By Comix
Aztecs were like the Vikings of the Americas; they were brutal, strong, and had a penchant for worshipping their gods through the blood of their enemies. With an empire that spread from Central Mexico to Northern Guatemala, the Aztecs were a force to be reckoned with, not only by neighboring cities but by the conquistadores who were foolish enough to step on their land. Unfortunately for the warring tribe, the Spanish eventually wiped out a large portion of the population and raided whatever was left, single-handedly destroying them. Sacrifice, by Dark Horse comics, throws a large monkey wrench into history by presenting an alternative to this well-known tale, in the form of a time-travelling boy determined to save the endangered race. A surprisingly engrossing read steeped in the past of a long gone war, Sacrifice is a must-read for fans of both history and the occult.
The comic starts with a suicidal teen named Hector, whose friend just busted him out the local crazy house after a failed attempt at his life. As they are shooting the breeze, Hector suddenly gets hit with a violent seizure and shoots off into a world hundreds of years before he was born. Finding himself in a thick jungle far from where he was, he, like, almost immediately, gets caught by a tribe of Aztecs and is taken back to their leader. The tribe starts to argue amongst themselves about what to do with Hector, but thanks to Hector’s sun-dial tattoo, he is saved from the sacrificial altar and deemed to be a new priest. Soon we find out that there is more to the Aztecs’ problems than mere squabbling, especially in respect to god worship and human sacrifice, and with Hector seemingly falling from the sky, it is up to him help resolve these matters. As he attempts to appease everyone around him while trying to find a way home, more figures come out of the woodwork; most worryingly, these include the Spanish. As their invasion draws closer, Hector does what he can to prevent the inevitable bloodshed, in so doing changing the face of history forever.
Sacrifice is one of those comics you don’t really see coming. A mix of real-life events with a touch of the bizarre, it’s a bit different from other warrior-in-little-clothing titles. While it definitely doesn’t shy away from the blood and guts of war, that is not its main focus. The comic spends a lot more time trying to explain the relationships between two of the Aztec tribes and delves deep into their religious natures and blood rites. While it’s a bit slow-burning in the beginning, it takes all of that build up and uses it as a jumping off point into a well-written story about gods, sacrifices, and the philosophy of life and death. Clashing the moral ideals of the past and present, Sacrifice paints a beautiful portrait of where civilization used to be versus who we are now and how little things have really changed. The ‘magic’ parts are fantastically done and add to an already epic tale, instead of cheapening the overall work. In short, it’s pretty wicked.
The comic is a collaborative work between writer Sam Humphries and Dalton Rose. Humphries is better known for his work on the Marvel title The Ultimates and Uncanny X-Force. He has also done some smaller works such as Fanboys Vs. Zombies and John Carter: The Gods of Mars, but he is still relatively new. The writing and dialogue here is very smooth, if not a bit slow. There were a couple of parts where I was tempted to drop the comic, but trust me, stick it out. It really pays off. The art by Dalton Rose plays perfectly with the tone of the story, combining a mix of indie comic style dipped in traditional Aztec art. It’s a very clean style that could transfer to other titles, but it really works for Sacrifice. Rose has worked with other writers on independent titles, but like Humphries, he’s also pretty new. From what I gathered, he studied at Savannah College of Art and Design and just went into comics from there. Honestly, I’m hoping to see more from this pair in upcoming years.
Sacrifice was originally self-published with the support of various artists and writers in the comic world. Dark Horse is officially going to release the collected edition in a beautiful hardcover graphic novel on August 21. This girl managed to get a sneak peek and it’s a pretty comprehensive release with sketches, alternative covers, and process notes. With a very reasonable price of twenty bucks, this is definitely worth picking up.