EYES ON MAGNA: THE LAST PANTHEON
In Magna: The Last Pantheon, Kari Skogsholm quickly discovers purpose beyond farm life when she finds herself fighting for her life against a deadly creature set on pursuing and destroying her in 1942.
Magna: The Last Pantheon Vol. 1 is the first of a two-part story arc in which protagonist Kati Skogsholm finds herself in league with the last of the world’s deities of old and in the middle of their losing battle for survival. Magna: The Last Pantheon Vol. 2 is the conclusion to the story of protagonist Kati Skogsholm and the disheveled band of the last of the world’s deities, making their final stand! The toll is high, and startling revelations abound as Kati realizes victory can only be found in the one thing her group lacks.
THE CREATIVE TEAM
Magna: The Last Pantheon series is written by John Hervey, penciled by Marcio Abreu, colored by Omi Remalante Jr. and Alex Garcia, lettered and designed by Marco Della Verde, and with covers by Eduardo Ramirez Viera, and Elizabeth Torque. Edited by Priscilla Hervey.
THE BOOKS
Magna: The Last Pantheon is a supernatural fantasy-adventure tale. The story is told in two volumes each with 3 chapters with approximately 76 pages each volume including a 4-page gallery. The books contain chapter dividers. The books are printed as full-color graphic novels with a soft cover. The books also have a printed spine. My one complaint is the numbering of the spines, both have a number 1. The books are published by Beyond Time, Inc. The individual issues (digital versions) can be bought on their website.
THE STORY
Eighteen-year-old loner Kari Skogsholm finds her world upside upon learning she is adopted. In search of her parentage, she travels from her home in Idaho, United States to Scandinavia. In Finland, an uncanny chain of events lands her in Asgard, where she finds herself in league with a conglomeration of a few remaining deities of myth left in the world. By association, she is hurled into mortal danger as the deities are in the twilight of a losing battle for survival against legions of angels.
The disheveled band flees to Olympus and ultimately to the pyramids of Egypt of their last stand, where they face the full might of the legions of angels. The deities fall as do veils of deception; the angels are revealed to be demons led by arch-demon Samyaza. Only Kari remains against Samyaza and his legions. Kari’s victory is found in the one thing her fallen comrades did not have, faith.
MAGNA: THE LAST PANTHEON Vol. 1
The first volume tells the story through 3 chapters.
CHAPTER 1 Release the Hund
Over 4,000 years ago the sky between earth and the First heaven was torn apart by an epic war ravaging the skies, in separate but related battles, battles for survival trashing mountain tops of Greece with Fire and hail devastating Egypt, China’s atmosphere changing like never before and the skies above Finland raging. Beyond the veil of the destructive weather lies a world whose judgment is at hand.
The story starts in Asgard where the mythical gods are fighting for survival. Loki is trying to convince Thor of the importance of the urn he is carrying while Thor is more concerned about his wife Sif and daughter Magna. Seeing no other option to save his daughter’s life, Thor sends her in “superman style” to a better destination which happens to be Earth. We further see the war continue at another location with known mythical gods such as the Monkey King.
We are then transported to 1942, Tree City of Idaho, United States, where Magna is living peacefully with her adoptive parents. We learn that she is abnormally big and strong for a human female. Suddenly a werewolf appears and fights her. She realizes that she is able to feel hurt, something that never happened before.
CHAPTER 2 Woe to the Motherland
Magna continues the fight and eventually wins. The beast flees defeated. We that Loki is monitoring the situation from wherever he is. Magna’s parents decide to tell her the truth about her origins.
Back in the war with Russia Magna’s father enlisted and went to fight in Finland. After the war, he married and became a fisherman. In 1924, an accident happened where he fell into the sea and found a strange oval object with a baby girl in it. They were attacked by a similar beast back then. They decided to flee to the United States. So far, we understand that Magna’s parents are very religious and their belief and faith in God is strong.
Knowing the truth Magna decides to go back to Finland, the place where she was found. They went in secret because there is a current war where Finland is receiving support and military cooperation from Germany. There she experiences the harsh reality of war.
CHAPTER 3 Aesir Wasteland
Magna is devastated and scared. During the fight, she separated from her father and is now wandering alone. Later that day she suddenly sees colorful lights in the sky. She is pulled up by the light and transported to a place she recognizes from Norse Mythology. As she follows a mysterious figure, she is suddenly attacked by a legion of angels.
She defeats them and is led by the mysterious figure to the remaining council of deities. The mysterious figure happened to be the god of mischief. They get attacked by angels but manage to escape. They tell her their history and how important her role will be in their survival. Isis is skeptical of Magna’s abilities. Magna feels confused as she doesn’t know who she is or what is expected from her.
MAGNA: THE LAST PANTHEON Vol. 2
CHAPTER 4 Lyin’ of Olympus
In chapter 4 Magna received a new dress and the gods became fully aware of her faith and berate her for that. Loki tells her that the one she is so faithful to is the one who is after them. She refuses to believe him.
Once again, they are attacked by a legion of angels. They manage to escape. They found a place to stay hidden for the time being and Magna was given the Megingjardir, the belt of prowess.
CHAPTER 5 Family Affair
Magna learns more about her family’s past, spends time with her uncle Loki on earth where learns how little he cares for human life, and gets into an altercation with Isis.
CHAPTER 6 Principalities and Power
In chapter 6 Magana learns about the power of the urn and then realizes that Loki is using her to find the urn. She gets more accessories to use in battle. The deities are hellbent on continuing the fight. Magna thinks this is unnecessary if they can accept that there is one true god. What happens next is their battle for survival. Will they survive?
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
It is an interesting take on mythical gods. The story is engaging from the start. I would have liked to get a character bio of the deities. I get that they are supposed to be popular and everybody should know about their history but in reality, not everybody knows and it would have been interesting to know in detail about their powers and capabilities.
In addition to the mythical gods which are larger than life, there is also faith in the creator, the all-powerful. A faith Magna has kept throughout the whole ordeal she went through. It could have been easier for her to give in and lose her faith but she persisted to keep her bible, her faith.
Her persistence is due to the teachings of her adoptive parents which shows how important it is for any child to have a stable family foundation that they can rely on once they grow up. The foundation gives them the strength to move on through life. Overall, it was an easy read which made me enjoy the story even more.
THE CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGN
When I decided to back the “MAGNA and THE POSSE” crowdfunding campaign, I chose the “Graphic Novel Trifecta” tier which included The first and second volumes of Magna: The Last Pantheon and the first volume of the Posse. You could also get a metal bookmark as an add-on which I did. I got Cover 3 for Volume 1. I like this cover a lot, wish it could be a poster or print. For Volume 2 I chose Cover 2.
The expected waiting time was very short. The updates on the progress of the campaign were timely provided by the project manager. I had no issues receiving the books after receiving the tracking number just a few weeks after contributing to the campaign. It’s the same great service provided as the Black Tiger campaign.
FINAL THOUGHTS
Magna: The Last Pantheon is an interesting fantasy story about Thor and Sif’s daughter. The final chapter in the second volume concludes Magna’s first journey and has an epilogue that suggests the continuation of the story. It doesn’t have an open ending that will keep you wondering what will happen next. The story starts and finishes on point. However, you as the reader can imagine that Magna being who she is will have more adventures in the future.
Overall, I enjoyed reading the story. As of date, the crowdfunding campaign is “InDemand” on Indiegogo. The individual digital editions are also available at the online store at beyondtimecomics.com. Make sure to check it out!
My thoughts on ” The Posse” will be next…
Interested in more titles? Check more GRAPHIC NOVELS from the “EYES ON” series wherein I documented my experience with crowdfunding entertainment and shared my notes on the products I received.
My notes are all set. Let me know what you think.
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