Honestly, I think The Horizon Volume Three contributed to some bad dreams I had after finishing it. I had finished volume two of The Horizon a few days before, and that probably did not help. I had forgotten some of volume one, but at the same time you almost didn’t need it as it was its own story, but if you want to know how The Boy and The Girl meet and a bit of the war and situation the children are facing you should.
Back to that dream. You see, all three of these minimalistic graphic novels are dark. The Boy and The Girl are manga looking characters living in an empty world. The only people are soldiers (even the “good guys” are not good) and shells of people physically and mentally. Death is every place. It is a living Hell, only nobody is living, just existing. Author Jh has a deeply disturbing view for life: in the present and the future. (As I’m not really sure how to mention Abigail Blackman as they are the letterer (other roles) smoothly, I’ll just toss it in here.) So, because I had this all in my head when I went to bed, I had some odder than usual and somewhat disturbing dreams. Nothing was about the book, but my imagination went nuts. Therefore, be aware of your reading level of empathy and how you’re emotionally feeling, and make sure you are in a safe environment for reading. And I don’t recommend later night reading.
The Boy and Girl in volume two have an encounter with a man in an empty city. He teaches them how to kill as payment for saving him from being kidnapped, injured and most likely going to be killed themselves. But he does not teach them to walk up and use a gun, knife or weapon. He teaches them to push the button and set off bombs. He does teach The Boy to use a gun, The Girl to cook, and both a pretty powerful lesson about justice and revenge; about love and death. Then in three so many things happen, such as they finally meet more children but there is a language barrier. Between volume two and three we learn The Girls backstory (grab big boxes of tissues) and there is heartbreak every step of the way.
In the end, the book finds its conclusion by showing us the meaning of life, death, love and the power it all has over us. How we heal or don’t also come into the picture. All the volumes sometimes felt a bit disjointed, but volume three had some of the worst of that. (Small spoiler) Did The Boy die? This scene said he did, but that one said he didn’t. I think in the end you need to fill in a few blanks on your own.