Comics Review: MICKEY MOUSE AND FRIENDS #297 (October 2009, Boom! Kids)

Despite being two weeks late, this second installment of the "Wizards of Mickey" saga, entitled "The Dolmen Swamp," is much more interesting than the first. This isn't really surprising, given the central plot point of Mickey, Donald, and Goofy competing in the Great Haven Sorcery Tournament's qualifying round, which gives the boys a chance to strut their magical stuff (or, in the seemingly hexed Donald's case, the lack of same) with a concrete goal in mind. Peg-Leg Pete and The Beagle Brothers, competing as "Black Phantom Team," take part and mix in the expected measure of cheating. A trio of sentient dragons -- who supposedly practiced magic in "The Dolmen Empire" long before other anthros did -- also get through the qualifiers, leading me to wonder how Donald could possibly have a pet dragon that, as one of Wizards of Mickey's opponents remarks, is the functional equivalent of a dog. In the event, "Team Magma Fire" doesn't have anything to do with the climax, a straightforward showdown between Mickey and the arrogant Pete which seems to close the loop on the "lost Diamagic" plotline begun in part one. One thread is left dangling, however, as Mickey's absent master Nereus has run into a spot of bother at the Great Bukara Library while searching for information about the mysterious "Lord of Deception." If this storytelling approach is maintained, Wizards of Mickey will probably resemble the DuckTales multi-part epics, with mini-narratives being linked by ongoing throughlines. I can certainly live with that. Saida Temafonte's dialogue is greatly improved here, though it's still not on the Gemstone level.