Rebel Moon Nemesis #1: Forsaken

Rebel Moon: Nemesis #1 is an odd duck in the sense that knowing the source material will make understanding the world much easier. But at the same time, the core of the story can be told in any genre or any environment.

Nemesis opens up as a character more in Rebel Moon: Nemesis #1 than she did in the Rebel Moon movies. This owes largely to being inside the character’s head. Simone finds the anguish in the character and immediately creates a bond between her and the reader via Nemesis’s internal monologue, remarking that there is no term for a parent who loses a child (as opposed to window/widower or orphan in those cases). From there, Simone pulls no punches in how she builds up the personal, physical connection between a mother and her child. Though Simone’s writing isn’t explicit, it still elicits a visceral reaction. Nemesis’s description moves beyond an emotional connection into a place where she is almost talking about the child as a part of her being. It’s extremely effective.

This frank examination of Nemesis sets up a deeper explanation for not just her killing, but the weapons she uses to carry them out. Once again, Simone finds a deep well of emotion when Nemesis says that her swords, passed down through generations, are the closest thing to children she will ever hold. It’s a complete emotional inversion as Nemesis goes from the promise of new life in her child to the promise of death in her swords.

Rebel Moon: Nemesis #1 doesn’t try for photorealistic art, attempting to present Nemesis as the actor who played her. This works to the issue’s advantage since it’s not about the larger movie story but about this one character. Indeed, Bertoni’s art is nearly 180 degrees from that style. Rebel Moon: Nemesis #1 possesses a rough style, almost sketched. The result, at times, is an almost visceral connection to the titular character. Much like Simone’s writing, Bertoni’s art connects the reader to Nemesis in a way superior to the movies.

Bertoni’s style in general uses minimal linework for detail while exaggerating character and setting outlines. The result is an occasionally abstract presentation of characters with broad facial expressions and very angular bodies overall.

Given this, the art in Rebel Moon: Nemesis #1 is somewhat at odds with the movies’ overall visual identity. The comic is arguably unrefined compared to the movies’ carefully constructed visuals. But the creation of a differentiated visual style gives the comic a separate identity which works well for a character-focused prequel.

Maese’s color palette is largely muted throughout Rebel Moon: Nemesis #1. This is especially true of Nemesis’s antagonists who are pale, sometimes to the point of ashen. The clear exception to this style choice is Nemesis’s swords. Maese uses an almost abrasive red for her weapons, and it draws the eye on every page and in every panel. Whether Mease intended it or not, this choice connects the swords’ visual representation to the emotionally charged way that Nemesis describes them.