Dynamite Entertainment 2017
Written by Marguerite Bennet & Christina Trujillo
Illustrated by Moritat & Dimi Macheras
Coloured by Moritat & Casey Silver
Lettered by Thomas Napolitano
Deep in the heart of the Amazon, Sheena acts as guardian and protector, defending her home from any threats that might dare present themselves. Without warning, the delicate balance of Sheena’s world is shattered forever by the arrival of an outside force greedy to get its hands on the ancient secrets the forest holds. Now Sheena must protect her home from a menace unlike anything she’s ever faced before—one threatening to tear the jungle apart from the outside...
After her people were threatened and her chief told her to stay her hand Sheena went off in search of the missing surveyor. Readers will know what happened to him but that's another thing, for her and now Sheena's about to meet someone else and mistake him for the man the company is looking for. There's something about the characterisation here that I both like and puzzles me at the same time and that's Sheena's aggressive behaviour. She's much angrier than I was expecting her to be and while I kind of like it, it doesn't seem like it's natural. While yes it would appear that she's tired of interlopers coming into her territory she has some anger issues.
Ah I do like how she cannot differentiate one Cowodi from another and that the young man she is interrogating here is the one with the flying turtles. It would seem the two of them are stumbling upon a mystery smack dab in the middle of her territory and one that could spell disaster for her and her people. The girls are weaving one heck of a tale here and between the incredible characterisation and the mystery of what happened in the temple which we kind of witnessed and this new one things in Sheena's world are going topsy turvy. With a corporation that is unyeilding in getting what they want added to the mix this is one that Sheena may not be able to handle.
I'm totally into the interior artwork here. The fact that they can make Sheena sexy without feeling like her outfit is exploitative but rather natural and powerful makes me happy as a clam. The way that page layouts are used through their angles and perspective showcase a great eye for storytelling. This jungle setting is great for using backgrounds and while I get that it might make the panels seem busy I would like to see more of them utilised. Then there are the animals we see and just how stunning they are represented in these pages.
With so much judgement and fans crying foul for a myriad of reasons, in my point of view made up and unnecessary, we are seeing a very strong and powerful woman leading this series. Her devotion to her people and the denizens of the jungle show how one can make a difference in their own community. Yes, sometimes she overreacts but then when faced with something so foreign to her it really isn't all that surprising. That the ladies here can demonstrate that here is a testament to how well they can collaborate on a story and implement it.
The pacing, story structure, development and level of ongoing characterisation here is a shining example of the type of reading that we love to see. This is dynamic, impactful and full of the things that make you sit up and take notice. The way that this story has such a natural feeling flow to it that it's believable is something that shouldn't be discounted.