Comic review: Bravest Warriors #32

As summertime begins in the US, it is just ending for the Bravest Warriors. Yes, their time at summer camp is coming to a close. At the end of the last episode, Arthen, one of the campers, had summoned Akrothile, Pursuer of Vengeance, to kill Chris. Akrothile supposedly can’t be killed. Yeah, right.

Issue 32 begins with Danny seeing Bugcat on his way to save Chris. Danny starts to freak out a bit but Chris brings him back to the issue at hand – getting Chris out of the firm grasp of Akrothile. Meanwhile, Catbug and Bugcat start arguing. Bugcat tries to transform but he can’t on this particular planet. Plum takes matters into her own hands and shoots a crossbow bolt at Bugcat’s head.

The Warriors finally free Chris. Following Plum away from the monster, Danny tries to tell the rest of the gang about the other Catbug. But no one believes him. They all think it was just the heat of the battle. Forgetting their discussion for a moment, the gang rushes into a hedge maze to get back to camp. On their way, they run into Arthen. Arthen confesses that he summoned Akrothile to kill Chris. Beth tries to get the gang moving again but, this time, they run into the rest of the campers, ready to fight.

Eventually, Beth comes up with a plan to defeat Akrothile. Using Chris as bait, they lure the monster into the maze, where the Warriors and the campers fight the giant together.

In another part of the maze, Plum whistles for Catbug. As soon as he appears from inside a hedge, Bugcat attacks. Like any good villain, Bugcat monologues about how he can’t open portals anymore thanks to Catbug and how Catbug has to return to their planet to take the throne. Catbug opens a portal, acting like he was going to return, but just pushes Bugcat into the portal at the last minute, thanks to Plum’s pleading.

With Akrothile tied up, Danny confronts Catbug about Bugcat. But neither Plum nor Catbug answer his questions. Later, when Arthen’s dad comes to pick him up from camp, Arthen is super excited and begs to come back next year. Mr. Bowles thanks the Warriors for showing Arthen a good time. Arthen’s mother was eaten by a decimating snail and the poor boy hasn’t been the same. Thankfully, that one moment turned Danny’s crappy summer into an amazing summer.

The secondary story, “They Come From The Planet Of Fandom,” also finishes up in this episode. Plum has arrived on the planet, informing the Warriors that they have been there for five whole months! When the Warriors find out that they have been brainwashed repeatedly, the King admits that he is the guilty party then tries to brainwash them again. This time, Impossibear shoots the King’s fanfiction with an energy gun. Not quite defeated, the King attacks the Warriors so no one else can have them, blowing up his castle in the process. The King tries to command his subjects to destroy the Warriors but the people revolt. Everyone attacks the King but it isn’t until he ruins Wallow’s grub that he is truly defeated.

Hood apologizes for what happened to the Warriors but they know it wasn’t his fault. Beth tries to set Hood up as the new King. He decides the planet will be a democracy instead. In the final few panels, the King threatens to write the Warriors out of existence.

While I am rather happy with the issue, there are a lot of things that could have been fleshed out a lot more. I would have liked to see more of Arthen’s apology to the Warriors. They seemed to forgive him VERY quickly. Like, within a few panels on the same page type of quickly. I would have also liked to have seen the Akrothile fight. Almost the entire fight takes place off-screen, which is disappointing. However, there were some good points as well. Giving Arthen a real reason for being a moody teenager was awesome. Letting the campers join the Akrothile fight was pretty cool too…even if we didn’t actually get to see it. I thought that it was handled quite well, even if it was a little rushed.

And the fandom story? That whole thing was just funny. Especially if you are familiar with how crazy fandom can get. There definitely needs to be fewer Kings and more Hoods in the fandom community.