Mouse Guard : The Black Axe #6 Preview

“Rarely is any mouse ready for the weight of the axe. Sometimes they must be forged.”

The conclusion to David Petersen’s Mouse Guard prequel, The Black Axe, arrives in comic shops on Wednesday, February 13th. It includes a pin-up page by Mike Mignola and Dave Stewart of Hellboy. Fans can expect to be rewarded for following the story as the narrative returns to Summer of 1153 in its epilogue, shortly after the end of the last series, and The Black Axe itself gets handed down to the next generation.

The Mouse Guard series remains one of the best all ages comics. A mash-up of animal fiction, comic books, alternate history science fiction, and epic fantasy, it is definitely more than the sum of these genres. Adults and children are equally likely to be enrapt by the story as the characters and events have a weight to them that makes them very real. It is like reading an unknown history translated from a venerable scroll. The layers of detail in both the art and the story will bring you back for multiple readings.

Don’t pass this one up. Better yet, buy two and gift one. Just as Celanwe passes The Black Axe to the next generation, this is a good story to share with kids of all ages.

You can find an excerpt from the story on the Archaia page by clicking on this link.