Story Synopsis: Canto #1
A slave takes on a mission to save the woman he loves and unravel the story of their existence in Canto #1.
In the world of Arcana a group of people were enslaved. This was Canto’s people. They looked like little knights and are forced to work for their harsh masters. At one point they had hearts, but they have been replaced by clocks.
The clock was a constant reminder that their time to live was limited. However, their life was only spent as slaves. Their job was to feed the fires under Arcana, but were forbidden to feed the fires of love or have names. However, one slave rebelled his name was Canto and he’s in love.
After his girlfriend was damaged beyond repair by the masters Canto has a mission. He had to find the Hermit and only then would her life have been saved. However, the Hermit may also know what they were and why they were missing their hearts.
What Is Canto?
I am really confused by this comic. It is really hard to tell what Canto’s people are. They are dressed like knights with armor, but is it armor or skin? We never see them without the armor on so it is hard to tell what exactly it is and why they have it.
They could be robots who used to have biological hearts. It is hard to tell if there is skin under the armor. This normally would not be a problem but it was distracting me. The entire time I was reading the issue I was wondering why they look like that. I just needed a quick explanation, but none was ever given.
Why Should I Care About These People?
The story would have been a vast improvement if I knew more about Canto. I understand the series will be about his people and discovering why they don’t have hearts. However, I needed to know more about Canto and why I should care about him. His girlfriend also has zero backstory or motivation. I don’t care that she is dying and I don’t care if Canto saves her. This issue never gave me a reason to care about anyone.
The character design I did not like. If it is never going to be explained why they have armor on then why make them look like this. They could look like humans or animals, but we find out they have clock hearts later. The biggest problem with the character design is the characters look exactly the same. A few minor differences are all which separates them. One character has a mustache, but most just have a little colored sash to separate them. I need more than a little sash.
I found this issue extremely boring and confusing. The story was not awful. It was bad, but has potential to be a good story. However, poor character design choices and no character relatability severely hold this issue back.
Rating:
1/5
Written by: David Booher
Art by: Drew Zucker and Vittorio Astone
Cover by: Zucker and Astone
Release: 6/26/19
Issue: 1
Publisher: IDW Publishing
