Aftershock Comics 2017
Written & Lettered by Paul Allor
Illustrated by Chris Evenhuis
Coloured by Sjan Weijers
At the height of the Renaissance, warring factions vie for control of Leonardo da Vinci’s destructive arsenal. The only thing standing in their way is Leonardo’s young apprentice and her nine-foot tall mechanical bodyguard. Together, they navigate a world of wicked men and war machines, determined to save Leonardo from the world—and the world from Leonardo.
My first question is why does Leonardo have a female apprentice? Not only is that unusual in this era but he’s a notorious boy’s man though supposedly chaste probably from the Sodomy scare earlier in his life. Still his flamboyant style of dress throughout his lifetime and the fact that he had two very long-term male apprentices so yes I wonder why this time around a female? I’m sure Paul has a good reason for it but it just seems out of Leonardo’s character to me.
Now that I’ve said my piece on that let’s get to the issue at hand shall we. Oh I do so love how all men who are supposed geniuses all have that holier than thou. I get it it’s the right of the genius to get irritated with those of lesser intelligence and by all accounts he was Sherlock Holmes before there even was one. It doesn’t make him any less interesting and does however serve to allow Paul for some wonderful opportunities in the characterisation department. From what we already see here he is maddeningly adept at what he does and it’s a joy to see.
This is such a rich time in history let alone Italian history with the Church on one side and the Medici’s on the other all vying for control of the region. With Leonardo caught in the middle and both sides wanting him to make his glorious weapons of war for them. It is a perfectly reasonable thing for both sides to expect the real question is who’s trying to force him into service and who’s willing to pay for it? Also I do like that we see him trying to draw a heart as we see him for the first time that and his unhappiness in what it looks like. Then to see him in action for the first time and I have to admit I may think this could be better than Da Vinci’s Demons.
Well I have to say that I am digging the artwork here as Chris’s attention to detail is gorgeous! I like that Sjan uses the colour palate that would be associated with him and the purple is both royal and oh so gay. Though where are are his short pants and stockings that were the style of young men in those days? Still I like what we see as Chris utilises page layouts with their angles and perspective showing off a good solid eye for storytelling. When backgrounds are used they are fantastic and the little intricacies about them make the page sing.
Paul has this really nice way of blending history and fantasy here and while the setting may be accurate but the inventions not entirely. Still if anyone of this era could recreate a working golem made of wood by using wheels and gears it would be Da Vinci. His assistant on the other hand well she may or may not have her own agenda in all this and it would seem that everything will come at Leonardo from all sides. It will be all about how Leonardo can unravel what’s going on around him and stay alive and in the good graces of all involved.