Northlanders #28

Written by Brian Wood
Art by Leandro Fernandez

The Plague Widow has been a pretty interesting arc of Northlanders.  It has focused on Hilda, the titular widow, and her daughter Karin, and their trials as their settlement on the Volga River put itself in quarantine to stave off the Black Death.  Most of the arc has been about Hilda's issues with Gunborg, the loutish alpha male who eventually took over the settlement.

This final issue is different though.  It chronicles Hilda and Karin's desperate flight from the settlement into the Russian winter.  The two are exiled and looking for some form of safe haven, and the entire issue is gripping in its suspense and sense of dread.

Hilda narrates the whole issue, and we understand the depths of sacrifice she will endure to not just keep her daughter physically safe, but to protect her young ideals.  Her biggest hope is that Karin will survive all this with her morality intact.

This has been a very long arc, and Fernandez has done a wonderful job throughout of portraying the harsh landscape and difficult conditions.  The characters have visually aged from the beginning of the story.  Recommended.