The second volume of Bone starts out a bit slow, focusing on the build-up to the Great Cow race.  Phoney Bone continues to be pretty annoying, and Fone Bone is having love trouble. Things pick up about half-way through and the volume ends on a strong note.

Jeff Smith does some experiments in visual storytelling, getting more creative with panel layouts, shadows, etc.  Chapter 5 is especially strong. I continue to be reminded of William Messner-Loeb’s excellent comic Journey.  The mix of humor, action, melancholy are reminiscent. 

With the second volume, we get more sense of something big coming, and that Gran’ma Ben and old Lucius know more than they’re saying about it.  Also, it seems pretty clear that Thorn is a part of it all. What’s that going to mean for Bone, if his crush is at the center of all the darkness coming?

It’s good stuff.  Again, I know it’s packaged for kids now, but you get little glimpses of its underground comic origins sometimes, too.  On to the next volume.

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