Loïc Locatelli-Kournwsky

Loïc Locatelli-Kournwsky’s Persephone reimagines the story of Persephone, Hades, and the Greek pantheon in a world resembling medieval fantasy. In this retelling, Persephone is the adopted daughter of Demeter, a witch in the world of Eleusis. Eleusis is composed of the Western Plains, Centropolis, the Western Isles, and the Eastern Deserts. Hades, the world below, is isolated from Eleusis and sends the occasional soldier or shade to Eleusis. It’s king, Hades, long disappeared, so the realm is guided by Mithras and Hades’ son, Rhadamanthus, who himself has assistance from Minthe and others. When Persephone is kidnapped by a soldier of Hades, Demeter and the forces of Eleusis rally. Meanwhile, Persephone learns about Hades and the peoples’ struggle to grow food. Though she is not a born witch, she endeavors to find a way to restore life to Hades.

Locatelli-Kournwsky’s artistic style resembles that of Hayao Miyazaki or Geroges Remi (famously known as Hergé), which makes sense as Locatelli-Kournwsky divides his time between France and Japan. The art is beautiful and expressive, with crosshatching and other details resembling woodcut engraving from older texts. These details lend a sense of antiquity to the high fantasy story. Edward Gauvin translated this volume from French and Deron Bennett lettered it. A lovely, self-contained reinterpretation of classical mythology. This will appeal to fans of YA fantasy.… (más)

I was hoping for a more faithful retelling of Persephone's story, where she falls in loves with Hades, and so was very surprised when she was a young girl here (so, really, the commonalities are shallow). But once I got over that, I was able to enjoy the story a bit more. The panels can be pretty cluttered, which makes it hard to focus and understand. The characterizations are rushed, but there's a real sense of history between them. There are some interesting ideas about war and cruelty, but nothing is too deeply explored.… (más)