Roma #2

The second volume of this ambitious Belgian-published Roman epic raises the stakes with a title that translates to "Victory or Death" — and the cover delivers on that promise. Luca Erbetta's artwork presents a commanding African warrior in the foreground, spear and staff in hand, with Roman legionaries and a vast battlefield stretching behind him, while a row of determined Roman figures — soldiers and civilians alike — surveys the scene from above against a dramatic sky. With four writers (Éric Adam, Pierre Boisserie, Didier Convard, and Frank Vanzeer) steering the narrative, this 2017 release promises the kind of layered, sweeping storytelling that makes ancient Rome such enduring dramatic territory.