Since the Prime Magus oversees all magic, it’s fitting that Zatanna interacts with two different realms of magic in this issue, starting with Voodoo. Elodie and Papa Midnite call on Guede Nibo, the Loa or spirit in Voodoo. Voodoo is generally portrayed in a negative way in pop culture, so it’s very refreshing to see it being portrayed in a positive light. I love the character design of Guede Nibo, especially the grills, which become the focal point of some panels. There’s been a fair amount of Black supporting characters introduced in the series so far and each one of them feels so authentic and unique.
SPOILERS AHEAD for Zatanna #3!
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Papa Midnite and Elodie call on Guede Nibo to heal Zatanna after she was injured in her showdown with Agent Di Manes last issue. The skin on one of her arms is gone and her memory of the event is hazy. Guede Nibo helped Zatanna by restoring her arm and memory for three things in return, dealing with an issue in the Hidden City of the Homo Magi, which is hopefully foreshadowing an arc surrounding Sindella, Zatanna’s mom. The second favor is to help Elodie when he calls on her because Elodie will refuse to ask, and the third and final favor is profanity. I really enjoyed the dialogue in this scene, at least the dialogue that wasn’t censored, it felt very natural and fitting for both Zatanna and Guede Nibo.
While cleaning up what’s left of Elodie’s speakeasy, which we also learn was her final resting place, Papa Midnite blows up on Zatanna for causing a mess before she restores Elodie’s head and leaves while apologizing and telling her that she’ll be back soon, remembering Guede Nibo’s words.
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Zatanna travels to another realm of magic to try to resolve the issue the Aede is bringing. The page where she’s explaining the realms of magic and how she traverses them is one of the most gorgeous pages in this issue. I love how Zatanna is holding the memory of her telling us of converting her family’s theater; it really adds to her stage presence and the feeling that each issue is a stop on her tour.
The second realm of magic she visits is the Sea of the Underworlds, which is Greek mythology. During the meeting with Goddess Persephone and Titan Mnemosyne, we learn more about the flowers that bloom from Aede and how the plague started. In this scene in the Sea of Underworlds, we finally get to see Zatanna in her Prime Magus form, but also using her status of Prime Magus. I’m glad that we keep seeing more and more of the Prime Magus status and how Zatanna uses it in each issue, it’s a steady buildup that keeps readers entertained and wanting more but not revealing too much, too soon. I’m also glad that we see Zatanna using her status to ask for help and not demanding help or trying to deal with it all herself.
We return to Agent Di Manes and the plague spirit before Zatanna shows up. The pacing and the timeline is a little weird in this issue as it’s unclear how much time has passed from the end of issue #2, to this encounter with Di Manes until he says its the same night a couple of pages later. It seems like a lot of time has passed since Zatanna visited two realms of magic, but given that its magic, it may not have the same rules as we expect.
Not only do we get to see the Prime Magus in action, we also get to see what else Agent Di Manes can do, which is terrifying. Zatanna is a lot more powerful in her Prime Magus form but she still struggles in her fight with Di Manes as he is silencing her spells, which to us reads as he is redacting them.
I do have to praise Jamal Campell again, not only for his beautiful artwork on the double page spread, but for coming up with unique ways to use Zatanna’s powers when she can’t speak. This time she uses music to cast her spells, more specifically sheet music, which uses notes A-G. This is honestly something that I didn’t see coming but it’s so creative and doesn’t take the easy way out of saying that because she’s the Prime Magus she’s more powerful than all magic users.
I’m excited to see how Di Manes and Zatanna continue to interact and fight against each other, especially if it means seeing more creative ways that Zatanna can cast her spells when she’s being silenced.
Zatanna #3 is an action-packed issue that sees Zatanna asserting her authority as Prime Magus. Jamal Campbell takes us through the magic realms of two different cultures in a beautiful way that goes against what we see in most forms of media.
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