A review by caitcoy
Harrow County, Vol. 3: Snake Doctor by Cullen Bunn

3.0

In volume 3, the story of Harrow County shifts focus slightly to Emmy’s childhood friend, Bernice. After the discovery that she herself was part of the sordid history of Harrow County, Bernice struggles with how to understand her place in it and how to be friends with someone who has the kind dark power (whether she uses it or not) that Emmy does. While trying to find a lost friend, Bernice stumbles upon the path to the house of a woman rumored to be a dangerous witch and finds herself entangled with a different sort of power.



I’ve enjoyed Bernice as a character since her introduction as Emmy’s friend in Countless Haints so it was really fun to see more of her perspective on the events in Harrow County. After having discovered the strange origins of the people in Harrow County (including herself), Bernice is really struggling with her identity and the kind of questions that that kind of experience brings up. After all, if you’re made out of mud, do you count as a person? What does Emmy’s connection to the witch Hester Beck mean for Bernice and the other less powerful residents of the town? And how do you stay friends with someone whose own history is directly responsible for your life and could take it away at any moment if she turned evil? I like seeing more of Harrow County from Bernice’s perspective and particularly because she doesn’t feel like a stereotype. Her confusion and frustrations really help to make her a very compelling character.

While volume 1 introduced Bernice as a sidekick/BFF type character, in Snake Doctor, Bernice gets to explore her own path a bit and separate herself from Emmy. I’m looking forward to seeing where Bunn and Crook take Bernice in future volumes and whether this path is going to lead her into conflict with Emmy.

Full series review here