In this review of Zatanna #3, Zatanna receives some help both in her recovery and in the whole situation with Aède.
ZATANNA #3
Written by JAMAL CAMPBELL
Art and Main Cover: JAMAL CAMPBELL
Variant Covers: ADAM HUGHES, DAVID TALASKI, CHRISSIE ZULLO-UMINGA
Page Count: 32 pages
Release Date: 6/24/26
This review contains spoilers
Zatanna #3 begins at Elodie’s bar, where Zatanna’s being given a tonic after last issue’s massive injury. During the ensuing ritual, she finds herself face to face with Guede Nibo himself. Her arm’s mended, he tells her her mind is next, and he gives her a clue about the next place that requires her help: the hidden city of the Homo Magi. She’s also advised to visit the Lethe.
When she comes back to the world of the Mundane, Midnite calls her out on the magic she’d used on the bullet. She tries to defend her actions, but soon agrees that, yeah, as Prime Magus, she should have been able to find something better. She heals Elodie’s head before taking her leave.
Soon enough, she’s traveled to the Underworld, where she meets with Persephone and Mnemosyne, asking for their help with Aede. But since he’s a muse, he’s been determined as Not An Underworld Problem.
With Di Manes, he and Dr. Gui are getting the spirit contained, before Zatanna arrives…But unfortunately for him, she shows up (and she’s none too pleased) and chews him out for his interference. He claims that she didn’t have it under control and, in fact, may even be the real supernatural threat.
He tries to stop her from casting, but she manages to defeat him. He still hitches a ride out of there. And once he’s gone, Zatanna and Mnemosyne get Aede calm once more, before letting Clara’s spirit go to him. And from there, it’s on to the next leg of the tour.
As usual, the artwork for Zatanna #3 is an absolute vision to behold. The pages where Zatanna’s in Guede Nibo’s realm are wonderfully put together. She fits right in the palm of her hand, showing that even being the Prime Magus doesn’t quite bring her to the same exact level as an Iwa of Haitian Vudou.
Also, the way this whole scene is written is pretty great. It shows just how close Zatanna came to death just by merit of meeting with him. Having looked up some info on the figure himself, he’s a healer, deals with those who passed before their time, is associated with purple and black (which we see in his design).
In fact, I’m liking all of the deity designs here. With Persephone being a goddess of both the Underworld and Spring, there’s a lovely balance of the two with her: her hair’s decked out with flowers, and at the same time she seems pretty at-home on a bone chariot, complete with skeletal horses…with manes of foliage and flowers. With Mnemosyne, there’s a huge black circle where one’s eyes might typically be; that feels like a very nice nod to the mythological version, where a few of her siblings are cyclopses.
And since a big part of the main conflict in this part of the story involves 1) a devastated and vengeful muse (Mnemosyne gave birth to nine of her own) and 2) a death that drove him to what he is (the Underworld being in Persephone’s jurisdiction), these two characters being given prominence in the story is a perfect choice.
Now, we get to the other main conflict going on: that with Di Manes. Holy hell, what a hypocrite he is. He’s calling Zatanna the occult threat, questioning how it was she became the Prime Magus. But he seems to be even more of one, from his actions as this goes on. He says he wants to keep the general population safe, but somehow, it feels like he’d rather be the most threatening supernatural thing around. It’s clear he wouldn’t ultimately beat Zatanna in their fight near the end of the issue…no, not in issue 3 of her own title. That’d make her title an Informed Attribute as opposed to truly fitting her. And him getting away means he’ll be an ongoing threat, as well. Very curious to learn more about this guy…
Final Thoughts
At the 3rd issue, Zatanna continues to pull the reader in with some spell-binding visuals and a story that makes one curious as to what the next leg of the tour will entail. The artwork is spectacular, as to be expected, and the story’s getting more and more interesting as we go.
