#NewReview: Why ‘New Masters’ is the freshest comic book of 2022 so far

A recommendation from a friend led me to discover a comic book that’s both thought-provoking and great fun while being an intricately-woven yarn. And that’s just what can fit into this intro!

By Abdulkareem Baba Aminu

The story opens with the following lines: ‘1124 Post Adventu, a few miles East of the Kainji Mines, deep into the Eko Exclusion Zone’. And that’s when we meet Ola, a spunky tech-enhanced teen accompanied by a droid called Àṣẹ. She’s slid down a cable to scavenge but instead finds what could be a large deposit of raw Obsidium, a crucial mineral that has all kinds of individuals in hot pursuit. I immediately fell in love with the characters, but it becomes absolute when the droid asks our heroine if she would like it to “Initiate the pick-race protocol”. The Nigerian in me went ‘squee!’ even as I became even more excited for what was to follow. (Note: For non-Nigerians, to ‘pick-race’ means to run away, or to flee a situation or an individual out of one’s league)

Ola soon tries to offload her precious find, and in the process, we meet some of the most colorful characters I’ve come across since the original Star Wars trilogy or Nnedi Okorafor’s spectacular ‘LaGuardia’ graphic novel. A shifty suya seller-cum-black market dealer, a high-powered committee consisting of humans and aliens, or a couple made up of a Yemi Alade-esque fashionista and a lover from literally another world. It has such a varied cast of characters that a traditional comic book reader might feel overwhelmed. To me though, it was a perfectly-built world, populated by the most realistic characters I’ve come across in science fiction in a long time.

What’s a futuristic yarn set in Nigeria without Lagos, the city we all love and hate in equal measure? Not to mention cameos by Hausa words like ‘Tozo’ when Ola barters for a bit of Suya at Yaba Market, or an earlier-mentioned exclamation of ‘Shaege’ (a corruption of ‘bastard’, weirdly also used to denote chronic badassery).

Also, what’s a futuristic yarn set in Nigeria without Lagos, the city we all love and hate in equal measure? Not to mention cameos by Hausa words like ‘Tozo’ when Ola barters for a bit of Suya at Yaba Market, or an earlier-mentioned exclamation of ‘Shaege’ (a corruption of the Hausa word for ‘bastard’, weirdly also used to denote chronic badassery). Then the cherry – or cherries – on this layered cake: Views of Eko City itself, as well as the slums of Makoko, still sinking even in this far-flung future.

This, the first story arc, is called ‘The Eye of Orunmila’ in reference to a massive status quo-changing trove of knowledge that will change the universe. It also appears to be the chief McGuffin of the story, driving the story forward so well that the following chapters almost have no choice but to follow suit. This brings me to the writing by Shobo Coker, one half of the duo of Nigerian brothers who created this masterpiece, deft in its delivery of character beats, and in its layering of fantastical sci-fi backdrops. The dialogue flows in such an organic way that one could easily forget he is reading a comic book. One word: Bravo.

One minute it looks stark and glisteningly computer-generated a la ‘Blade Runner’, the next it’s as organic and unsettling as some of the most masterful watercolour work currently being done in the medium, a la the production design of Denis Villeneuve’s ‘Dune’ film.

The art, by Shof Coker, is the work of an accomplished illustrator. One minute it looks stark and glisteningly computer-generated a la ‘Blade Runner’, the next it’s as organic and unsettling as some of the most masterful watercolor work currently being done in the medium, a la the production design of Denis Villeneuve’s ‘Dune’ film. Even the lettering is kinetically charged and is part of the artistry which graces the pages of this beautiful comic book. There are also locales as many as they are far-flung from each other, and a distinct and deliberately-done combination of the familiar and the futuristic. One word: Bravo, also.

PR material says it is ‘A vision of West Africa under the thumb of alien colonizers’, wherein ‘A motley crew of outcasts finds themselves caught up in a power struggle for control of an ancient artifact with immense power’. The comic book is also described as ‘A ground-breaking blend of science fiction, adventure, drama, and vibrant Afrofuturism’. I totally agree, even if the correct term is ‘Africanfuturism’, but that’s a fight for another day.

The comic book is also described as ‘A ground-breaking blend of science fiction, adventure, drama, and vibrant Afrofuturism’. I totally agree, even if the correct term is ‘Africanfuturism’, but that’s a fight for another day.

While I’ll be first in line for the inevitable trade paperback edition, something tells me that by the time my mini reading marathon is done, I will have learned more about the world’s present problems in this futuristic tale than anything else. Right now, I’m going to read (and re-read) the second, third and fourth issues, and savor their freshness. This is definitely the most energetic debut of this year so far, and by far.

Rating: 9/10

‘New Masters’ issues 1-4, published by Image Comics, are on sale now.