Dragon Age: The Missing (Comic Miniseries)

There is another major problem I have with the Missing and the whole logic behind the two of them embarking on this wild goose chase and the conclusions that Varric seems to draw from their experiences. His initial thought is that the Venatori had left the clues, wanting them to find Solas.

I thought they went to the Deep Roads following a lead about Solas. It is possible this was a lead provided by a Venatori agent but nothing in the first issue to suggest a link. All they found was a hideout they assumed belonged to Solas with an invitation left there which suggested he had gone to Vyrantium. It was only when they reached the city they discovered the person who had given the invitation was a Venatori agent. Now I thought all along that it was odd that Solas would have a hideout in the Deep Roads, or that he wouldn't have warded it in his absence, or destroyed the invitation so if anyone did get in they wouldn't know where he had gone, so it seemed like he wanted them to find the clue. Now apparently Varric seems to think that it was the Venatori who were behind it and it is they who wanted them to find Solas. Whilst the comic showed someone shadowing them, I didn't think Varric or Harding was aware of this, apart from finding dead deepstalkers that had been killed in a way reminiscent of the Venatori (some sort of ritualistic signature that we were never told about previously).

Moving onto Vyrantium. If the Venatori wanted the pair to find Solas for them, why did they attack them? Wouldn't they have let the woman's husband know about the plan, particularly if it involved getting revenge on the person responsible for the death of his wife? (Varric seems to have forgotten this attempt at killing them when he denies the Venatori have hostile motives towards them in issue 4)   Or did the Venatori petrify the mage to make it look like Solas? For that matter, how would the Venatori know petrification was his favoured attack? Presumably there must be a lot of statues across Thedas now but the victims can't divulge who was responsible (or can they?), so that means the Inquisitor has been rather too free with their information. Again, a deliberate clue was left directing them to the next location but that still points to Solas leaving it rather than the Venatori. They are alerted to someone following either them or the Crows but it is Teia who claimed it was a Venatori.

So they get to Arlathan Forest, discover a load of weird magic and reach an ancient temple. On route Varric is saved by someone dressed like a Venatori. Varric is left a note by Solas telling him not to worry about the artifact and to stop looking for him, so he clearly knows they have been. Was there anything in that issue that suggested Solas had gone to Minrathous? Now issue 4 seems to suggest that they delayed in Arlathan in order to lay a trap for the Venatori. That would make sense so they can discover why they have been following them but apparently it delayed them following Solas, allowing his trail to go cold. I'm with Harding on this one, why would they hang around in Arlathan if they knew Solas had gone elsewhere?

Varric seems to think it an odd coincidence that all three locations have connections with the Venatori. I suppose for him it would appear that way but surely a good intelligence network should have discovered what was revealed in Tevinter Nights: that they are still using red lyrium (so could be looking for further deposits in the Deep Roads), they are still an active force in Tevinter and their main enclave seems to be Vyrantium. As for Arlathan, we know from DAI that Corypheus had encouraged them to seek out elven artifacts, which is how Solas crossed paths with them originally. Plus, there was the whole narrative involving the Venatori in the previous comic series, in which the Inquisition were involved. However, assuming that the Inquisition was not aware of all these details, or they hadn't been passed on to Varric, then my immediate assumption would be that Solas had deliberately left a trail so they would be made aware of them, not that the Venatori left a trail so the Inquisition could find Solas, even if he is annoying the hell out of them.

It brings me back to where in the timeline this comic series occurs. If it is happening at the same time as the other story, then it might explain why Varric and Harding were unfamiliar with the fact that the Venatori are still very much active in Tevinter. However, the previous comic series ended with the Antaam having reached Neromenian, whilst in this one they had reached Vyrantium, so it does seem as though it falls later in time and so Varric and Harding should be up to speed about the Venatori and the fact that they have had supporters in the Arlathan Forest (or on the edge of it). Does the Dread Wolf Take You in Tevinter Nights occur before or after this story? It could well be after because of the progress of the red lyrium idol after it left Castel Tenebrium, which was reported in the Mortalitassi's tale.

Obviously, these comments are only based on the featured pages and the plot does develop from there but the comments about the timeline still stand.

I've been thinking some more about this. As I've pointed out in an earlier post, Andoral, who is now associated with slavery, was originally the goddess of unity, so it would seem that her patronage was changed at some point to reflect a change in direction by those in power, likely after they subdued the elves but possibly before that. Tevinter has certainly become very reliant on slave labour and WoT says that since the Long Walk the numbers have been pretty evenly split between elves and humans, so any justification on the basis that the knife ears started the war and needed to be kept down isn't really valid anymore. However, even if the group don't want to destroy the Imperium, they certainly seem to want a change in the status quo of those in power.

Now I notice that in the story of Darinius, his mother, priestess of Razikale and Queen of Tevinter, had her throne usurped by his uncle, Talsian, who had no magic, which the history states made his claim on the throne invalid (which may be just Altus propaganda rather than fact), yet apparently the populace must have been happy to support him as he stayed in power until Darinius grew up and returned to claim his birthright. It was Darinius who also established the Magisterium, initially from the high priests of the Old Gods, so it does seem as though it was the priests who had to possess magic (which makes sense if they were originally held a position in society similar to that of the Augurs in the south) and that it was Darinius who consolidated and combined their power into secular as well as spiritual rule. So, when Hessarian converted the official religion to that of the Maker, which scholars suggest may have been prompted by the growing unrest among the Soporati, and allowed them to occupy both ranks in the clergy and the Magisterium, he may have been returning Tevinter to something more akin to how it was when still an independent kingdom. It is certainly possible to see the resentment that could have been gradually building ever since the Altus took back control of both the Chantry and the Magisterium. In ancient times dragons seem to have been revered generally among the barbarians and not just because of their association with the Old Gods, with the Neromenians at least seeing them as the embodiment of reincarnated heroes, so if this was an ancient belief among their ancestors, seeing themselves as heroic dragons makes a lot of sense.

Dark Horse Comics @darkhorsecomics
After many close encounters and more signs of a Venatori stalking them, Varric and Harding continue their quest for Solas in Dragon Age: The Missing #4. New this week! bit.ly/3HFpdeD

By @george_Mann @alvaroming @atiyehcolors. Cover: @matttaylordraws. #dragonage @bioware

No Solas at the end?!? But what´s the point of this comic then? Say what you will about the Witch Hunt DLC but at the end there was for 5 minutes Morrigan to see.
Is there any interessing stuff in generell in this comic? For me the only good thing is more Harding but that come on that can´t be it.

That´s pretty bad. I mean i get that Varric and Harding won´t capture or even kill Solas but come on this has to be a joke when they repeat the Trespasser ending.

Maybe this comic series shouldn´t be about Solas but more about Harding and some minor adventure.

By the way why was the point that Varric have been brought back for this series besides that he is looking older now?

And this is the person who is going to represent the Inquisition in DAD.

Ugh they are going to make us look like idiots aren’t they? Hopefully other members if they show up like Dorian or maybe Josephine if we go to Antiva help give it some credence and respect.