Defiant: The Legend of Brithnoth
Time Bomb Comics
Writer: Andy Winter
Artist and Letterer: Daniel Bell
Colourist: Aljosa Tomic
Reviewer: Rob Wrecks
Summary: Sacrifice… Madness… Death… Betrayal
August 10, 991AD, and a fleet of Viking longships containing 3000 men sail up the River Pant in Essex to the fortified town of Maldon. Led by the king of Denmark the Norsemen aim to ransack the town and kill as many inhabitants as they can.
Brithnoth, an old soldier and one of the most powerful men in England , assembles a small army and prepares to stand defiant against the coming onslaught.
Defiant: The Legend Of Brithnoth is a hard-hitting historical adventure based on true events that continue to cause furious debate more than a thousand years later!
Review: Its not often you see a comic based on historical events. Especially an event that doesn’t entirely have entirely accurate sources, but the team on this title doesn’t let that stop them. Andy certainly manages to come up with a fantastic read here based on what information he has from the poem this story is born from. Along with using anything he believes would be close to accurate. Such as Forkbeard being the man to lead the attack against Maldon and other areas before or possibly even after it. Despite the depressing events we later see in this title, I thought this was a great read as Andy certainly pulls off getting you to feel for the characters in the situation they are in thanks to Forkbeard’s invasion of their lands.
Daniel does a terrific job with the art duties for this book as well, leaving me with no complaints. Aljosa’s colors certainly do a fine job in bringing Daniel’s work to life as well. Especially when things get rather bloody. Andy captures the use of old time English rather well too in this, which really helps to keep you immersed in the world of Defiant. If these three did more comics based on historical events, I’d be highly interested in reading those as well.
Brithnoth’s use of prisoners to add to his army to fight against Forkbeard was a nice touch, though a dangerous gamble too since it could have easily backfired on him if any of those prisoners had thought a lot about it. But considering it was their own homes that was being invaded, they might have wanted to show that they at least cared somewhat for their own people despite their deeds towards them. I think Brithnoth and his men easily could have had an advantage at the start of the battle had he chosen to use it. Then again Forkbeard easily could have done the same as well, so its a complete toss up to how that would have gone in the end.
Godric I think, was more of a warning sign then any of the prisoners were in this. I have to wonder if the woman we see him with in a flashback actually rejected him for his looks after a battle he went through or if he left like a coward cause he didn’t think she would love him anymore. Considering what he does later on, cowardice just might be a theme with him in my view.
This was truly a well done story with some likable characters through out it who fought valiantly, and even though its likely that many in other areas looked down on them and especially Brithnoth, they all certainly became a legend and a story worth re-telling through out the years. Brithnoth and those with him are certainly the kind of guys you’d want to have on your side in a battle. Well, aside from a few exceptions anyway! So if you’ve yet to read this, then stop what you are doing and go grab yourself a copy!
http://timebombcomics.com/defiant.html
“Originally published on the Indie Comix website
(http://www.indiecomix.net/defiant-the-legend-of-brithnoth—7262015.html)
and re-published here with the kind permission of author Rob Wrecks”.