Titan Comics/Ubisoft 2018
Story Concept by Anne Toole & Anthony Del Col
Written by Anthony Del Col
Story Consultant: Ann Lemay
Illustrated by PJ Kaiowa
Colourd by Dijjo Lima
Lettered by Comicraft
With the city of Rome as her new base of operations, Aya has already enlisted the help of a number of like-minded individuals to her cause, including the senators Brutus and Cassius. But following the assassination of the power-hungry dictator Julius Caesar, Aya and her new allies have plunged Rome into even further turmoil. Now a prisoner of Caesar's ally Mark Antony, Aya prepares for what may possibly be her final judgement…
The realisation came to me that video games are just techno geeks way of improving Dungeons & Dragons. In each case you have to take your idea, build your world, classes, character types, skill sets and so on and so forth. I can’t believe I didn’t see the correlation sooner but hey I don’t really play video games and the first ones I did back in the 80’s were never this complex as what we see now. Realising all this now kind of makes me want to play if I am to be honest. There is a major difference however and that’s game developers create this but at the same time they don’t flesh it out. The backstory as it were, the creation idea none of that is public knowledge. That’s where the utilisation of story arcs like this one come into play.
Here we get to see someone take that idea of how it all began and bring it to life. Every story has a beginning or there wouldn’t be on at all. So that Ann was available to work with Anthony and Anne to really give this the authenticity to the game franchise and the version of the game which is going to be released. This is how you merge franchises so that both can stand alone with incredible ease and yet also compliment each other and get you excited for the future. Plus not only is the location and era in which this is set so fascinating to so many people but it also very much as the feel of today’s action adventure films.
The way that this is structured is utterly brilliant. The ebb & flow here is superb and there is a moment when we see the arena used in ways that were done back that but not what is typically shown in today’s world. It is a fantastic touch and uses the arena and the area to it’s utmost making it feel as real as it possible. The authenticity brings something to the fantasy of the story that cannot be replaced or counted out. It really has the whole impact needed to really delve into the roots.
I do very much like the interior artwork here. The linework is manipulated beautifully between soft and hard to really bring the eye into focus while also still having this amazing effect on the attention to detail. The utilisation of page layouts is so gosh darn good and the way we see the angles and perspective in the panels shows off a bloody marvellous eye for storytelling. Also the fashions and the realistic nature of the life forms we see here compliment everything. Then of course the way backgrounds are utilised fit the moments and expand them so well.
While this is at it’s core an origin story about the organisations and of course Aya’s ideals and how she comes to the see world but it’s also a story about actions and consequences. The idea of spur of the moment or not thinking long term about something is detrimental and no amount of acrobatic or killing ability can fix. It is ground breaking, exciting and thrilling adventure story who’s ramifications are only just beginning.