip-roaring adventures. The Order (and the readers) learn a great deal about their world, a major threat, and what their next mission should be.
We also see glimpses of other characters and forces putting their own plans into motion. The threads and conflicts that will be woven together in future volumes begin here.
Familiarity with D&D will add depth, but is not necessary to read and enjoy. D&D parody humor is still used, but less so than the first volume and the comedy grows more organically out of the characters and situations from here out.
As always OotS's art uses "fleshed out" stick figures. See the cover for an example. This "simplified" art style is used to great effect and fits the comic perfectly, and even with this style you can see the evolution and refinement of the art compared to volume 1.
I highly recommend Order of the Stick in general, and No Cure for the Paladin Blues is an excellent follow up to Dungeon Crawling Fools that raises the stakes for our heroes considerably and gives the first glimpses of the sprawling epic it would become.
October 8, 2023
I realize that I miss side-quests. Back in the day the plot was still a bit light and you didn't need to hurry into places, burdened by all the tension and emotion that could not wait. You could just check in at a roadside inn and have a wacky adventure involving misunderstandings and assassins, or go off to a swamp to look for a bit of ore. I always thought that this was what D&D should be about, anyway: if you want a great epic plot, you're better off with Burning Wheel or something.
Art got better pretty quickly but it's still not at its best, especially with the backgrounds. Jokes and gags and plot in general are also getting there. Three and a half stars.
Art got better pretty quickly but it's still not at its best, especially with the backgrounds. Jokes and gags and plot in general are also getting there. Three and a half stars.
February 9, 2020
I'm in shock on how good this can be! The character arcs are natural and meaningful. And I never know where the story is going. The plot twists feel natural but unexpected. Nothing seems forced and the writing is engaging and brilliant!
July 9, 2019
Many of the joke-a-day strips disappear, in favor if a pretty epic narrative. The Order of the Stick may have inadvertently weakened the entire fabric of reality and there's a self righteous Paladin that's super pissed about it.
Roy is kind of a dick and may be my least favorite character. Is it because he's a fighter, lawful good, or just because he's intrinsically kind of a dick?
Roy is kind of a dick and may be my least favorite character. Is it because he's a fighter, lawful good, or just because he's intrinsically kind of a dick?
January 4, 2020
In v2, OOTS completes its transformation from RPG joke of the day to sweeping adventure epic with the fate of the world at stake. To his credit, the author sustains the funny even as he banks up the dire peril and impending doom.
The pre-chapter comment sections are reasonably interesting but non-critical; one could comfortably read the book and skip them.
Burlew discusses his occasional art upgrades, but the only illustration feature I noticed was when he used crayon to excellent effect to unveil the Snarl's backstory. Original and gorgeous.
Plot points:
The pre-chapter comment sections are reasonably interesting but non-critical; one could comfortably read the book and skip them.
Burlew discusses his occasional art upgrades, but the only illustration feature I noticed was when he used crayon to excellent effect to unveil the Snarl's backstory. Original and gorgeous.
Plot points:
September 20, 2011
The story continues with humor and more stick figures. The humor included a joke about a druid and a tree that had me laughing so hard we had to pause while I moved into silent laughter territory.
September 17, 2016
The Order of the stick is always good for a laugh, even for those of us who aren't gamers ourselves. I picked up my brother's copy (he's the gamer of the family) and loved it.
March 26, 2020
The Order of the Stick, over the course of the 120 strips in debut volume Dungeon Crawlin’ Fools, proved itself in some big ways. It was consistently funny, it made you care about the core cast, and it managed to pull itself into a working story arc after having begun as a gag strip with no true direction. The second story arc, then, would have to prove itself even further. After the climax of the first book, would the story go somewhere? Would the strip be able to continually flesh out its own mythology and world-building? Would the Order continue to grow as individuals and as a team in characterization? Did Rich Burlew know what he was doing? The answers, collected in this second volume of the online comic, are a resounding YES!
No Cure for the Paladin Blues improves upon Dungeon Crawlin’ Fools hand over fist. Here, the world opens up as the first volume’s tightly contained dungeon crawl gives way to countryside, towns, forests, and foreign cities - as well as additional character classes. This in turn opens Burlew up to new categories of (loving) jokes that poke fun at even more aspects of D&D. And while the humor is still, at times, a bit too eager and cute, as it was in the first collection, there are also some punchlines and gags here that land more solidly than anything that came before them; you can see Burlew honing his joke-making page by page.
The same can be said for Burlew’s story, which broadens in the same satisfying way as a well-run tabletop campaign. As the party leaves the dungeon, the reader gets to know more about the world in which the heroes and villains operate, including some of the overarching mythology upon which that world rests. Burlew propels his story along these lines masterfully, taking the OOTS party through a handful of familiar gaming tropes (random encounters, bandits in the woods, a side quest for an important item) to poke fun at those tropes while also using them for what they’ve always been good for - cementing a team together, expanding the world, and enriching the texture of the whole story. This volume ends with a delightfully original take on the traditional “Plot Dump” in which a Non Player Character lays out the all important exposition that will set the heroes on an epic path, and if you thought Burlew was surprisingly adept at conveying meaning with cleanly drawn stick figures, wait till you see how he depicts this backstory mythology!
As sequels go, it’s hard to beat No Cure for the Paladin Blues. With exciting action, solid character growth, long-term plot setup and a last page cliffhanger that promises epic conflict to come, the end of this volume ought to have you desperately reaching for the next!
No Cure for the Paladin Blues improves upon Dungeon Crawlin’ Fools hand over fist. Here, the world opens up as the first volume’s tightly contained dungeon crawl gives way to countryside, towns, forests, and foreign cities - as well as additional character classes. This in turn opens Burlew up to new categories of (loving) jokes that poke fun at even more aspects of D&D. And while the humor is still, at times, a bit too eager and cute, as it was in the first collection, there are also some punchlines and gags here that land more solidly than anything that came before them; you can see Burlew honing his joke-making page by page.
The same can be said for Burlew’s story, which broadens in the same satisfying way as a well-run tabletop campaign. As the party leaves the dungeon, the reader gets to know more about the world in which the heroes and villains operate, including some of the overarching mythology upon which that world rests. Burlew propels his story along these lines masterfully, taking the OOTS party through a handful of familiar gaming tropes (random encounters, bandits in the woods, a side quest for an important item) to poke fun at those tropes while also using them for what they’ve always been good for - cementing a team together, expanding the world, and enriching the texture of the whole story. This volume ends with a delightfully original take on the traditional “Plot Dump” in which a Non Player Character lays out the all important exposition that will set the heroes on an epic path, and if you thought Burlew was surprisingly adept at conveying meaning with cleanly drawn stick figures, wait till you see how he depicts this backstory mythology!
As sequels go, it’s hard to beat No Cure for the Paladin Blues. With exciting action, solid character growth, long-term plot setup and a last page cliffhanger that promises epic conflict to come, the end of this volume ought to have you desperately reaching for the next!
December 28, 2020
Roy is the epitome of that type of guy who thinks he's superior to other dudes because he's an Intellectual who Knows Many Things and will Tell you about Said Things in a Quippy Manner, but is actually a douche
Roy would be a craft beer snob if craft beer existed in this world
Roy probably writes Facebook posts about how Well, He Has A Mom And A Sister, So He Is Beginning to Understand How Women May Be People Too
Roy definitely took one high level literature class in college and still talks about it years later
i do like that they told the history of the world in crayon drawings tho i get a kick out of that every time i read this lol
Roy would be a craft beer snob if craft beer existed in this world
Roy probably writes Facebook posts about how Well, He Has A Mom And A Sister, So He Is Beginning to Understand How Women May Be People Too
Roy definitely took one high level literature class in college and still talks about it years later
i do like that they told the history of the world in crayon drawings tho i get a kick out of that every time i read this lol
September 12, 2019
This is a middle -- you don't actually need to have read the first book in the series to get into this one. The first book is a bit more sketchy in terms of plot & character, and the second is where they get fleshed out and the big driver for the entire series is introduced. While the plot itself does not go forward much, one learns more about the characters, and new conflicts come to the fore. It's really a set-up for the next book, in which one will get payoff bigtime.
August 18, 2017
I've been following the webcomic for years and it's done an amazing job of taking a metagaming funny webcomic (drawn using stick figures...) and making a "serious" work of it while keeping its funny tone. I look forward to every new comic and reading them in the book format, with the comment and a better flow as I do not have days (weeks) between panels, makes me appreciate them anew.
June 5, 2022
I’ve loved this strip for many years, but coming back to it in 2022 and reading the print compilations, some of the jokes/language haven’t aged well (a few instances of casual sexism, though some of it gets called out as such). Not so much as to not still be worth the read, just a little cringeworthy in a few places.
October 18, 2020
Order of the sticks is a really satisfying and and epic adventure and the humor in it balances out some of the darkest moments. The characters are deep and well written. What starts out as a D&D based comic strip transforms into an book of epic proportions matching the likes of Harry Potter & LOTR.
November 23, 2018
The Order of the Stick moves on full speed, in its wild adventure. Lots of laughs to be had in this installment as well, which obviously pokes fun on the stereotypical Paladin class
March 11, 2020
That anywhere/somewhere and nowhere part is just great
January 19, 2021
DND jokes aplenty. The jokes never let up and the fourth-wall breaking is peak. This is where the story actually starts to become a story.
January 30, 2024
Continuing the best web comic
August 26, 2019
This book is absolutely wonderful.
February 10, 2015
The Order of the Stick is renowned, and justly so, for its stunning plot; its beautifully characterized characters, both main and supporting; and its pleasing balance of comedy and drama to make a story that is both epic and enjoyable. However, this doesn’t happen right away. The plot really starts to pick up in Volume 2. By the way, don’t buy Volume 1. It’s awful. But volume 2 starts to flesh out the nature of our characters and introduces us to vital supporting characters.
Part of the reason for this change in pace is psychotically zealous paladin Miko Miyazaki, who is charged with escorting our heroes to Azure City to be put on trial. For their own reasons, most everyone cooperates with Miko, but the tension between her and the other members of the party allow us to see what makes the party members tick. Matters get more dangerous in this volume, with the true threat posed by the villains revealed with a flurry of exposition.
Of course, it’s not perfect. Burlew’s blend of drama and comedy, mostly spot on in other volumes (excepting volume 1) is still being perfected here. There’s more comedy than drama in the early part of this novel, but once the Order arrives in Azure City, this volume stops being a cliché D&D parody comic and starts becoming something else. Something more glorious.
Meanwhile, of course, the villains of the piece – the hilariously evil Xykon and the evilly hilarious Linear Guild – continue to make schemes and plot their twisted plans for revenge and world domination. One of the things I love about the Order of the Stick is their villains, who manage to be hilarious at times, but still quite, quite evil. Xykon is a terrifying threat on the scale of such villains as Voldemort and Darth Vader, and despite his many jokes, Burlew never lets you forget this.
No Cure for the Paladin Blues is a transitory novel at its heart, and this transition may seem awkward at times. But the transition is necessary, because once you get past this book into the third book, War & XPs, you will be rewarded with one of the best and most interesting volumes of fiction ever. And, you know what? This book is pretty damn good on its own, too.
Also, by the way, if you’re wondering why you should purchase this book if it’s available for free online, I should point out that the book version comes with bonus strips and creator’s commentary. Is that worth the price? You be the judge.
Part of the reason for this change in pace is psychotically zealous paladin Miko Miyazaki, who is charged with escorting our heroes to Azure City to be put on trial. For their own reasons, most everyone cooperates with Miko, but the tension between her and the other members of the party allow us to see what makes the party members tick. Matters get more dangerous in this volume, with the true threat posed by the villains revealed with a flurry of exposition.
Of course, it’s not perfect. Burlew’s blend of drama and comedy, mostly spot on in other volumes (excepting volume 1) is still being perfected here. There’s more comedy than drama in the early part of this novel, but once the Order arrives in Azure City, this volume stops being a cliché D&D parody comic and starts becoming something else. Something more glorious.
Meanwhile, of course, the villains of the piece – the hilariously evil Xykon and the evilly hilarious Linear Guild – continue to make schemes and plot their twisted plans for revenge and world domination. One of the things I love about the Order of the Stick is their villains, who manage to be hilarious at times, but still quite, quite evil. Xykon is a terrifying threat on the scale of such villains as Voldemort and Darth Vader, and despite his many jokes, Burlew never lets you forget this.
No Cure for the Paladin Blues is a transitory novel at its heart, and this transition may seem awkward at times. But the transition is necessary, because once you get past this book into the third book, War & XPs, you will be rewarded with one of the best and most interesting volumes of fiction ever. And, you know what? This book is pretty damn good on its own, too.
Also, by the way, if you’re wondering why you should purchase this book if it’s available for free online, I should point out that the book version comes with bonus strips and creator’s commentary. Is that worth the price? You be the judge.
April 29, 2015
The Order of the Stick’s second arc is marginally better than its first by virtue of kickstarting the plot and providing some welcome character development.
However, the addition of character arcs to the narrative also served to highlight the issue that very little happens over the course of a single arc. Burlew even lampshades it at the end of the first and second arcs by having Roy talk about everything they accomplished while the images show all the plot threads that haven’t been wrapped up. It’s a cute idea but the joke isn’t that funny and I’d much prefer a tighter plot.
Admittedly the strip is a little funnier this time around, though the jokes (outside of a select few) are not what you’d call clever. Of dubious distinction is a Harry Potter parody that comes off as token, unfunny, and ham-fisted.
Look, it’s dissecting fantasy clichés! Isn’t that great?
Actually, that’s more or less standard procedure for modern fantasy, and that it’s played for laughs doesn’t make it any more unusual. I would also appreciate it if a series dedicated to making fun of clichés wouldn’t itself fall to clichés. Oh, look, paladins. Love within the party. Racist goblins. A pantheon of gods. Liches. An ancient evil sealed away.
But at least Burlew tries to make his audience laugh. At least he tries to put on a good show. Too many fantasy authors write books for themselves, throwing in every single idea they have with little regard for pacing, plot or characters—the only things that actually matter to the audience—until the end result feels bloated and faintly masturbatory.
So I suppose that, in a way, Burlew is a bit different from his contemporaries. That doesn’t make him great, but his works are more fun to read than those of an average fantasy author.
However, the addition of character arcs to the narrative also served to highlight the issue that very little happens over the course of a single arc. Burlew even lampshades it at the end of the first and second arcs by having Roy talk about everything they accomplished while the images show all the plot threads that haven’t been wrapped up. It’s a cute idea but the joke isn’t that funny and I’d much prefer a tighter plot.
Admittedly the strip is a little funnier this time around, though the jokes (outside of a select few) are not what you’d call clever. Of dubious distinction is a Harry Potter parody that comes off as token, unfunny, and ham-fisted.
Look, it’s dissecting fantasy clichés! Isn’t that great?
Actually, that’s more or less standard procedure for modern fantasy, and that it’s played for laughs doesn’t make it any more unusual. I would also appreciate it if a series dedicated to making fun of clichés wouldn’t itself fall to clichés. Oh, look, paladins. Love within the party. Racist goblins. A pantheon of gods. Liches. An ancient evil sealed away.
But at least Burlew tries to make his audience laugh. At least he tries to put on a good show. Too many fantasy authors write books for themselves, throwing in every single idea they have with little regard for pacing, plot or characters—the only things that actually matter to the audience—until the end result feels bloated and faintly masturbatory.
So I suppose that, in a way, Burlew is a bit different from his contemporaries. That doesn’t make him great, but his works are more fun to read than those of an average fantasy author.
January 24, 2017
I'm really happy for Rich Burlew, I truly am. How wonderful and amazing it must be to start something you put up on the web, thinking maybe 10 or 15 people might find it and enjoy it, only to find thousands and thousands of people did and suddenly your work is so popular you are able to publish it in books. It's great... the only problem is now Burlew's work is taking on more of a storyline and less of a hilarious way to joke about table top fantasy gaming.
I loved the first OOTS. It had a storyline that was appropriate and very relatable, but why it was so great is the gaming humor. It was fantastic, and such good humor that gamers could totally appreciate it. But with the success, Burlew decided to focus more on an overall story and less on the humor. He even wrote about it in the Intro to the third OOTS book. And there isn't anything wrong with that. It's just, for me, what I liked most was the gaming humor. And it's still there, but there is less of it.
Having said that, I enjoyed the second book as well. It was still funny, and the characters are still enjoyable. Burlew talks a lot about how many people criticize him for his art style, and I truly don't understand. The stick figure artwork is absolutely fantastic and incredible appropriate for the work he's presenting. I, personally, love the artwork because he focuses a lot on facial expressions, and it's always a bit hilarious. I love it.
If you are a table top gamer of fantasy RPG games, you MUST read these books. They are so much fun with some great characters and classic moments that nearly every gamer has experienced at least once in their gaming career. I'm looking forward to reading the next one. What shenanigans will ensue?
I loved the first OOTS. It had a storyline that was appropriate and very relatable, but why it was so great is the gaming humor. It was fantastic, and such good humor that gamers could totally appreciate it. But with the success, Burlew decided to focus more on an overall story and less on the humor. He even wrote about it in the Intro to the third OOTS book. And there isn't anything wrong with that. It's just, for me, what I liked most was the gaming humor. And it's still there, but there is less of it.
Having said that, I enjoyed the second book as well. It was still funny, and the characters are still enjoyable. Burlew talks a lot about how many people criticize him for his art style, and I truly don't understand. The stick figure artwork is absolutely fantastic and incredible appropriate for the work he's presenting. I, personally, love the artwork because he focuses a lot on facial expressions, and it's always a bit hilarious. I love it.
If you are a table top gamer of fantasy RPG games, you MUST read these books. They are so much fun with some great characters and classic moments that nearly every gamer has experienced at least once in their gaming career. I'm looking forward to reading the next one. What shenanigans will ensue?
October 28, 2014
In which the Order of the Stick gets plotting -- it does continue what was started with the first one, so there are spoilers for that ahead -- and (ta-da!) leaves the dungeon. I note that Burlew's commentary on the story is interesting, but does also contain spoilers, so you may want to skip them unless you've followed it online and know who's who.
The last page of Dungeon Crawlin' Fools exploited dramatic irony to the hilt by showing that the things they were certain they had done were -- not quite so final as they thought. So in town, the important interaction is keyed by the escaped Linear Guild, and leads to a side quest in the best tradition.
Meanwhile, a mysterious figure in blue is tracking them.
Two subplots show the Linear Guild and Xykon both recuperating from their losses to become serious menaces again. And the Order ends up heading south. It involves Durkon interpreting Thor's will in a storm, Belkar taking a level in barbarian, assassins with standards enough to avoid killing innocent bystanders, one reason why Haley wants the gold (besides being greed), her reaction to losing treasure, and an old man with a cat.
The last page of Dungeon Crawlin' Fools exploited dramatic irony to the hilt by showing that the things they were certain they had done were -- not quite so final as they thought. So in town, the important interaction is keyed by the escaped Linear Guild, and leads to a side quest in the best tradition.
Meanwhile, a mysterious figure in blue is tracking them.
Two subplots show the Linear Guild and Xykon both recuperating from their losses to become serious menaces again. And the Order ends up heading south. It involves Durkon interpreting Thor's will in a storm, Belkar taking a level in barbarian, assassins with standards enough to avoid killing innocent bystanders, one reason why Haley wants the gold (besides being greed), her reaction to losing treasure, and an old man with a cat.
March 21, 2020
The second compilation of the online comic "Order of the Stick," "No Cure for the Paladin Blues" is a big step up from its predecessor "Dungeon Crawlin' Fools." It has more complex humor, better character development (including that of several supporting characters), MUCH better world-building, and most importantly...the main plot arc is first introduced here! The Order finally has a greater goal in mind than just avenging Roy's deadbeat dad...now they have to stop an evil lich sorceror AND potentially save the universe at the same time! This book is maybe not the greatest of the Order of the Stick books, but it gets the ball rolling on a lot of important things and makes the reader very excited about the things to come.
August 29, 2012
My Order of the Stick Kickstarter swag finally arrived! No Cure for the Paladin Blues was part of the package, and I read it very quickly.
As with the other OotS books, No Cure for the Paladin Blues is a compilation from the online strip with interesting author commentary. I felt - perhaps unfairly - that there weren't as many bonus strips as with Dungeon Crawlin' Fools and Don't Split the Party, but the ones we did get were great.
I recommend the books to OotS fans, and I recommend Order of the Stick to people who like fantasy. (You don't have to get the D&D jokes; the comic moves away from the D&D gag-a-day format to plot by the end of the first book.)
As with the other OotS books, No Cure for the Paladin Blues is a compilation from the online strip with interesting author commentary. I felt - perhaps unfairly - that there weren't as many bonus strips as with Dungeon Crawlin' Fools and Don't Split the Party, but the ones we did get were great.
I recommend the books to OotS fans, and I recommend Order of the Stick to people who like fantasy. (You don't have to get the D&D jokes; the comic moves away from the D&D gag-a-day format to plot by the end of the first book.)
January 13, 2016
Not as engaging as the first volume, I think. Still, the characters are somewhat charming, and they have begun to grow on my a bit. However, I found that many of the comic strips suffered from excessive explication, and the jokes were less clever. I didn't feel as strongly compelled to turn pages in this compilation. This won't stop me from moving forward with the series...eventually, but it has made me think that I need to take a bit of a pause from binge-reading it. I'll come back to volume 3 soon.
October 7, 2025
for this being a reread, i remember absolutely none of the second half of this book. definitely falls into fantasy misogyny tropes (which the author acknowledges and apologises for), but often lacks nuance about gender in the text itself. its a weird read that at once is conscious of tropes yet unflinchingly embraces them (women just cant exist without being called prostitutes, huh.)
lots of good storylines, and the plot seems to be shaping up really nicely!! the villians are perhaps the most compelling part of this comic to me, as their little interludes are just so so fun.
lots of good storylines, and the plot seems to be shaping up really nicely!! the villians are perhaps the most compelling part of this comic to me, as their little interludes are just so so fun.
December 24, 2008
The Order of the Stick finally hits its stride with this, the second volume of the online comic. The first book was basically just a dungeon crawl, but with this book not only do the intrepid heroes get dropped into the world-at-large, but the elements of a longer, grander plot are put into motion. With this book, the focus also starts to shift away from D&D rules jokes (although it never completely escapes) and moves into more broadly appreciable humor.
June 2, 2008
Mmmm....more Order of the Stick goodness...
More rollicking fun with the Order of the Stick. There's a bit of shift from gaming related humor to more character and situation related humor, but it's just as enjoyable (and more engrossing).
It's also interesting that it's such an enjoyable read even though the big climax is almost all exposition and dialog. It's a testament to Burlew's writing that a talky ending is still so absorbing.
More rollicking fun with the Order of the Stick. There's a bit of shift from gaming related humor to more character and situation related humor, but it's just as enjoyable (and more engrossing).
It's also interesting that it's such an enjoyable read even though the big climax is almost all exposition and dialog. It's a testament to Burlew's writing that a talky ending is still so absorbing.
January 1, 2015
A change from humor to plot, but still quite good, including a crayon-drawn info dump that I find one of the most memorable bits in the series. I'd agree with the assessment that the comic also slowed down with this volume, but I continue to enjoy it, especially when 3e jokes are juxtaposed with the ongoing plot.
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