Another excellent issue and a great way to begin the new arc. Some observations:

In some ways, the weight of the story is changing a bit -or, perhaps more accurately, I am noticing now more than ever how much of the story from the beginning has been about the love between Maika and Tuya. This has always been present, of course, but now that we are getting more of Tuya and learning more of her backstory and tragedy, it is also becoming more and more clear how much she and Maika love each other and how deep that bond is. If Maika’s story with Kippa is that of a mother with a child, her story with Tuya is a profound romance, born in intense suffering and mutual care. It makes Maika’s sense of betrayal, rage and heartbreak much deeper.

Kippa related in the last issue that her mother is alive somewhere and left her, but it does seem that Kippa’s father and half-sister are really dead. Her refusal to leave Maika and her statement that she will stay with her family because of her experience of not doing so in the past is revealing of her pain and how much she has invested in being with Maika until the end.

We already knew that Zinn had been having an affair with Marium, the woman he was in bed with in his memory. Marium, you will recall, is the name of an important figure/goddess for the Cumaea witches, so she is an historical figure of great importance too. As I recall, in past flashbacks, it has been suggested that Marium may have helped Zinn to kill the Shaman Empress and even that the Shaman Empress may have been torturing Zinn in her experiments. It’s already been hinted at that Zinn has deliberately forgotten his betrayal of the Shaman Empress because he does not want to remember his role in her destruction. It will be interesting to see where this goes.

It has also been strongly suggested that Maika is the reincarnation of the Shaman Empress and/or possibly a vessel for her return. While Maika is uninterested in the sordid details of Zinn’s life right now, it will be interesting to see if that changes as she gets closer to her rendezvous with the Shaman Empress. Like the situation that Tuya finds herself in with the Baroness, I think there are strong hints that the SE has planned to come back in Maika’s body, but she has not yet contended with Maika’s will.

Finally, they are on another world and Zinn and Maika have reversed roles. I’ve no idea where it goes from here, but at least Maika’s head seems to be thinking again.