Ancient Enemies has already laid the building blocks for a larger narrative framework. In Ancient Enemies: The Djinni #1 — written by Dan DiDio and Kevin VanHook, with artwork from José Luis and Jonas Trindade, colors by Hi-Fi, and lettering by Pete Carlsson — the story explores the origin of Djinni, and how he ended up on Earth.
Ancient Enemies: The Djinni #1 kicks off with Zolan Commander Meesak Aturus crash-landing in the ocean. However, his body is engulfed by flames as his spaceship plummets through the atmosphere. Expecting treasure, Ahad Rivera swims out and grabs a hold of a magical jar cylinder that begins to encode as soon as he touches it. Rivera drowns as he tries to make it back to shore, so one of his cohorts dives into the ocean and retrieves the cylinder. When the crew opens the cylinder on shore, they’re blown away by what they discover, and swear to keep it a secret. DiDio and VanHook pen the perfect superhero origin, as Ancient Enemies: The Djinni #1 blends the best of Aquaman and Green Lantern — with a dash of magic — to excellent effect.
The writers use common themes of rebirth and escaping one’s past to great effect in this issue. However, it’s made clear that he will need to face Meesak’s past in order to build a new future. Surprisingly, they also don’t spend too much of the narrative on Meesak’s time as the Zolan Commander, only dedicating a few pages for exposition. It’s a shrewd move, leaving the reader wanting to know even more about Meesak and opening up the potential for further tangential stories. More importantly, it does what a spinoff should — filling in the missing gaps for the main story.
Luis and Trindade create a detailed and lush world in Ancient Enemies: The Djinni #1. Not only are the characters striking and well-drawn, but the designs for the scenery are beautiful. From the underwater scenes to the sweeping greens of the mountains, it’s easy to fall in love with this setting and all the tiny elements that bring it to life on the page.
Hi-Fi’s colors are equally important to the atmosphere. The colorist utilizes a superhero-inspired palette to paint the panels but also applies restraint to the sections that draw in the reader’s attention to the characters’ emotional expressions. Carlsson’s lettering remains fairly standard throughout the issue without overwhelming the reader with too many effects or drastic changes until the third act, where the letterer is able to be more expressive during action-packed moments.
Frank Miller Presents may have a good problem to solve after Ancient Enemies: The Djinni #1. It’s such a compelling origin that fans may demand to see even more of this character’s backstory in an ongoing solo series. There’s more to Djinni than meets the eye, and his story deserves to be told in the fullest.
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