The inaugural story arc for this Assassin’s Creed comic series has arrived at a conclusion for Charlotte de la Cruz’s first adventure. Titan Comics have done a pretty decent job up to this point, but that can all be undone if this five parter ends on a bum note. Will they be able to cement Charlotte’s presence in an Assassin’s Creed world which is already full of great characters and leave us with an origin tale to remember?
Well, I won’t forget Charlotte in a hurry.
It took a while, but Charlotte eventually figured out the connection between the young boy Tom Stoddard found and the woman who desperately wanted to keep him alive, nurse Querry. This brought an end to the memories of the master Assassin ancestor and led to the stark realisation that the would-be traitor, Joseph, was indeed helping the enemy. Half of the modern day Brotherhood team had already began their rescue mission though, and so, to prevent them walking into a trap it’s make or break time for Miss de la Cruz… a case of fight or flight. 
The signs that we’d end up having a finale without the brilliant Tom Stoddard were there in the previous comic and I feared the worst. As much as I can buy into Charlotte as the main character, she is pretty much surrounded by non-entities in the way that I couldn’t care less about the supporting cast. Except for Kody, who seemed to strike a spark with me in recent times, due to his geeky personality beginning to shine through.
Where new characters are concerned, Joseph stood out completely and I commend the artists for depicting this man terrifically, brutish in stature, almost like Zangief from Street Fighter… an absolute badass. Why he has betrayed the Brotherhood is something I’d prefer to let you find out for yourself. Is he really a bad guy or just a good guy with a few issues? The writers did well to convey him as a beast with a slightly soft centre and I sure hope we’ll see him again someday.
Way back in Issue #1, I picked up on how strong Charlotte came across with plenty of attitude and a healthy pinch of humour. I believe this fifth issue is the first since then to truly let her be the focal point of the story, allowing other areas of her mentality to be seen. She’s a tough cookie and if they can avoid placing her in the shadow of another ancestor for a while, I can see her becoming a very popular Assassin one day.
For some reason, the artwork suffers in the modern day world, full of bland buildings and attires with little imagination or vibrancy. I can however appreciate the underwater panels of the comic which were rather cool to view and the action sequences always seem more exciting due to the way the panels are drawn.
On the whole I enjoyed the last comic in this arc, it managed to tie up the main parts of the story neatly whilst leaving enough scope for the next adventure to begin. Charlotte de la Cruz was once just a young woman looking for a new challenge in life, and becoming a member of the Brotherhood fell right into her lap.
She seems to be thriving in her new career and I for one, will be following her story in the next chapter. Care to join me?
