
Top Cow Productions 2017
Written by Paul Jenkins
Illustrated by Hendry Prasetya
Coloured by Jessica Kholinne
Lettered by Jaka Ady
Confronted on one side by revolutionaries and coerced into service by the Rulers on the other—Seneca walks the digital city of Delphi in search of clues. But when the leads dry up, he is forced into visiting the one place he had sworn he would never return to: the Church of the Trinity, the very place he is investigating. There is no one to trust. There is nowhere to escape. There is nothing for him but the upheaval of all he has ever known.
I am really enjoying this story and the way it says that regardless of the religion you follow you’ll be required to either fully commit or be the enemy. Apollo is a manipulating son of a bitch and the more that Seneca is exposed to all this the more he’s coming to realise that perhaps he and his life are being used in ways that have taken away his free will. At least I hope he’s starting to see that because I certainly do.
The way Paul is telling this story is pretty damn fantastic. The way the book is structured so we learn a thing or two, there and everywhere is nicely done. The ebb & flow feels right and has this incredible ease to it that lets you get caught up in it before you realise it’s happened. Then there is the characterisation which is stellar. I like seeing the detective in Seneca being used as he processes information. He really is in the precarious place where thanks to technology Apollo knows pretty much his every move and he has to work within his conscience without letting it show that he’s conflicted. I’m not sure if this is what Paul’s doing but it is what appears to me.
I am a fan on Hendry’s I have been since I first saw his work. He has this absolutely fabulous eye for storytelling and the attention to detail he brings to the page is pretty much perfection. The way he utilises page layouts as seen through the angles and perspective in panels is another great example of his ability to tell the story. Then there are the little things, the lollipop and when we see the city outside the window of his apartment show how important using backgrounds can be to enhance a story and give the reader perspective.
So there are multiple parts to this story that makes a little more unique than what we are used to seeing these days. There’s the whole deal with Seneca’s faith, past, present and future after learning so much here. The Trinity Church and the Greek Gods vying for the attention and souls of it’s constituents in ways that we all too often see. The “resistance” or freedom fighters depending on the point of view. All of these factions are pulling at him in different ways and that is among some of the more interesting things we see.
This is also a story where the interiors are as important to the storytelling as the words and that they work in such concert with one another gives the book a feel like it’s on a whole other level. I mean hell on earth the way we see them, Apollo and Seneca, in the stream feels like something out of a video game with the swirling lights, Jessica has really outdone herself with this series.
I like Apollo’s veiled threats and insinuations that he knows more about what Seneca is up to and where he is at all times. I’m thoroughly intrigued by the notion of Apollo and I’m dying to see what lies beneath the mask. Paul manages to weave an astronomical story here with multiple parts all moving at the same time, connecting to each other while remaining separate as well.
Top Cow is home to some of the most unusual, familiar and outstanding storytelling on stands these days and they just keep pushing the envelope causing everyone else to catch up.