Death by Life #1

Death by Life #1

Antarctic Press 2021

Written by Anthony Zicari

Illustrated by Claudio Sepúlveda

The long Angelic Wars are over, but Death has been allowed to keep his powers to do his job, though under the watchful eye of the archangel Miridia. However, with empathy and other moral values at an all-time low, Death finds himself actually bored and fed up with his work. Then an event occurs that causes Death to feel something new to him: the touch of the living. The ramifications could shake the very foundations of existence!

When I saw this cover I knew right then and there I needed to know more about this book. I am so glad that I read this too because this is way beyond interesting and delves into such a touchy subject that I couldn’t believe found its way into a comic book. The best part about this though is the fact that it isn’t preachy or anything it used this situation as a catalyst for Death and the next stage of what he’s going to go through and I thought that this was done exceptionally well. This book took me by surprise and Anthony really made a spectacular impression upon me.

The way this is being told is pretty damn impressive. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information is presented exceptionally well. I like that Death bemoans his position now and how we see the result of what happens should he touch someone, oh and his love of Babe Ruth Bars. The character development is phenomenal and through his own words we get to know Death better than you’d ever think you could. I found myself actually feeling for him and feeling sorry for him as well as empathise with him as we’ve all wondered what our purpose in life is. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the issue revealing the story we’re treated to one of the more interesting and fascinating stories around!

How we see this being structured and how the layers within the story emerge, I mean Miridia and her keeping an eye on him--oy very i’d slap her, we get a better sense of what’s going on. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as it moves the story forward is spectacular.

The interiors here are really gorgeous. Not the same quality as the cover but they are in a league of their own nonetheless. The linework is stellar and through its varying weights and techniques in laying it down we see some absolutely stupendous attention to detail being brought out. That backgrounds are utilised as they are not only enhance the moments but they also provide us with some excellent depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a really spectacular eye for storytelling. The colour work is really well rendered also. How the various hues and tones within the colours are being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work is exquisite. The hues in the blues are just so vibrant and alive and to see death the way we do with the colours and imagery is just mind numbing in its beauty.

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I keep telling you that Antarctic Press has some of the best books that you aren’t aware of. I am here to tell you that this needs to be on your radar because this is an extremely well written story that engages the reader on levels you can’t explain and have to experience it to understand. I think I might love Death at this point and that’s not really something I thought i’d ever say in my lifetime. Do yourself a favour and find this book, order if you have to but get a copy and let me know what you think. If you don’t like i’d consider buying it from you.