Twilight Lady 2: Oblivion Symphony continues the story from “The Disappeared”, so if you haven’t read the previous Twilight Lady stories, read them first. If you liked them, you will like this. Check my reviews.

Here big things start to happen. This is a wild and deep journey. We learn much more about Subrealm and its weird, humorous and scary creatures. The most surprising thing is that trolls are fun! Meantime, all is not well in Senserealm. In summary, the road to hell is paved with good intentions …and accelerated by fanatics and newbies.

I really enjoyed this. In my opinion, this is not only the best Twilight Lady story so far, but probably the best urban fantasy story I have ever read. Everything comes together beautifully. This is high-quality stuff, a masterpiece in illustration, character design, dialogue, storytelling and worldbuilding. Blake Chen, I admire your imagination.

Read my review of Twilight Lady Volume 1: Demon Corridor if you want to know what kind of comic this is. Although this is not a numbered volume, you can think this as Volume 1.5. I recommend you to read Volume 1 first.

The three stories here can be read in any order. Below are some spoiler-free comments.

“Peace Time”: This is a humorous character study. Once again the characters are believable because their motivations are made clear. Tight writing. Chen's art keeps improving.

“The Disappeared”: The main story from Volume 1 continues here. Macabre and brutal can be beautiful. Humorous twists with non-humorous and twisted bad guys. Who is the biggest bad guy? The ending was surprising and therefore good. Art is “cinematic”; this could work well as a movie.

“Twilight Lady Sings the Blues”: This story feels non-canonical. I don’t fully understand it and its implications, so I keep my mouth shut. Art is OK, although Jen looks very different. In my opinion, Chen himself is the best illustrator for this comic. Others are not spooky enough.

My conclusion: Two of the stories are excellent and one is OK. This is an essential volume for those who are interested in the adventures of the mysterious Lady.

What a pleasant surprise, dear.

Twilight Lady is the best urban fantasy comic book I have read for a long time. If you like Neil Gaiman’s Sandman, you probably like this. In my opinion, Gaiman has not written anything this good for ages.

Blake Chen has created an original universe that is full of suspense, sense of wonder, and surprises. The continuing story is simply brilliant. It unfolds in the right pace and is full of twists. It is very difficult to predict what is going to happen next. The characters are believable and likeable. Each have their goals and justifications for their actions, so it is not simply good vs. evil. Art may first seem somewhat stiff, but it gets better and also helps to create a creepy atmosphere. There is also humor which is sometimes subtle, sometimes macabre, and sometimes something that only the reader sees.

Just try Twilight Lady. You will be sucked into another world. This is the first volume and the beginning of a great journey.