Jim Henson’s Labyrinth #3 is written by Kyla Vanderklugt and published by BOOM! Studios. Artwork is by Giorgio Spalletta, colours by Sara Cuomo and letters by Jim Campbell.
Jim Henson’s Labyrinth #3 is available from today, in print and on digital platforms where all good comic books are sold. Grab your digital copy from Amazon Comixology UK right here.
Synopsis
The oubliette is deep and dark, but Sarah won’t let anything stop her from rescuing Toby from the Goblin King before the clock strikes 13, but in the frightening tunnels beneath the Labyrinth, her and Hoggle will truly face dangers untold as they run for their lives!
Review
So far, Kyla Vanderklugt’s comic book reimagining of Jim Henson’s classic 1986 film has been an entertaining enough read with its Disneyesque artwork courtesy of Giorgio Spalletta. However, now three issues deep, some of the cracks are starting show in this otherwise entertaining series.
As previously mentioned, Giorgio Spalletta’s illustrations are the main driving force of this adaptation. He injects a sense of fantastical whimsy into every page and translates Henson’s vision seamlessly to the to the book. The artwork really comes into its own during any segments set in the oubliette as Sarah and Hoggle try to find their way out.
Where this issue in particular falters is mainly in what it doesn’t do. With the first two instalments, it was made very clear that this series would be a beat for beat retelling of the 1986 film, which is perfectly fine but as from a readers perspective, you would tend to expect something new or different to be thrown into the mix to make this adaptation standout from the original source material. Now three issues deep, this series doesn’t look to be trying anything unique any time soon.
Having this series be an exact retelling of Labyrinth also leads to some issues not going anywhere narratively. Issue one perfectly worked as an introduction and issue two helped expand the world of Labyrinth as well as it’s characters. However, when you get to moments of downtime that rely heavily on dialogue, such as this issue, it can lead to a fairly underwhelming read that doesn’t pick up until you get to the next notable event in the plot which occurs right at the end. This isn’t necessarily a problem with the pacing of the comic, it’s more a fault of being a direct adaptation. Adding something more eventful just for a page or two could have helped this alleviate issue quite substantially.
Verdict
Possibly the weakest entry so far but still a visually engaging one nonetheless. This series continues to bring Henson’s original idea to life in a vibrant manner but it needs to do more in future instalments to justify its purpose beyond retelling the story we all know and love and whether it can bring anything new to the table in the process.
⭐⭐⭐.5
