bookheaven | Third Shift Society, Vol. 2

Third Shift Society, Vol. 2 by Meredith Moriarty

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This collection of the web toon picks up right where volume one left off. Ellie has stumbled her way into the world of the supernatural and is starting to come into her own as Ichabod's partner. Unfortunately she's been marked by a powerful witch named Alice (who likes to appear as The Alice). Why is still a bit murky. Also operating in the background are two demons, nemesis for Ichabod, who take their names from Shakespeare, the careful planner Titania and the more playboy type, Oberon.

There is a strong Buffy/Supernatural vibe with the monster of the week (or the chapter in this case) but also with a bigger picture through line (Alice, Titania and Oberon). Ellie and Ichabod have allies, such as Maris, his former partner/girlfriend, who's a powerful witch and Dr. Strauss (who is also a vampire).

The stories are a nice mix of Ellie (who can see spirits where most cannot) contacts a poor ghost who has been trying to contact psychics without luck and tries to help him solve his murder. There are theatre ghosts and then a storyline mostly dedicated to discovering Alice's motives taking all four of them into a catacomb beneath the city.

One of the most interesting reveals has to do with Ichabod and who he is (is he human with a curse? Is he fully supernatural? Read and find out). The storyline of Titania and Oberon feels nicely woven in. I like the characters, especially the highly intelligent Maris and Ichabod. Ellie is starting to come into her as both a psychic and with her ability to fight the monsters.

There was, for me, a strange blip of fan service (nothing wrong with that) in the theater story with Ellie trying on costumes her friend made for the theater. (It just felt like it dragged a bit). The art style is great. I really enjoy it. I'm looking forward to the next volume.

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