Story by Michael Le Galli
Art by Francis Manapul
Seven Warriors, a historical fantasy tale set in the fictional north-African kingdom of N’nas Amon during the middle ages, begins at the fall of the capitol city of Tamasheq. Queen Tsin’inan recruits a crew of six female Sarmatian warriors to escort her son to the hidden city of Jabbaren, away from the danger of the impending war.
Amongst all of the historical references and abundance of apostrophes, Seven Warriors is a simple adventure tale. Le Galli laces the story with excessive dialogue at times, spending a few too many words explaining somewhat straightforward situations. The book begins on a sex-scene that the writing in the book never adequately explains, relying on artwork that doesn’t fully clarify its place in the story. The story picks up pace once the introduction to the world is handled, but perhaps not enough. The end of the book feels forced, ending in a cliffhanger that creeps up almost as an afterthought.
Francis Manapul’s art is strong throughout, evoking Michael Turner-esque style of his Aspen and Top Cow roots. The story is as much about its environments as its characters, and Manapul doesn’t skimp. From the ancient city of N’nas Amon to an alpine snowscape to a long-forgotten underground passage, the book’s environments are given solid attention to detail. Unfortunately it’s sometimes difficult differentiate some of the characters, leading to the aforementioned confusion regarding the book’s opening.
It is of note that the book is also presented in a strange square format, reminiscent of Archaia books like Mouse Guard, but still printed at standard size. This leads to large bars of blank white at the top and bottom of every page, almost like letterboxing, and feels like a lot of wasted space.
The last few pages of Seven Warriors can be forgiven when taken as a set piece in a larger tale. Although this wasn’t the strongest first issue, there’s potential for a fun medieval adventure if the right beats are put in place.
