The Good

This issue brought back some nostalgia. Back in 1994, Erik Larsen did an all-splash page issue (in SAVAGE DRAGON #7). Twenty years later, he upped the idea by doing an entire issue of just two-page spreads. Think about that.

There are few artists that could pull this off. Larsen is tasked with drawing gigantic scenes and he doesn't take the easy way out. There is a load of detail and characters in each two-page image. It's almost like he had a field day being able to throw in so many characters and so much action. Of course some may say it's a gimmick. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. It's a nice experiment and Larsen even points out this isn't something he would want to do again. It's a fun way to read a comic story. I've recently tried catching up/diving back into the series and, if we're being honest, it did grab my attention and cause me to write this review.

As for the story, it's pretty much a big giant fight scene. Malcolm, the current Dragon, is stuck fighting a big oversized foe. This is the perfect situation for this format. It's pretty cool being able to see the entire scene. There's often a lot going on in the backgrounds and Larsen is able to (or forced to) draw in all the innocent bystanders.

The Bad

As cool as this issue was, the main reason we wouldn't necessarily want to see this done again is the length of the story. There is dialogue throughout each two-page spread. Despite this, you'll zip through the issue pretty quickly. You can, and should, take the time to bask in all the detail Larsen provides. But at the end of the day, this is going to be a really fast read that comes down to just being a single (glorious) battle scene. Some of the spreads felt a little similar as there's only so much you can do in trying to get the action to pop out of a two-page shot. We had some pages with (a lot) of characters jumping in or out of the action along with a couple shots of the character on the left reaching out or punching into the other page.

The Verdict

Twenty years ago Erik Larsen did a pretty cool thing. He gave us an entire issue full of splash pages. It's something I've never forgotten. To make it different (and better), we now get an entire issue with two-page spreads. Erik Larsen gets to unleash the fury of his pencils with so much room for detail in each scene. It might be a fast read but, for a one-time thing, it's quite a reading experience. This is a comic worth checking out.

Glad to see a series like this get a review. I've always been curious about Savage Dragon, is this a good jumping on point? (I know basically nothing)

Man, totally forgot about this book, One of the original Image founders still sticking with there baby, the 200th issue should be awesome

that girls waist on the cover is unreal.

it is pretty crazy to see the main head publisher at image about to hit issue #200 for his own book, shows what those guys are really about

@captainmarvel4ever: for sure, pretty much every issue is a good jump on point, and recently we're just getting started with Malcolm Dragon as the protagonist. Best comic on the stands I'd say!

Man, haven't heard about the Savage Dragon on here in a looong time! Glad to see it reviewed & receive a good one. One of my favorite Dragon books is "This Savage World", which was pretty much Larsen's nod to 70's Kirby, esp. Kamandi. (And like me, Larsen is a Kamandi fanboy) Definitely a consistently underrated book & I share his love of Kirby & dedication to reviving old forgotten characters. An Image book that deserves to make it to issue 200.

i tried doing the jumping point thing, then i worked my way backwards lol, to answer a question, and ended up starting from 1 onward. After a while it starts going on about parallel universes and what not. if you think dc was bad with that, then you are in for a wild ride. This in no way makes the stories bad. they do it in a way that seems like a joke to comic books who over do this sort of thing.