Infernal: The Dying Sun is the debut comic book series by Yellowknifer Kody Ferron which explores the universe through the eyes of Solis, an entity created to bring destruction.
Vibrant and thoughtful, this high-stakes space opera asks: how do you separate yourself from the tyrannical regime that created you? How do you situate yourself in the world when you are (in Solis’s case) the only blue person in the universe? And, finally, can you create your own meaning in life when you were born to be a weapon?
This past year has been explosive for local authors, and Ferron is one of my favourite new voices on the scene.
While Infernal’s themes are literally universal, the centre of its story, Solis, feels very close to home. Solis is “power incarnate,” embodying all of the power and knowledge in the universe, making for a character who can’t be pushed around easily — think One-Punch Man meets Doctor Manhattan. While Solis is not quite as indomitable as these two characters, the spunky alien certainly approaches tasks with the enthusiasm of someone who is. Because of this, Infernal’s main character has some comically human impulses to jump without looking or act without thinking — traits that are offset by my favourite character in this series, Aegir, a colossus whose thoughtful, friendly nature brings a lot of warmth to the cold world that Solis is born into. Together, this dynamic duo face off against Solis’ creator, Orion, a tyrant who is intent on wreaking havoc on the universe.
One of the most exciting aspects of this series, which I do not often see, is the fluidity of Ferron’s creative process. Infernal is a creator-owned, self-published series funded on Kickstarter that, as far as I can tell, is inked by hand, giving Ferron a lot of creative freedom to experiment with this work in a way that was fascinating to see as a reader. This series is a space of growth — both for its characters and its creator.
Discussing his work at the end of Infernal’s second issue, Ferron mentions how writing this series has had an impact on him, from encouraging him to play around with his character designs and the narrative to giving him insight into producing a book from the ground up. Ferron will soon be starting this labour-intensive process all over again within the month for his next project. Infernal: The Dying Sun is a pilot of sorts for Ferron’s upcoming series, Infernal: Stellar Nebula, which will further explore Solis’s unwitting involvement in galactic conflict.
This dynamic and action-packed series balances humour with larger questions of personal belonging, making for a fantastic read. Ferron is joined in producing this series by Damir Rosic, who colours the series, and Matt Clark, who provided early scripts.
His consistent transparency about his creative process throughout this series is likely to be inspiring for any creatives, locally and beyond, who want to get a start on their own projects.