Comic Review: Samurai Jack: Lost Worlds #4

Overview:

As Jack’s adventures take him to the coast, he needs to find board amongst a ship to get him across the ocean. Landing on Captain Arnold’s mighty ship, Jack realizes this adventure is not going to be like the others. The captain explains that he and his crew are out to prove whether the Earth is flat or not. Upon reaching a cliff of water, the captain believes he has found his answer, unfortunately just moments before he is eaten by a sea monster. The ship is then trapped between the “edge of the world” and the dangerous beasts, and it is up to the crew whether they want to gamble with the monsters or to fall off of the world.

Our Take:

The end of comic series may be equally as sad as the original series ending it’s time on the air. Even though we were made aware that Samurai Jack: Lost Worlds would only last for four short issues, it does not make this conclusion any easier to take. When a 4-part miniseries is announced, it typically means that there is a story that is being told that demands a certain amount of issues, which was the inclination with this book. However, it turns out that Lost Worlds was a collection of four individual original stories all partaking in the aftermath of the television run. This concept leaves the door open for this series to continue indefinitely, with new plots and characters being introduced each month. And, honestly, with the amount of creativity, talent, and passion that has been poured into these comics, an ongoing series would be well deserved. Knowing that this is the end (for now) of Samurai Jack content is a hard pill to swallow.

Already the comic industry is saturated with ongoing storylines and never-ending developments. It makes the medium a difficult one to jump into without having some previous knowledge of events and characters. Although Samurai Jack is an established franchise, each of these individual books has been gripping and unusual plots whether you are an existing fan or not. You can pick up any of the Samurai Jack: Lost Worlds comics and read a fulfilling and exciting story and be able to move on without being curious as to what’s next. This title has been a breath of fresh air, and an exciting one at that.

But, enough about the travesty that this title has to end, though I think we should start a petition or something.

Within the first few pages, it would be expected that this was going to be a pirate adventure, possibly involving ghosts or treasure. There would be no way of guessing that this issue would be taking on the hot, often humorous, topic of flat-Earth. Yet, here we are. Jack is the voice of reason through the book, and he makes many valid points about his travels around the globe and the fact that he has been to space. However, the believers in the story seem to get what he is saying, yet still search for their own proof. Imagine the surprise when they actually discover what appears to be the end of the world. Which, to be fair, if any of us were writing a fictional story about flat-Earthers, we would want to explore the idea that they were right.

The end of the issue even ends on a cliff-hanger (excuse the pun). With nowhere left to turn, Jack makes the decision to gamble everything on his certainty that the planet is round and steers the ship over the edge. Regardless of whether or not he is correct, driving a boat off a waterfall does not sound like the brightest of ideas that Jack has had. But, that is the end of the issue, leaving us to wonder about what happens next, or if the Earth is actually flat or not. Well, after I flipped through the last pages a couple of times to assure that this was the actual conclusion, I did come to realize that the answer already lays within the pages. Spoilers for those who don’t care to know the answer: the book begins with the first mate narrating how he should have never allowed Jack on the boat, to start with. The first panel gives away the cliff-hanger ending, which is kind of brilliant if you ask me.

I have eaten this series up from day one. Each book has gotten better and better, and I can only hope that this creative team can use these books to get a new contract, or at least start an original project. The books have been a mix of folklore and paranormal themes, with sprinkles of action and modern commentary. They have been nothing short of entertaining, without trying to go over the top. I would recommend this issue or any of the other few to anybody that wants to read an enjoyable original story. No matter your preference these feel like timeless tales with creative characters, and anyone could find entertainment in these pages.