Lady Mechanika La Dama de la Muerte

by Joe Benitez and M. M. Chen

[Quirky Cat]

I received an advanced copy of Lady Mechanika La Dama de la Muerte TP from Net Galley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Lady Mechanika La Dama de la Muerte is a side story following the events in volume three. I would have rated this a three and a half star, but honestly the artwork is just so stunning that I had to bump it up at least half a star for that. Seriously, I think I might have to see if I can buy a print or two from this volume. Even though it is a side story, it does contain some pretty massive spoilers for the other volumes, so I strongly urge that you read those first (though if you don’t mind spoilers it isn’t a requirement).



As the title (and artwork) suggests the theme is heavily focused on the Dios de Los Muertos (Day of the Dead). The merging of artwork and style here is truly breathtaking, and by far the highlight of the volume (please take the time to look at all of the alternate covers in the back, you won’t regret it!). I seriously can’t seem to move past how beautiful all the art is, hence why I’m gushing about it so much. I think it’s safe to say that while the artwork for Lady Mechanika has always been exceptional, this volume takes the cake, so to speak.
I think was my favorite so far of the Lady Mechanika series – it is very approachable with beautiful art (I sound like a broken record, don’t I?), an interesting albeit slightly heart breaking plot, and well-rounded characters. While I don’t want to give everything away, I will say that you should be prepared to be hit in the gut during this story; as the story fits the theme very well.
There is less of the steampunk element in this volume, but honestly I’m ok with that trade-off. The cultural theme of the story more than made up for it in this particular case. While I’m no expert on Dios de Los Muertos, I do believe that it was beautifully interpreted here.


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks