Nathan Fairbairn is considered to be one of the top colorists in the comic industry. He has worked on every title ranging from the Avengers to Batman in the last 30 years. For the first time in his career he is not acting as the colorist but the writer in his very own creator owned comic: Lake of Fire. The comic focuses on the Albigensian Crusade and several knights investigating an attack on a village. The comic has a twist as this village was not attacked by people but rather by aliens that have crash-landed on earth. This kicks off a unique conflict between this group of knights and aliens in a setting that has never been explored before.
The Good:
Fairbairn and his co-creator Matt Smith truly bring a fresh concept of combining the Albigensian Crusade with the science fiction element of aliens. In particular, Fairbairn and Smith do an excellent job of establishing historical context as the Albigensian Crusade took place in Europe and were fought between Christians. The comic utilizes this as the setting as the fighting takes place in southern France. Many of the characters are based off of real people including Theobald and Montfort. The character Theobald is based off the real Nobel Theobald the III who was elected to be a leader in the 4th Crusade due to his strength and ability to command. Yet the comic has chosen to keep some of these traits, such as his strength, but they have made Theo less of a leader, as he has to learn those traits. The other character that is based off of a real person is Montfort who was a French warlord and leader during the Albigensian Crusade. The comic utilizes this information and makes him a king in the comic. Due to his experience in leadership he immediately recognizes that Theo will be a liability to him leading his army and sends him on a quest. Both characters show that Fairbairn and Smith have done their research to develop these characters and how they would react in various situations. The comic‘s introduction of aliens does an excellent job of not introducing any futuristic weapons or technology, but keeps them as foreign creatures. As a result, it allows for both sides to be equally powered as they come into conflict with one another. Finally, the comic does introduce a role reversal between the knights and the aliens. In many ways the aliens are acting like the crusaders as they have landed on earth. This generates irony as the knights are part of a crusading force yet are on the defensive from these alien creatures. This in many ways redefines what a crusading force can look and act like.
The Bad:
The comic is a slow burner, as a lot of background information needs to be set up before any action occurs. Some of this can be boring as it is a lot of introduction of people and their background, as well as the historical background of the time. The comic does have a learning curve as you need to be familiar with some aspects of the Albigensian Crusade to fully appreciate what the comic is attempting to achieve. The art of the comic is overall good but in some panels seems a bit rushed and repetitive as many of the same stock backgrounds, people, and colors tend to be used.
The Verdict :
It is clear that Fairbairn and Smith have done a great amount of research in creating this comic. In particular, capturing the historical context that the Albigensian Crusade provides in both land and people. Without a doubt this comic should be picked up for a variety of reasons, but the main reason is a fresh new idea of combining history with aliens to give birth to an alternative reality.
Lake of Fire is one interesting comic that can be picked up here.
