Review by Colin Credle
In 1983 Ronin cemented Frank Miller’s arrival as a superstar writer and illustrator. He transferred from Marvel to DC not to work on a standard superhero title, but to create his own vision, and it remains a frequently reissued thrilling experience.
With the 2024 release of Ronin Rising, Miller revives the battle originally recounted in Ronin between the telekinetic powers of Billy Challas and the sentient AI Virgo, ensconced in the cutting edge Aquarius facility in a futuristic dystopic New York City. The battle is joined by former Aquarius Security Officer Casey McKenna and her child, who is also named Billy. The masterless Samurai Ronin completes the melee and six chapters follow this dynamic fight, with sumptuous, expansive pages providing ample room for panoramic panels.
Philip Tan pencils four of the six chapters, with the remaining two illustrated by Frank Miller. The panels are dynamic and gorgeous, the styles paying homage to Moebius’ hatch work with some spots reminiscent of Jack Kirby’s distinct shading of mechanical robots. At 10.5” by 13.5”, flipping through the large, horizontal black and white layouts is a visual pleasure.
Unfortunately, the story itself is uneventful. We don’t see the landscape of dystopic 21st Century New York City, nor outside the physical building structure of Virgo’s Aquarius. There is a great deal of chest thumping, boasting, exhortations of godliness, villain speechifying, the most silent being Ronin himself. The entire length of the book is basically two battles, interrupted with a NurseRob saving Casey McKenna from haemorrhaging. Although the pace and artwork are impressive, the story itself is flat and uninspiring. If you have not read Frank Miller’s original Ronin, this is an inadequate recap. If you have read the original Ronin, this is a punctured balloon of a recap: lots of noise and movement, but not much content and the result is a deflated rubber sack of great beauty.
