A pre-quel to the Dark Crystal and so far the set up is good. ( )

Adorable. A tale of gelflings and the days before the Dark Crystal was restored. The gelflings are charming and brave and the artwork is lovely.

Gelflings Lahr and Neffi have lost everything and everyone they loved when their two villiages were raided by the Garthim working for the Skeksis. This is a prequel to the film The Dark Crystal and set before the crystal shard is out back into the main crystal. In this manga the Skeksis have only just found out that they are able to use the crystals power to drain gelfling essence giving them immortality.

Lahr is a shepherd and Neffi a weaver and together they realise they can turn their peaceful skills to more violent, defensive uses when pushed. Taking Lahr's dog Whouf, they set off to warn other gelfling villages of the new threat to their lives. They need to convince others of their kind to leave behind their passive musical ways and prepare for war.

It is beautifully drawn and I really enjoyed the story, I can't wait for the next installment in the series. As it is set before the film it doesn't take anything away from the classic, merely adds to the backstory. I would have liked to see how the Skeksis discovered they could harvest gelfling essence, was it an accident or a planned experiment as the two used to co-exist peacefully. There is a really good guest artwork and blurbs section at the back of the manga which will help introduce me to new authors and artists in the future. I can't wally say enough good things about this manga, definitely one for people who haven't tried this genre to give a go. ( )