Fine Print vol. 3

Ostensibly, this series is about Lauren Thomas trying to figure out what her heart’s desire is and how it can be granted by the succubus and incubus that are competing to do so.  Except Lauren’s issues cause Leila (the succubus) to get some lingering scars when she has to rescue her from being sucked into a dancefloor, which is still nothing compared to the drama that erupts when this lust demon runs into her ex at the Grand Bacchanalia.  Thadeus (the incubus) just has his boyfriend’s old drama to contend with, but it’s also connected to Hera (yes, that Hera) who also has her hooks into Leila’s ex who she has convinced that forgetting everything is the way forward for her.  Oh, and then there’s the matter of Merryl’s sister taking an active role in managing Lauren’s contract, Lauren’s efforts to resume her modeling career in the real world, all the stuff with Hades at the Bacchanalia… and I’m still wondering if I’ve managed to summarize everything going on here.

My big problem with vol. 2 was that it felt like creator Stjepan Sejic was scaling up all of the various subplots too quickly without taking the proper time to establish them and the characters they involve.  Not only is that still an issue here, but it also feels like each one of them is stepping on the toes of the other.  Lauren’s real-world concerns aren’t mixing with Leila and Thadeus’ drama, while something like the Grand Bacchanalia comes out of nowhere to put all of the fantasy stuff front-and-center.  Then you’ve got the end-of-volume cliffhangers which see Lauren and a significant other potentially mutating into something greater and the introduction of one more mythological character.  None of that convinces me that Sejic isn’t just throwing whatever strikes his fancy into his narrative, whether it belongs there or not.

Which is a shame because the character moments can be quite good when the story isn’t spiraling into wider fantasy nonsense.  Lauren actually does have good chemistry with Leila and Thadeus, to the point where if this series was just about the two of them vying for the human’s affections, it could work.  Or if Sejic just focused on all of the drama of the gods and left Lauren’s concerns behind.  There’s no denying that all of this looks INCREDIBLE with the creator’s art, but it really doesn’t feel like it’s coming together.  Which is why when we’re told at the end of the volume that the story of “Fine Print” is only one-third done, it feels more like a threat than anything else.