For the Iron Crown – review of the comic book “Oath”, vol. 1

Lost in Time has released some interesting fantasy comics, such as Arawna and The World of Drift . Is the Oath , the latest comic of this genre, able to compete with the brilliant Mask of Fudo , worthy of being called the best comic of 2022 in my opinion?

 

The extraordinary kingdom of the Sons of Earth

I didn’t have high expectations for the Oath . I was just expecting a solid fantasy story, that’s it and that’s it. Meanwhile, I got a suspenseful story, full of sudden twists, where the corpse is densely littered, and revolts break out one after the other. Not only that, in this short volume I received an overview of the entire universe (thanks to the additions, I found out how extensive and vital this world is). So what is the Oath about ?? Well, I have a problem where to start. I should probably mention the creation of this universe. First, five Powers appeared in the world, which took physical shape after the birth of man. And so, apart from people, there were Giants, Dragons, Mermaids, Fairies and even Angels around the world. These first creatures in particular have contributed to civilization by building four cities. Then there was a conflict between two groups of people led by two powers, i.e. Dragons and Giants. After this conflict, all these amazing creatures died out or went into hiding. So much information is contained in the one-page Song of Afenor. And so a thousand years passed. The main part of the plot begins with the wedding of Kiriel to the daughter of King Garantiel. After him, the spouses are to go to the White Tower, their fiefdom. Thanks to this, the king strengthens his power in this region, because there are attacks on convoys. Kiriel is to meet, among others, the ruler of the adjacent province. In the end, it all comes together pretty quickly. It is enough to mention that on the way to the White Tower the hero is attacked by robbers. Only thirty pages have been described, and I still haven’t mentioned many details.The oath is a very complex story. While reading it, I felt like I was missing something all the time. I still have the impression that while many cards have been revealed, there are still many fascinating secrets to be revealed. This universe has a colorful and interesting history! It is a pity that the authors will provide so little information about the events that took place during the more than a thousand-year history of the Kingdom of the Sons of Earth.

Dragons, Giants, Angels, Fairies, Mermaids and People

The world presented in The Oath is undoubtedly extensive and fascinating. There are three volumes in this omnibus edition. The first focuses on the character of Kiriel, and at the same time on the political situation in the kingdom. And right from the start, there’s a lot of shuffling. Characters who seemed to have a bigger role to play… are lost. The most interesting solution was to devote the entire second volume to the Drekkar, people associated with Dragons. To facilitate communing with their interesting culture, there is a glossary at the end with the most important terms, including a description of their caste system.

There are quite a few characters in this comic book. Each plays an important role in the story, and has been given due prominence. In addition to Kiriel, the Hegemon of the Drekkar draws special attention, as he is fighting a private battle not only with his political rival, the Lawgiver, but also with the Emperor himself, or rather with the people behind his back! In this conflict, there is also the theme of the Riddraks, nomadic tribes enslaved by the Drekkar. I go through this comic over and over again and there is so much fascinating content here that I really don’t know what else to mention without spoiling this epic adventure for someone. Finally, I will add that beyond such mundane issues as struggles between rulers, rebellions and conspiracies on the horizon, there is also a much greater threat looming in the background. I’m genuinely intrigued

The charms of underground Farkas

When you open the comic, your attention is drawn to a beautiful map of the world showing the three main provinces of the Kingdom of the Sons of Earth. My eyes were also drawn to the armor of the Drekkar, which resembles the armor of a samurai. It is worth noting that the artist was economical in the use of colors, we have something like sepia here. And honestly, it has its own unique charm. It is a pity, however, that more boards were not devoted to presenting the great battle that took place at the end of this volume. A certain drawback is also a slight chaos, the plot moves forward quite quickly, and the jumps between frames sometimes throw me off balance. Sometimes there was no fluidity in the transitions from one place to another. The edition, however, surprises with rich additions. Attention is drawn not only to the world map or several pages devoted to the Drekkar culture, but also a detailed description of the battle with the presentation of all phases of the course of the clash. Fifty years after this battle, which changed the distribution of power on the continent, this is a story-wise material. These add-ons do a brilliant job! If I had to complain about something, it would be two minor typos. In addition, the course of the battle in the materials does not bind me a bit with what I saw in the comic book frames. In addition, the description on the back cover is wrong, because the sentence “For them the Powers were only a legend” is not true. The Sons of Earth know that Dragons exist and the Giants have built four cities. They are also aware of the existence of Angels and their people using flying machines. Fifty years after this battle, which changed the distribution of power on the continent, this is a story-wise material. These add-ons do a brilliant job! If I had to complain about something, it would be two minor typos. In addition, the course of the battle in the materials does not bind me a bit with what I saw in the comic book frames. In addition, the description on the back cover is wrong, because the sentence “For them the Powers were only a legend” is not true. The Sons of Earth know that Dragons exist and the Giants have built four cities. They are also aware of the existence of Angels and their people using flying machines. Fifty years after this battle, which changed the distribution of power on the continent, this is a story-wise material. These add-ons do a brilliant job! If I had to complain about something, it would be two minor typos. In addition, the course of the battle in the materials does not bind me a bit with what I saw in the comic book frames. In addition, the description on the back cover is wrong, because the sentence “For them the Powers were only a legend” is not true. The Sons of Earth know that Dragons exist and the Giants have built four cities. They are also aware of the existence of Angels and their people using flying machines. In addition, the course of the battle in the materials does not bind me a bit with what I saw in the comic book frames. In addition, the description on the back cover is wrong, because the sentence “For them the Powers were only a legend” is not true. The Sons of Earth know that Dragons exist and the Giants have built four cities. They are also aware of the existence of Angels and their people using flying machines. In addition, the course of the battle in the materials does not bind me a bit with what I saw in the comic book frames. In addition, the description on the back cover is wrong, because the sentence “For them the Powers were only a legend” is not true. The Sons of Earth know that Dragons exist and the Giants have built four cities. They are also aware of the existence of Angels and their people using flying machines.

Is it worth getting the Iron Crown?

I didn’t have high expectations for The Oath , I expected a nice fantasy story, and I got a phenomenal comic that reminds me of Game of Thrones. I’m really into this story and I can’t wait for the next part. I could write a lot more about this comic because it has such rich juicy content. I encourage all fantasy lovers to read this comic book. All the characters are alive, interesting, have their own motivations, goals, and each faction has its reasons. I’m intrigued to see how this will all play out: who will take over the Iron Crown, where Kiriel is going, and whether the Hegemon’s dream can come true… I’d like to see volume two coming later this year! And to answer the question asked at the beginning, after reading The Oath, I thought that this could be the comic book of 2023 for me. It is true that in the coming months everything can change, but for me this position deserves to stand next to the equally phenomenal Fudo Mask. Undoubtedly, the Lost in Time publishing house has a nose for comic gems.