Comics

[Comic Review] “Invisible Republic” #1 – A Strong And Clever Debut Issue

Published

9 years ago

March 18, 2015

There were a lot of things I expected when I started reading “Invisible Republic” #1. I kind of felt a Star Wars vibe coming from the cover and title, especially with the creative team’s history with Star Wars: Legacy, which is really its own unique variety of space epic. What I didn’t expect, however, was its strong ties to Camelot.

WRITTEN BY: Gabriel Hardman & Corinna Bechko

ART BY: Gabriel Hardman, Jordan Boyd

DESIGN BY: Dylan Todd

PUBLISHER: Image Comics

PRICE: $2.99

RELEASE: March 18, 2015

The story follows the aftermath of the Malory regime (a reference to Thomas Malory, compiler/author of Le Morte D’Arthur) as journalists try to find a story somewhere in the abject poverty the urban spaces have devolved into. As one reporter puts it, “the fall of the Malory Regime is hitting Avalon’s least fortunate the hardest.” But the locals aren’t interested in giving interviews to strangers looking to make a buck off of their misfortune, and even the journalists feel like they’ve “been through this kind of shit before. No need to pester the locals.” One among them, however, stumbles across some portion of the writings of Maia Reveron (Morgan le Fay?), cousin to Arthur McBride, as she relates who he was prior to politicking and how they ended up where they are now.

This book is filled with Arthurian easter eggs, and indicates that the creators have a close relationship with the original legends. It is, however, its own story, distinct and independent from that source material; this is not an Arthurian retelling that you’ve read before (trust me, I’ve read a few). The choice to update a classic and include political propaganda and futuristic spaces is a common technique, but not one I’ve experienced applied to this particular classic, and this book is working to find a good balance between its source material and the new content.

The greatest strength of this update is the art. Gabriel Hardman’s urban spaces combined with Jordan Boyd’s muted colors manage to convey something that is at once unknown and familiar, classic and futuristic, which is necessary for this book to succeed. The palette shift (as well as the lettering shift) that occurs with the flashback is bright and clean, and its contrast to the “modern” scenes point out just how far society has fallen; even when Maia and Arthur are poor, the sky is blue and the water is clear.

Not all of the Arthurian references are clear, especially to people who didn’t spend most of 4th grade avidly consuming every retelling they could get their hands on, and I’m not entirely sure where this story is going, but it’s strong and clever enough that I will absolutely be getting the next issue.

—

Katy Rex writes comics analysis at endoftheuniversecomics.com, comicsbulletin.com, and bloody-disgusting.com. She really likes butt jokes, dinosaurs, and killing psychos and midgets in Borderlands 2. She has a great sense of humor if you’re not an asshole.

Twitter: @eotucomics

Tumblr: katy-rex.tumblr.com

Email: katy@endoftheuniversecomics.com

Katy Rex

Click to comment

Comics

‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics

Published

6 days ago

April 18, 2024

Meagan Navarro

Witchblade, the popular comic series that initially ran from 1995 to 2015 and launched a TV series, is getting resurrected in a new comic series from Top Cow and Image Comics. It’s set to unleash heavy metal, black magic and blood this summer.

Look for the new Witchblade series to launch on July 17, 2024.

In Witchblade #1, “New York City Police Detective Sara Pezzini’s life was forever fractured by her father’s murder. Cold, cunning, and hellbent on revenge, Sara now stalks a vicious criminal cabal beneath the city, where an ancient power collides and transforms her into something wild, magnificent, and beyond her darkest imaginings. How will Sara use this ancient power, or will she be consumed by it?”

The series is penned by NYT Best-Selling writer Marguerite Bennett (Animosity, Batwoman, DC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide Squad, Power Rangers, Red Sonja). The creative duo is working with original co-creator Marc Silvestri, who is the CEO of Top Cow Productions Inc. and one of the founders of Image Comics. They are set to reintroduce the series to Witchblade’s enduring fans with “a reimagined origin with contemporary takes on familiar characters and new story arcs that will hook new readers and rekindle the energy and excitement that fueled the 90’s Image Revolution that shaped generations of top creators.”

Bennett said in a statement, “The ability to tell a ferocious story full of monsters, sexuality, vision, and history was irresistible.” She adds, “Our saga is sleek, vicious, ferocious, and has a lot to say about power in the 21st century and will be the first time that we are stopping the roller coaster to let more people on. I’ve loved Witchblade since I was a child, and there is truly no other heroine like Sara with such an iconic legacy and such a rich, brutal relationship to her own body.”

“The Witchblade universe is being modernized to reflect how Marguerite beautifully explores the extreme sides of Sara through memories, her personal thoughts, like desire and hunger, in her solitude and when she is possessed by the Witchblade. So, I had to visually intersect a noir True Detective-like world with a supernatural, horror world that is a fantastic mix between Berserk and Zodiac,” Cafaro stated.

Marc Silvestri notes, “This is brand new mythology around Sara, and I can’t wait for you to fall in love with her and all the twists and turns. Discover Witchblade reimagined this summer, and join us as we bring all the fun of the 90s to the modern age and see how exciting comics can be. I can’t wait for you to read this new series.”

Witchblade#1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17th, for $4.99 for 48 pages. And it’ll come with multiple cover variants.