Big standard epic fantasy w ridiculous looking all muscular (except breasts ofc) characters ( )

Reads kind of like the instruction manual to a Final Fantasy. Eh. I've played almost all of them. I'll probably read the next one through sheer force of habit. ( )

Very good start to a new series with a lot of attention to character development. I bought this as a digital comic and I think I will buy the next one in paper. There were several times I had to flip back and forth and it's just easier to do that with the trade paperback. ( )

I have had this book to read for quite awhile. I was drawn to the beautiful illustration throughout. It ended up being a very good read. The illustration is amazing and beautiful. The story is a complex epic fantasy and is fairly easy to follow (although a ton of characters are introduced).

This book is the introduction to a complex new fantasy world in which the evil Nebezial tries to reclaim the magic of the land people for his own. A group of ragged and unlikely heroes are introduced in this volume and I assume they will band against him as the story progresses.

The illustration of this graphic novel is phenomenal. It is absolutely stunning, full color, and beautiful. Seriously I could just stare at these pictures for hours.

This is just the introduction to the story. We get some backstory on Nebezial and why he is so power hungry. Then we are introduced to a series of characters, all who have a lot of depth and issues of their own. You can tell the story is being set up for these characters to come together eventually (although they don’t quite get there in this volume).

The most amazing part of this graphic novel is the amazing appendix (which is ~30 pages). The appendix immerses the reader completely in this world. This includes an index, some origin stories, and other stories that fill out this world and make it completely realized.

My only complaints are that there are a ton of characters introduced and some of them we only see briefly. This is definitely an epic fantasy trait, but it means that the story evolves slowly and you don’t get a lot of page space with the individual characters.

Overall this is an excellent start to this graphic novel epic fantasy story. The illustration is true artwork and absolutely stunning. The characters are all well done and have a lot of depth to them. The world building is very well done and really immerses the reader in this new world. I would recommend to those who love graphic novels and epic fantasy. I am eager to read the next volume in this series. ( )

I have been an admirer of the fantastic artwork of Stjepan Sejic for years and could not wait to get my hands on “Ravine” after seeing preview pieces on his DeviantArt account. The book’s is named after the continent on which this epic fantasy story takes place in numerous kingdoms amongst several different cultures and religious beliefs that influence the world in which the main characters find themselves and by the end of the book the reader finds out those two characters are not well thought of.

Dragons, humans, and in-between half-blood species form the populace of the continent of Ravine separated into several kingdoms and tribes, however there are some individuals that are not bound by borders or laws—Wanderers. These individuals are the hands of Fate, bonded to their magical grimlas weapons and we follow two of them—Stein Phais and Lynn de Luctes. Stein begins “Ravine” as a notorious Wanderer while Lynn is a dragonrider-in-trainer and ends the book a newly bonded Wanderer. Between following these two individuals Sejic builds the world they inhabit especially the growing tension between the sectarian and religious powers in the continent’s grand Alliance, but Sejic also teases a look at the nefarious elements that are making those tensions worse because of their own plans. After around 140 pages of story, Sejic ends the book with almost 20 pages worth of worldbuilding material that further develops the background of the continent of Ravine and makes the reader interested in seeing what will happen in Volume 2.

Characters, story, and art all make “Ravine” a must read for any epic fantasy comic readers and those who just enjoy epic fantasy in any medium. Stjepan Sejic’s 11 year development of his world results in a magnificent first installment. ( )