L'Empire #1

A portly, elaborately robed pope-like figure sits enthroned in golden grandeur on this striking cover — staff in hand, tiara upon his head, and a tiny cherubic figure perched at his feet — setting the tone for what promises to be a sharp, politically minded look at the rise of Christianity. Writer Olivier Bobineau and artist Pascal Magnat launch L'Empire: Une Histoire Politique du Christianisme with this first volume, subtitled La Genèse, published by Les Arènes BD in 2015. The warm amber palette and wry caricature style signal a work that takes its subject seriously while not being afraid to cast a sly, irreverent eye on the machinery of religious power.