Yi Soon Shin: Warrior and Defender #4
Publisher: Onrie Kompan Productions
Writers: Onrie Kompan & David Anthony Kraft
Artist: Giovanni Timpano
Cover: Joel Saaverdra
Yi Soon Shin’s men have won a victory, but the retreating Japanese troops have been convinced by Baron Seo to attack again and catch their enemy off guard. Admiral Yi’s men are currently celebrating, but his highly respected Lieutenant lets jealousy get in his way and sours the mood. This forces the Admiral to agree to a very brutal punishment to be carried out immediately. Amidst all of this there is treachery and more infighting that threatens to destroy the Korean Navy from the inside. To make matters worse, he is also going up against General Wakizaka Yasuharu, who recently defeated 50,000 Korean soldiers with his army of only 1500 and has never lost a battle.
This is the issue that wraps up all of the historical coolness that Onrie and his creative team have put together since the series began. The writing continues to bring a depth to these historical figures and events that does nothing less than keep you immersed in the story. At no point does this become some stale and boring account as the pacing is executed with finesse from the battles to the few quieter moments that take place. What also makes this a very compelling read is that a lot of it seems to be about the people that surround Yi as well as the circumstances that push him to make the decisions for the sake of his homeland. There doesn’t seem to be one member in the ensemble of characters that is written as filler, and all are just as interesting to learn about as Yi himself.
Timpano continues to deliver some of the best looking panels in this series, and there’s nothing I like more than a consistently good artist. The quality is only heightened by the colors of Adriana De Los Santos, as well. The talking stillborn baby Yi sees in flashes continues to creep me out, and the graphic nature of the battles is just awesome. There were a couple of close ups that seemed to be distracting, but overall this is one excellent looking book.
Though this is the end of Warrior and Defender, this is NOT the end of the series. This is the first in a trilogy that will continue the story of Yi Soon Shin which I am very much looking forward to. For those in search of a comic where the art and story are both great, or if you’re just the fan of the occasional historical account, I suggest picking up Yi Soon Shin: Warrior and Defender either in single issues or the upcoming hardcover!
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I should kick myself for not buying the previous issues from the dude at NYCC… 🙁
Now you’ve just got a reason to pick up the hardcover! 🙂
@Billy, Have no fear, I will be at many different conventions this year including NYCC!
Loving this so far! That HC will definitely be on my shelf. A historical book that is interesting and very well done.
Whoa! Thanks dude! I’m probably not going to hit NYCC this year, but Baltimore instead. I’ll definitely have the HC on my to get list though!
@Billy, I’ll be at Baltimore this year too!