The debut issue of Predator: Black, White & Blood not only lived up to Marvel’s signature anthology style, but also offered a trio of tales that felt truly distinct. Predator: Black, White & Blood #2 continues that approach, but has a theme connecting all three of its stories: the Yautja’s culture, and how it drives their hunts. One of the best things that the Predator franchise’s done in recent years (other than letting Dan Trachtenberg take creative control) is dig into what makes the Yautja such deadly killers, so it’s great that the comics are continuing that line of thought.
To that end, part two of “Bloodwood” by Joe Kelly and Alvaro Lopez opens with a segment set on Yautja Prime, giving the spotlight to the young Predator nicknamed “Lucky Boy” who’s been wounded and captured by humans in 1850. Lucky Boy’s crash-landing on Earth is depicted in great detail, and the Yautja’s code of only killing those who can put up a fight comes into play when his captors bring Millie, the girl who wanted to free him, as a sort of twisted prize. The bond between Lucky Boy and Millie is surprisingly compelling, as Kelly shows how they’ve both been hurt by Bloodwood’s sadistic boss and have a good reason for revenge. Lopez continues to pile on the gore, especially when it comes to Lucky Boy killing his captors; that one sequence shows that even without their weapons, Yautja are immensely dangerous.
The Yautja’s code of honor comes up once again in the story “Kejime” by Curtis Baxter and Acky Bright. Taking place in the far future, it finds a woman named Shoko, who’s become the head of her family’s branch of the Yakuza…until she was attacked by Predators and taken to Yautja Prime. At first glance, this seems like a continuation of the twisted gladiatorial battles that took place in Predator: Killer of Killers, with Shoko forced to fight against different Yautja. But slowly, her past is revealed, delivering some truly tragic moments. Baxter knows how to stage the reveals for maximum effect, and he picked the right title; kejime is Japanese for the clear sense of right and wrong. Bright’s anime-inspired artwork also hints at a future I’d like to see more of, including cybernetic arms and retractable katanas that can carve through Yautja flesh like butter.
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Finally, “The Expedition” by Steve Foxe and Phillip Sevy concerns a group of people attempting to find a yeti. What’s truly surprising is that they do find a yeti, but also discover a Yautja hunter who’s on the tail of said Yeti. It opens up a whole can of worms because up to this point, Predators only hunted humans and the odd Xenomorph. How long was this Yeti on Earth? Are there other mythological creatures around? “The Expedition” ends just when it’s getting good, and leaves me with more questions than answers.
Predator: Black, White & Blood continues its anthology approach by exploring the various aspects of Yautja culture and how they’ve remained a constant throughout different time periods. The more I learn about the Yautja, the more stories I want to see in their world, and this anthology is only fulfilling that desire.
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