Review: Elric: The Balance Lost #6

The drama of the end of at least some of Michael Moorcock’s worlds continues in the latest issue of this series from Boom! Studios. No surprise, it is enjoyable and well-done.

If you’ve missed what’s come before a brief overview: Michael Moorcock’s Eternal Champion cycle is a decades-old sci-fi/fantasy series encompassing dozens of different characters and thousands of pages. Out of the  many incarnations of the Eternal Champion, three of the most famous incarnations are the focus of this series: Dorian Hawkmoon, Corum Jhaelen Irsei and, of course, the titular Elric himself. There is also a fourth incarnation, unique to this comic, named Eric Beck.

In the current issue, both groups (Corum with Eric Beck & Elric with Dorian Hawkmoon) both race to find the pan-dimensional city of Tanelorn, the one place in the multiverse that is truly neutral in the struggle between Law and Chaos. Along the way, Elric and Hawkmoon see the effects of Chaos unchecked on both the landscape and people of a dying world while Corum and Eric Beck experience the death by stagnation that unopposed Law creates.

I enjoyed the issue. No surprise there. The book continues to be both excellent written and illustrated, and writer Roberson once again treats long-time Moorcock fans, such as myself, to glimpses of other places and characters from Moorcock’s Multiverse including a peek at how Jerry Cornelius (Moorcock’s hedonistic super-spy) deals with the end of his world.

This title continues to be among the best Boom! Studios has ever produced, and one of the best independent books on the comic wrack right now. The first five issues were very good, and the latest installment of the series continues what is shaping up to be a tradition of excellence.