Sefettin Efendi Comics 2014
By Devrim Kunter
A-Demon-inbetween-the-seven-hills
Seyfettin Efendi is ordered to establish an organization to solve mysterious events. Their first case is to investigate a killer who slaughtered female victims and drank their blood in various parts of Istanbul. A secret organization also helps the killer.
I have never read a Turkish comic or a comic from Turkey, however that should sound heh. I absolutely LOVE when someone from another part of the world thinks that my point of view in reviewing stories is what they want. Also I have really come to love and appreciate seeing, reading and experiencing comics from all over the world and I feel honoured to be asked. Right now this is on ComiXology and you can get the first issue or all four it's up to you but I really, really think you ought to go out and get it. It has this feel of Sherlock Holmes merged with Crossing Lines which while not quite so modern it still feels fresh, new and somewhat innovative.
I found myself enthralled with the story here. The way that this is being told is brilliantly done and how we see the story & plot development through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information. There is something about Europe in general that lends itself to the occult and supernatural that get tied into history in ways that thrill us. So this has it roots in that world of the supernatural-esque thriller type of story and to see fact separated from fiction through the evidence presented is phenomenal. The character development is as maddening as it is interesting. Over the course of the four issues we get to see and learn not only their roles within the group but their distinctiveness that makes them easy to identify with or have harsher feelings for. The pacing for this is beautifully done as well as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists and turns along the way. Also the ending is fabulous as it suggests there will be future arcs, of which I am hoping to see one day, that may culminate in the reveal of the cabal.
So fans of the supernatural and fans of burgeoning teams in detection are going to love this series. It is so incredibly well crafted and told and our lead character Seyfettin is as frustrating and annoying and lovable as Sherlock is. I found myself in a world I wasn't familiar with but was left wanting to know more of it.
The interiors here are gorgeous! Now this is computer generated if I'm not mistaken. So the detail in the buildings and in the faces and facial expressions are completely captivating. Plus the upside as well is being able to blur the backgrounds so it has this natural effect that our eyes have. The linework is exquisitely rendered and how we see the utilisation of the page layouts as well as the angles and perspective in the panels show a magnificent eye for storytelling. Another thing that we see here is that with the backgrounds we see this depth perception, sense of scale and that overall sense of size and scope to the book. Plus the colour work is divine. How the hues and tones within the colours are utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work here is exceptional work. Then there is the aspect that I love seeing within the colour work and that is how the shading is utilised to create features, be it in the facial structure or the hands it doesn't matter how it is utilised for definition purposes is mindbogglingly good.
This is one of the most fascinating stories to cross my path. It is familiar yet fresh and new, the setting, the belief's and the overall way that this is brought to life has left me wanting more. If this is volume I dearly hope that over the years there have been two if not more volumes. You are going to love reading this story and that's just a fact.