Writer – Steve Ahlquist
Artist – Andrew Murphy
Inker – Dan Schaefer
Letters – Mike Sagara

In the first issue of the series, Tik-Tok had essentially gone crazy and run amok thanks to a hidden gear winding down. It was a brutal affair and did two things of note. The first was to let readers know exactly what they were getting into in this new series and the second was setting up what was to follow in the second issue and quite possibly more down the road. So it is that Tik-Tok is the center of attention once more even though he is not even present in the book, his blueprints for sale to the highest bidder by one Rebecca Eastwitch, a clever play on a famous name by author Steve Ahlquist. Dorothy Gale and her compatriots, those being the Scarecrow, Lion and the Tin Man, are looking to stop her as any enemy nation that gets their hands on them could very well create an unstoppable army. Currently, Eastwitch resides in the former palace of Baron Munchausen, a castle that holds many surprises like being able to transform its internal configuration. Should be a piece of cake. Ahlquist and artist Andrew Murphy create another fascinating story featuring L. Frank Baum’s familiar characters, building off the events of the first book. Here, readers see Dorothy and her crew in action as the spies they have become, working for the CIA and infiltrating their target’s base of operations in the hopes of preventing a possible disaster. Factor in some magic and of course, a bit of action and the absurd and one can find a little of something for everyone to enjoy. What is more than interesting is that this tale takes place on Earth, predominantly at least for the moment, with the characters willingly wanting to live on this planet instead of in Oz. If there should ever be an origin issue in this series, it is going to make for one intriguing story to see how everyone in this book went from point A to point B. As for this tale, Dorothy tries to fool Eastwitch, to no avail, while Scarecrow and Tin Man try to obtain the blueprints without tripping any alarms. Being in a magic castle makes it all the harder but they are not without their own skills and they have Lion and Hungry Tiger bringing up the rear as well, so they have more than just a bit of luck on their side. Such as it is though, the book ends on a cliffhanger with Dorothy facing off against the swordsman Wo and Tin Man in pieces, quite possibly facing his last moments alive before being destroyed by the robot named Stalin. Altogether, this was a bold take on a classic property and a lot of fun.

4 out of 5