The popular video game has come to comics; Dragon Age Vol 1 collects the first six issues of the comic. Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston tell the story of Gleam. She was born from a forbidden pairing between a mage and a templar. In this world, performing magic is a sin. The templars keep all mages in the Circle Tower, and the mages are taught to use their powers in the service of the Chantry. The templar Sadatt falls in love with the mage Veness. A child is born, but to preserve her life, Veness sends her away with villagers. Gleam is seventeen now and unfortunate events have forced her to make hard decisions.I’ve never played the video game, but it wasn’t necessary to have that knowledge to follow the story. If you are missing pieces (like what exactly the Chantry is), it doesn’t take away from the tale. It is an entertaining story, but it felt familiar. It’s not difficult to predict where the story is going or what decisions the characters will make. Gleam does come a long way, but she still has much to learn about control. The other characters didn’t make much of an impact except that I noticed they all seem to be scowling frequently. The backgrounds and colors should be looked at twice. They add depth to each panel.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read but I’m not compelled to read upcoming issues.
