ECCLESIA (Comic Review)

Ecclesia is an action, supernatural mystery comic by the publisher scourge comics. It's available on galatoons. Created and written by Saint-Verlaine, illustrated by Uzochukwu Justin Ozurumba. Ecclesia is one of those few comics that takes a different direction from the usual Nigerian comics that are popular out there. More often than not, we’ve seen comic creators go the route of superheroes or ancient myths with gods and warriors. That out of the way, let's just quickly look at the synopsis here as written in the comics.

“AD 53, The First Church was established. People all over the world at the time flocked to be partakers of the new Uprising. A year later, Nero became the Emperor in Rome. Notorious for his debauchery and criminality, he set out to exterminate the "Threats" to his Empire -The First Church, called ECCLESIA.

The intense and brutal persecution led to the dispersion of the members of the Church around the globe, springing forth generations after generations of descendants of the First Church. Every half a Millennium since the establishment of the First Church, A Persecution Cycle arises and a wave of Descendants to oppose it. 1,968 years have passed since the establishment of the First Church and an unusual Nexus triggers the beginning of a new Persecution Cycle. One that involves the premature calling of the young descendants. A modern day calling of the ECCLESIA.”

From the synopsis it looks like the story is going to be about the church and its priests. And how they deal with different supernatural forces. So far into issue one (only one issue is out as of the time of this review is published), the plot follows the Komolafe’s family whose son is plagued by violent vivid nightmares of a demon. They start seeking for a solution to help end the nightmares which leads them to the church, Ecclesia. At this point it's good to mention that the plot so far takes place in Lagos, Nigeria. Perhaps some other location might be introduced within Nigeria later. Also, while this is purely a work of fiction, I don't think I know any church in Lagos that goes by that name, but I digress. Now back to the story, the priest at the Ecclesia church in Lagos begins the exorcism of the Komolafe's boy but little did they know there is a higher power and orchestration at play with a consequence that reveals itself at another branch of the church in another location in Europe. This signals the end of Issue one, and it ends on an intriguing note.

Now, if I were to take a guess, and if Ecclesia is not a limited-edition comic, I’d say the first arc of the story will primarily focus on the Komolafe family and their child's demon. In the first issue, we also see an unnamed priest who leads the exorcism, and I believe he will be the main character of this comic series. I mean, he's on the front cover of the first issue, so that's a no-brainer. His character feels stoic, with battle scars that hint at his past exorcisms. The issue doesn’t reveal much about him, but I believe we will get to know him better as the story progresses.

The tone of the story is dark, serious, and violent, with intense imagery, definitely not a comic for kids. I like the plot so far, and I’m intrigued by the fact that we don’t often see Nigerian comics explore themes like religion and the supernatural.

As for the art style, I’m not a full specialist when it comes to art, but so far, it’s decent and consistent enough.

Ecclesia Issue One does what any good first issue should, just like the pilot of a TV series, it introduces us to a world that is familiar, yet mysterious and intriguing. It doesn’t give away too much about its world and characters, keeping readers hooked. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on this one.