The adventures of Zero the ghost dog counties as we jump from book 1 to book 2 of the ongoing comic series titled “Zero’s Journey” based on the film “The Nightmare Before Christmas”.
Zero still continues to wander aimlessly through Christmas Town and eventually finds himself in a very sticky situation as he discovers a feisty gingerbread man with his leg chewed off thanks to Zero’s hunger and a depressed elf who wants to destroy Christmas because of his tragic backstory. Meanwhile, Lock, Shock and Barrel enter Christmas Town to help Jack find his beloved pet, but unfortunately they get distracted by the wonders and joys of the north pole that they can't help but cause some mischief along the way.
Much like the other comic, you read the pages from right to left instead of the other way around. You also get some rhyming segments in the text that make it feel like the characters are singing even though there is no music. As for the story itself, it once again captures the tone and feel of the movie it's based on. It also ups its game a little and provides us with some story elements that are rather unfortunately tragic but also uplifting at the same time. It's not all sadness and tragedy though as the scenes with Lock, Shock and Barrel give the story a nice bit of humor and overall craziness. Like its predecessor, the comic’s visual style captures the unique look of the movie’s source material and much like the story it also ups its game visually.
Zero’s Journey Book 2 is a great sequel that manages to keep the story going and even tries to do some things that are rather bold and depressing, but it also never forgets to balance out having fun at the same time. There is still more of this story to be told and I can say I'm all the more excited for it.
(Final Grade: A-)