Blacktalon is an Age of Sigmar show, focusing on Stormcast Eternals. Its lead character is Neave Blacktalon. It seems like the previous episode just got released, but now the fifth (and final?) episode is out, and I've eagerly watched it. This review contains spoilers, so don't read on if you haven't seen the episode yet.
Up to this point in the series, we've gotten a lot of clues about Neave Blacktalon's past. She's desperate to learn more, and apparently has been since before she was reforged. In the previous episode, Hendrick Silverwolf literally stabbed her in the back to prevent her from learning too much.
The conclusion seems pretty obvious.
Neave Blacktalon, in life, was Thea, a warrior of Ghyran the Realm of Life. She had a child and a husband, and they all happily tended to their farm until one day Nurgle arose to spread his gift of disease. It makes sense, and given everything we've seen, it seems to add up.
And it's completely wrong.
This was an amazing episode. Took me completely by surprise, and I'm not going to spoil anything in this post aside from a warning to forsake your expectations. I suggest doing that because on my first viewing, I was actually impatient. I thought the setup was yanked straight out of A Christmas Carol (it doesn't help that the spiritual guides escorting Neave back to real life keep telling her that the visions she's having are all in the past and cannot be changed, just like the Ghost of Christmas Past keeps telling Scrooge). I thought the conclusion was inevitable. I didn't understand why this episode was necessary.
And that's when it all fell apart, just like Ghyran under Nurgle. All illusions shattered, complete shift in reality. It's the lowest-key bait-and-switch I've seen in a long time. It's so low-key, in fact, that I think warning you is doing you a favour. Watch this episode without trying to guess what's going on. It's better that way, I promise.
I haven't seen any indication of how long this series is meant to be, but this kind of felt like it was the final episode. I could be wrong. Possibly we'll get back to normal adventures next. Or possibly Hendrick Silverwolf will apologise for being a jerk. Or maybe Neave will try a different strategy to remember her past. I don't know.
If this is the last episode, then it was a really great series. I enjoyed every episode, I liked the mix of Neave's story arc to general Stormcast adventuring, I liked the music, I liked getting to see so much of the Age of Sigmar setting.
If it's not the last episode, that's even better. I'm ready for more Neave Blacktalon and her band of plucky Stormcast Eternals.
All images in this post copyright Games Workshop.