The Dragon Age franchise has a lot of incredible entries, with several hit games in its past. Through Dark Horse Comics, that lineage has continued with several popular and well-done comic books in this universe, and Dragon Age: Knight Errant is no exception to the rule. The story focuses on an elven squire who leads a double life as follower of her knight, and as a thief who uses her position as a cover for her secret occupation. This gets complicated as the elven squire, Vaea, is asked to handle a task for the Inquisition, an organization that is well known to those who have spent time inside the world of this franchise. This narrow path leads Vaea into uncharted territory and potentially puts her at odds with both the knight who saved her from her past life and with those who would look to take the objects she targets for themselves.
I love the Dragon Age series, and I’ve really enjoyed the books that have come from it thus far. It’s a property that has nearly endless stories to tell, as the world inside the games has as much history as the real world itself. Small, contained stories such as this one are a fun reprieve from the sprawling landscapes, massive goals, and dangerous territories that the player usually sees, but the creators on this book have given the task at hand just as much importance as some of the larger, sprawling objectives that we’re used to seeing inside the playable world.
The series, co-written by Christina Weir and Nunzio DeFilippis, lends the reader a look inside the familiar world, while still showing us something entirely new. The journey for Vaea is one of danger, intrigue, and excitement, even though it has a much smaller scale. We also get a cameo by some well-known characters from the game, something this franchise has done a wonderful job of in previous installments. The story moves quickly, giving us fantastic looks at Vaea, her knight Sir Aaron Hawthorne, and several other characters inside this world. While we don’t get the typical swords and sorcery aspects of both the game and the genre as a whole, this story adds some wonderful things to the overall history of this world, making a high fantasy heist series that is a very enjoyable read.
The art team did a fantastic job of making this world come to life, as penciller Fernando Heinz Furkawa and colorist Michael Atiyeh craft a beautiful fantasy world and allow us to live in it for a few issues. Aided by Nate Peikos on letters, we get a gorgeous journey through majestic, sprawling cities, great action, and a few lovely party scenes scattered through this swashbuckling adventure.
Fans of Dragon Age will absolutely love this look into the deeper world of the series, and those who enjoy fantasy stories should get a kick out of it, as well. While only four issues, this is a really fun read and a great addition to the overall lore of the franchise.
