Top Cow Productions/Image Comics 2017
Written by Marc Bernardin & Adam Freeman
Illustrated by Rosi Kampe
Coloured by Brad Simpson
Lettered by Troy Peteri
Seventeen-year-old Destiny Ajaye took on the LAPD in her South Central Siege and paid for it—not with her life, but with her freedom. Now, Destiny is sequestered in the Madrasa Institute, a government school for prodigies. But will she use her gifts to wage war at the military's behest—or is she already planning another revolution?
I’m thrilled and a little disappointed, thrilled because the first arc was incredibly awesome, disappointed because Afua isn’t illustrating this one. Rosi is really a talented artist but my mind associates this with Afua. So other than that let’s get on with why this is indeed a worthy successor to the first arc.
What Marc and Adam do with this issue is very intriguing. They take Destiny from the end of the first arc and into this one beautifully. Love her attitude and how she’s still this standoffish young woman who thinks she’s above reproach. It’s this attitude of hers that will undoubtedly get her into more trouble than she’d ever bargain for and it’s also what i’m dying to see. Let’s face it we want to see people like her either shine or fall depending on our mood and in this case it’s going to be a roller coaster ride of ups and downs in regards to her and how we see her. This is the kind of characterisation that you just don’t see and it’s so gosh darn good.
Rosi and Brad do some really nice work on the interiors here. The way page layouts are used through their angles and perspective are great for the flow of the story. The attention to detail here in the linework is nice to see and enhances the look of the book. The emotion and feeling we get off facial expressions is well done. Backgrounds here they are basic but effective and they need more because it really helps to solidify what’s going on in the pages.
I’m going to use an analogy here it’s like Destiny is a wild horse that needs to be broken. They are treating her like an animal and it’s both fascinating and horrifying at the same time. This kind of government subterfuge of being able to take someone fake their death and conscript them into service against their will is a slippery slope. Destiny really has no choice in the long run but to cooperate and it’s ruffles her feathers and that is wonderful to see.
This went in a direction that I was wholeheartedly surprised to see. It’s dynamic, interesting and full of moments that set the stage for what’s to come. They’ve raised the bar here in terms of what the story is capable of and of Destiny herself. I love strong women who have brains and are unafraid to be who they are and Destiny steals the show with all that and more.