Zenescope Entertainment 2019
Story by Dave Franchini & Howard Mackie
Written by Howard Mackie
Illustrated by Babisu Kourtis
Coloured by Juan Manuel Rodriguez
Lettered by Taylor Esposito of Ghost Glyph Studio
Robyn Locksley is back in New York and looking to return to her normal life. She soon learns this won’t be possible when she finds herself entangled in a new mystery that pits her against her greatest adversary yet.
One of the great things about Zenescope and how they publish their stories is that each arc is it’s own entity that while tying it into the past and the universe they are in, each one is still new reader friendly. Also at some point in time, probably when Pat was writing her adventures, Robyn has become the pre-eminent character at Zenescope. For me this is freakin wonderful because she has a history, she’s a serious woman with serious attitude and we’ve seen her grow and evolve with each story arc that comes out.
The idea behind this story is almost as old as time and yet it’s also a tried and true one so I mean that it works rather effectively given the right person telling the story. Howard is that person to take what he and Dave came up with and flesh it out and bring it to life. The way this is structured is exceptionally well done. From the opening page through to the last what we see, learn and know is put to the test in ways that are thrilling, exciting and puzzling. These folks really took me there with this issue as it really is powerfully written and illustrated and I am so not kidding about the punch it packs.
The world that Robyn inhabits is by far different from any other title in the Zenescope library as she has amassed some truly memorable and horrific enemies. Cabal’s, secret societies and those genetically different from humanity all have crossed her path and she’s survived each encounter while managing to disrupt plans and saving the world. This makes her more unique than people expect and at the same time she proves that a person carrying a bow and arrows can make for one of the most exceptional characters around. While DC and Marvel have their own archers their stories cannot compare with the way we see Robyn’s interaction with her world.
The interiors here are utterly sensational. I praised the work he did in Paradise Court but this exceeds that by miles. From the opening page you know we’re in for something amazing and the way that the linework is utilised through it’s varying weights to create this absolutely stunning attention to detail well hot-damn you absolutely beautiful man. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels shows off a superb eye for storytelling. So I made comments about how we need more backgrounds and this shows us why. The way they are utilised shows off the size and scope of the book as well fleshing out these moment perfectly and truly giving us this sense of being in the moment. I still can’t over how the linework brings the characters and settings bring this to life I’m in this place of pure awe. Then there’s the colour work by Juan and I'll be damned if it does just complete the visuals spectacularly. The light sources and use of shading and colour gradation is stellar work.
This is amazing pure and simple. The writing is something to behold as we see how plot & story development, pacing and characterisation are utilised to move the story forward. Then add in the work done on the interiors that you cannot take your eyes off of and you’ve got all the makings of slam dunk here. This is storytelling at it’s best, it’s a reminder of what’s possible in this medium when you have this passion and talent for storytelling that you want to share with the world.