By Jim Zub, Andrew Huerta and Ross Campbell

How many times have video games and RPG tabletop games been transcribed into comic book form? Now, how many times have those series actually done the original game justice? I can tell you of at least two, and one of them is the relatively new Dynamite entertainment series – Pathfinder. What makes it worth reading?

It’s simply accurate in its portrayal of games. It reads like a story in a game and it has all of the elements of RPG battling. Although the plot may be advancing rather slowly, the clues and hints to the plot are also very RPG-esque. Our team of protagonists captured a robed cultist in the last issue. In this issue they come to the conclusion that the right thing to do is to follow through with their job and completely take out the threat this cult has unleashed. They attempt to track the remaining robed cultists, and in their journeys, Merisiel takes night watch and has some interesting conversations with their prisoner. An epic fight takes place and through some amazing magic the team makes it through, only to face an even greater enemy…in the next issue!

Jim Zub must be a fan of the Pathfinder games. He writes all of the elements really well and the plot is really interesting. I love the use of magic and the fight sequences, and the subtle hints and plot advancements. I’m a big RPG gamer and I’m used to following stories with a lot of lore and places and people with names that are hard to remember. For anyone who isn’t into fantasy games or stories this may be a bit of a heavy read. I can say, though that it is wonderfully written all around.

My only quarrel is with the art. I can’t knock it too much because when you pay close attention to the art and how it flows, Andrew Huerta puts a TON of detail into every character. Their outfits are so detailed and the backgrounds and the enemies are the same way. Tons of detail, but a lot of it reads too dark, the dark coloring doesn’t help and can come off as messy. It’s really busy, and with so much going on plus the very ink heavy style can make it mucky. I’m okay with taking a different approach to art, more abstract and less realism. The problem I find is that it’s inconsistently jumping back and forth from trying to be realism and bordering abstract. I suppose I can’t knock that too much as the amount of detail involved is actually really impressive.

Pathfinder #3 is continuing a great series so far. It’s very involving read that can apply to anyone who is a fan of fantasy games, especially the Pathfinder games. Jim Zub is a great writer and has a great grasp on the subject matter. Maybe it’s not for the typical superhero comic fans, but definitely for fantasy addicts.

Writing: 9/10
Art: 6/10
Overall: 8/10

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Tommy Lutz

Tommy Lutz

Reviewer at ReadComicBooks
Tommy Lutz, born in Michigan, moved to Alberta at age 1. Raised on a farm, worked on a farm, and you won’t ever get the farm out. Trained in musical theory on guitar for over 8 years, played in 4 bands, always lead guitar and lead vocals. He got married at age 19, and is a family man to 3 boys and a girl. Although he is passionate about his hobbies, family is always first for Tommy Lutz. Even though Tommy’s review and editorial writing career started in video games, it quickly lead to his next geek hobby, comic books. Writing wasn’t a new thing for Tommy, having written songs for his bands and poems and stories with high grades in high school. He started reading Sonic the Hedgehog when he was 6, but gave it up by age 10, only to return to the hobby at age 23 at the advice of his best friend. He enjoys a wide variety of comics from a wide variety of publishers, and has fully immersed his wife in the process. When he’s not reading or writing, he’s playing RPG video games, the longer the better.
Tommy Lutz

@tommylutz

Tommy Lutz
Tommy Lutz

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