Behemoth Entertainment 2021
Written by Massimo Rosi
Illustrated by Ramiro Borrallo
Bakari has dedicated his life to protecting Sabium, the last albino rhinoceros on planet Earth. Sabium is continually hunted due to his genetic code holding the power to regenerate man. After the events of issue two, in which Bakari faced death head on and Sabium was captured, Bakari is found by an old shaman and taken to a nearby village to heal.
This is such a wonderfully powerful story. We’ve seen Massimo nail horror and science fiction but now he shows just how diverse his writing and creativity can be with this dramatic story. I’m continually surprised and impressed with the level of talent that Massimo has and this single issue is a great vehicle for that. As Bakari has to tell about himself, we learn about his past and the tragedy that happened as well as how he avoids the fate of his people while we see Sabium going through what he does. It's just gut wrenching. Sure there are mechanical pieces to some of the folks we see and there’s an element of a future that’s harsh and worrisome but at its core this is a story about love, loyalty and friendship and it’s amazingly well written that will continue to hit you in the feels from start to finish.
I’m a huge fan of the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the narration, the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances which they encounter does a magnificent job in bringing out these diverse personalities. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages revealing the story we’re engaged, enraged and ever more invested in the story.
I’m really very impressed with the way that we see this being structured and how the layers within the story continue to emerge, grow, evolve and strengthen. I’m also liking the way that we see the layers within the story open up new avenues to be explored. Whether these avenues are explored or not they all add this great depth, dimension and complexity to the story. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward are impeccably handled.
I’ll tell you what the interiors here are pretty impressive as well. The linework is clean, crisp and sharp and along with how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to bring out the detail within the work that we see is exceptionally rendered. While the humans have a decidedly different approach to how we see them Sabium is an absolute dream to see come to life. There is just something about the way he looks and especially later on in the issue that just seems to perfectly compliment what we need to feel at that moment. The backgrounds enhance and expand the moments beautifully and they work within the composition of the panels to bring out the depth perception, sense of scale as well as the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkable eye for storytelling. The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work we see shows a great understanding for how colour works.
This book will surprise you by just how well the story is being told. With the introduction of new characters we learn new information and it takes the story to new heights and even new lows. I’m in literal awe of this story and what we see within these pages. The writing is exemplary, the characterisation is intense and interesting while the interiors really bring the emotions and feeling straight into the reader.