Titan Comics 2017
Written by Michael Moreci
Illustrated by Andrea Olimpieri
Coloured by Mattia Iacono
Lettered by Jim Campbell
In the whaling city of Dunwall, Empress Jessamine Kaldwin was murdered by the infamous assassin, Daud, who also abducted her daughter, Emily. Emily’s father, Royal Protector Corvo Attano, set out after those who’d plotted against the Empress. Using the magic granted to him by the Outsider, a supernatural figure of legend, Corvo took down the traitors and returned young Emily to the throne.
Fifteen years later, the witch named Delilah Copperspoon usurped Emily’s throne with the aid of Duke Luca Abele. Visiting Emily as he had visited her father before, the Outsider appeared to the deposed empress and granted her his Mark. Emily defeated her enemies and trapped Delilah within an enchanted painting, reclaiming the Imperial Throne.
So this isn’t a sequel of the last arc per se as it is a continuation of what is happening in Dunwall. After the events of the last arc there was a lot of damage done and a great rebuilding is under way with Emily at the forefront. Though that doesn’t mean that everyone is happy about what’s happening there will always be those that are dissenters to those who are in power and in this issue we meet Archibald Wainright who wants sweeping reforms but doesn’t want to really sow the seeds of chaos. He sees this time as a good point to let the people start to have more say, see power, over what happens in this city. While it’s not an unheard of thing the role that Archibald will play moving forward is going to be pivotal to the storyline and I’ll be watching how his vision, what he wants to see the city turn into, changes or if it stays as it is now.
Now my one question is where is officer Cottings? I mean Corvo was the one who selected to train her and here he is with Emily so i’d really like to see what she’s up to and I hope she’s still his apprentice or at least still an officer. When the Empress and Corvo end up at crime scene I was hoping that was her but I can’t tell since her name wasn’t used but me talking about her right now represents the impact her character had on me and that is something all writers want to see that their work left an impact of that size.
While the interior artwork isn’t as detail oriented as I’d like it to be there is so much emotion and feeling in what we see that it more than makes up for that. The flow here is amazing and the highlights, see lighting through angles, can show the calmness of the situation and deftly move to horrific and downright frightening. All of these thing have to apply here too because while Emily and Corvo are trying to figure out who is attempting to sow the seeds of chaos by disrupting the rebuilding there’s also Archibald and his part of this that’s almost riotous as it is full of potential story. Andrea manages to really get us into this world and into the lives of these people.
I will say this Michael is weaving quite a tale here. Emily’s desire to be both and neither of her parents at the same time while trying to rebuild after all she’s seen is great. Creating someone to stand against her who is as unhinged and chaotic as she is good and focused is a brilliant way to go. Test her mettle and make her decide what’s best for the city she loves whether or not her own convictions are enough for her to keep the course she’s on steady. That we’re getting some “heavy” storytelling amidst some horrific and detailed action in the first issue alone sets the stage for what I expect out of the rest of the arc.
Titan has proven time and again that it can take these video games and turn them into stellar, gripping and complex tales. Honestly it almost makes me want a gaming system so that I can go get these games and play them just to see how they stack up against what we’ve been introduced to. I am enjoying immensely that Michael is able to bring us to this place, flesh out so it seems as real as possible and then find a way to put the reader in the story so they are invested in what happens.
With complex storytelling and eye catching interior artwork Dishonored is a series that captures the mind and imagination with it’s rich characters and exotic setting.