Written by: Runberg
Illustrations: Boiscommun
Coloring: Boiscommun
Publisher: Le Lombard
Het Rijk #1 Het seizoen der demonen – Comic Book Review
According to many, the human race is heading towards extinction, be it by wars, the destruction of our planet and its resources, or simply because our time has come and it’s time for another entity to inherit our blue Earth. Sadly, it seems that our time has come in this new series, and animals have become the new rulers of our planet, albeit walking and talking versions of the animal kingdom we know. Even though this could have been the perfect reboot for Earth, it seems the animals are even more brutal than we were.
With the planet now being littered with the ruins of our human society, the animals inherited our traits, but not the perfect conditions we used to live in. It seems that our planet has turned into a barren shell, compared to the once luscious green forests and the serene rivers and oceans. Now, every year, the animals migrate towards a so called temple, which proves to be a safe haven against something called the ‘human gods’, which seemingly is a different name for different natural phenomena. Nonetheless, getting in the temple isn’t simple, as you’ll need a hefty amount of offerings to buy your way in. When one of the rich caravans is being pestered by bandits, three mercenaries, Isaac, Octavia and Pantacrius swoop in to save the nobles, and offer their continuous services if they are allowed to enter the temple as well. While the caravan agrees, an arduous journey awaits, with the human gods on their tails, as well as a horde of bandits.
The pace of this first album is rather rapid, as it’s pretty much all about the struggle of reaching the temple. This means there’s a lot of bloodshed and many battles along the way, as many animals are trying to steal offerings, hoping they can earn themselves a spot in the mysterious temple as well. You will hardly get any information about the main characters, but overall, for this first album, it’s not bothersome at all. Even though many plot points may prove to be a bit unclear or vague at the current time, Runberg makes it clear he has a dark story up his sleeve.
Illustration wise this album proves to be very interesting, as all drawings seem to be overexposed, extremely detailed and there is not a single dull picture to be found. Every race has its clear characteristics, and even among the same species, there’s still enough diversity to know who is who when reading through the album. The coloring is done in a paint-like fashion, which looks great for a story such as this, rather than the many bland computer generated colors we get to see in many comic books nowadays. Both the illustrations, as well as the coloring have been handled in a great fashion by Boiscommun.
Conclusion
Het Rijk #1 Het seizoen der demonen is a very interesting kickoff to a brand new comic book series. While there may be dozens of ‘end of the world’ stories, this one feels original, beautifully illustrated and it seems the series will have one hell of a story in store of us, even with the latter not being completely clear in this issue.
Het Rijk #1 Het seizoen der demonen - Comic Book Review,
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