THE MERCENARY Year 1000 The End Of The World V. Segrelles

Vicente Segrelles has a unique way of starting his stories. He’s not interested in the functional aspects of telling a story, so just drops us into something toward the end of a scene, enabling him to move more rapidly to the sequences he’s really interested in drawing. This time it’s the revelation that the monks with which the Mercenary is allied are aware the world will end in three years and it’s approaching the final opportunity to safely see the phenomenon that will bring it about. After the couple of pages of explanation Segrelles can move on to what he really enjoys painting: the serene scenes of the Mercenary on his dragon flying over exotic landscapes.

Year 1000 is a far stronger outing than the comparative disappointment of The Voyage, with the Mercenary transported to an entirely different planet, one where science is far more advanced than the Mercenary’s usual home. What’s pleasing is that despite not having any scientific knowledge, the Mercenary’s resourcefulness means he’s able to make valid suggestions that seem to have eluded others. The logistics of the plot also enable Segrelles to mix and match his exotica, myth intruding as well as science, and he makes the most of those opportunities. Unusually, he also supplies a little background information about the regular supporting cast.