Mata Hari #1 Review

Writer: Emma Beeby / Artist: Ariela Kristantina / Dark Horse Comics Branded as “the untold story of the original femme fatale,” Dark Horse’s new series Mata Hari features a cover befitting its tagline, a woman luring you in seductively, a dagger peeking from her left hand. The series sets out on an ambitious task, telling the 100-year old true story of the cunning spy who was claimed to be born a princess, only to be killed by a French firing squad in 1917. The five-part miniseries is made as Mata Hari’s memoir before her death, a personal tale that mixes seduction, loss, spy craft, and ultimately mystery. It’s also the type of title you might only trust to a woman, as writer Emma Beeby and artist Ariela Kristantina lead a tale deserving nuance in its sexuality and emotion.

Beeby researched the life of Mata Hari which takes places in multiple forms over the years, and the story evolves over time, as they tend to do. The multiple and conflicting depictions of her life leave the ultimate question that Beeby summarizes: “Did she deserve her fate? Did she have it coming for daring to live as she did? Was she innocent or guilty? Was she the survivor or was she the predator?” This depiction hopefully paints a beautiful picture that lets us decide for ourselves, a retelling of a known persona in the vain I, Tonya that fills in some gaps, leaves others open, and takes creative license to make the story one that resonates with readers. The pacing is made smoother by the overlay of na…