REVIEW: ‘Nomen Omen,’ Issue #6

Nomen Omen #6 is published by Image Comics, is written by Marco B. Bucci, with art and colors by Jacopo Camagni, and lettering by Fabio Amelia. Nomen Omen tells the story of Becky Kumar. A young woman brought into the world under strange conditions. It should be noted that this series is graphic and intended for a mature audience.

Previously, Becky Kumar had stumbled into a world of danger and fantasy that lives just outside the edges of our own reality. The King of that reality had stolen Becky’s heart and set his legion the task to find her, to begin a hunt. Thankfully, some unknown allies came to her aid and revealed to her that she was the descendant of a nearly extinct group of Witches. After only a few short days, the pressure was too much and upon a rooftop, Becky’s power came exploding to the forefront for all of New York to see.

Now in issue six, Becky finds herself bursting with anger and power, and not being able to distinguish friend from foe. As her power pulses atop the rooftop, she’s on, it becomes a beacon for the hunters of the monarchy, and King Taranis himself. All in view, wait for her next move as the young Witch, fueled by as her ancestors, members of her coven, vie for retribution.

What an issue! It has been almost four months since the last issue, and three months since the trade paperback came was released. Reading through this issue was like the joy of rediscovering some long-forgotten artifact that you once treasured. I greedily drank in the pages remembering the madness of the magic, and story in front of me.

Bucci clearly has a very defined path set for this series, as each issue marches forward the tension ascends another level. Nomen Omen #6 aggressively increases the tempo and intensity, with Becky, powered by her ancestors, and lashing out at anyone trying to stop her. The culmination of this sequence climaxes at a particularly nasty spell, leaving the reader with a cliffhanger with which to wonder, and eagerly anticipate the next issue.

Camagni goes above and beyond with his contributions for this issue handling both the artwork and the coloring. Thank the heavens he has, because he clearly shows he has visually created something stunning that parallels the energetic plot that Bucci has laid out.

The contrasting colors of the shades of grey against the Witches power of the bright, and spirited greens really leaps from the page. While somewhat minimalist, it all exudes a highly of confidence from Camagni to have the control to stop and realize what kind of tone he’s trying to capture on the page. I continue to be blown away by his art style.

I also can’t leave Amelia unmentioned for his lettering creativity that wraps up this issue in a perfect bow. When Becky uses her power verbally her whole dialogue shifts in font, and color and really elevates the power of the story, you can feel the intensity of it. Alternatively, when you see Taranis talk, it has a sense of deviance and foreboding, as his malevolent mind shifts and slithers.

Overall I can not adore this series, and issue, any more intensely than I am hoping to capture in this review. It is truly a sleeping giant in the comics industry from three fantastic creators. Issue 6 is intense in its plot, visually stimulating, and hard to believe it all came together so fluently!

Nomen Omen #6 is available in stores now.