In the future there is no more natural death, no needs unfilled and everything you could ever want is yours… as long as you’re one of the ones chosen to live in this new Utopia and you’re willing to subjugate yourself to these new self-proclaimed gods with “IX”s emblazoned on them. Do the ends truly justify the means? Is a utopia built on genocide worth the price? Aphrodite, Velocity, Hades, and the other Nines establish fiefdoms in this new world and attempt to rule. Their internal clashes have escalated, but they are forced to put that aside as they face off against the relentless hordes of the Darkness. The sins of the past have come to claim those who would pretend to be Gods.

Top Cow has shaken up their world a few times now with a rejiggering of the companies Darkness and Witchblade line of comics, and then rebooting Aphrodite IX and Cyber Force into two futuristic dystopian series. The latter with the help of Kickstarter. The company has also had a weird mix of supernatural and tech focused series with the two coming together every so often. Now, Top Cow is introducing their 13 Artifacts, like the Witchblade, Darkness, and Spear of Destiny in their futuristic reboot.

This big change has been hinted at for a while with the discovery of the Coin of Solomon in the head of Aphrodite in her series last year. Ever since that moment it felt like it was only a matter of time before we’d see more artifacts, and here we go. That’s not a spoiler, Top Cow has actively promoted that, and that’s the big draw. To see how the companies “tech” based characters handle the supernatural elements is an interesting idea.

The thing is, the first issue is all about war, setting up the world that exists now that the IXs have taken over. It’s a world of war, so some of the more subtle elements of the modern day Artifacts stories seems a bit lost, with their presentation as nothing but weapons in this first issue.

The art is as fantastic as I’d expect with Stjepan Sejic providing the amazing art you’d expect. His art is amazing and a draw in every series he’s a part of. This is no exception, it’s a beautiful style that’s unique and a signature look.

The first issue is interesting, and I think fans of Top Cow’s two different tracts will be excited to see where this all goes, I definitely am. For folks who haven’t ever checked out a Top Cow comic, this could be a nice start for those who dig futuristic settings.

Story By: Matt Hawkins Art By: Stjepan Sejic
Story: 7 Art: 8.5 Overall: 7.5 Recommendation: Read

Image Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review