It is set in the land of Five Rivers. It is about a magician who, as a revenge, wants to overturn the government with the help of a mercenary.

Forgotten Blade is a fantasy/sci-fi graphic novel with really great and unique art style and a great color palette in the same kind of shades which I liked.

Though I see why people would enjoy it, it unfortunately didn't hook me in.

This book had really good art and an interesting story, I genuinely can't remember much about it despite having finished it yesterday, but it is a book I enjoyed reading when I did. Reading the description of this book gives you the information you need about it, and I thoroughly enjoyed the colouring and art style for this particular graphic novel. The characters are interesting and the story gets you hooked.

<i>I received a complimentary copy of this via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, which I leave voluntarily</i>.

Title: The Forgotten Blade
Author: Tze Chun
Illustrator: Toni Fejzula
Publisher: TKO Presents
Format: NetGalley ebook ARC, 182 p
Genre: Adult SciFi Graphic Novel

In The Forgotten Blade by Tze Chun and illustrated by Toni Fejzula, the world is ruled by the Citadel. The female protagonist, Noa, is searching for revenge for the death of her children and seeks the help of Ruza the Unwashed, a warrior with a special sword. The world is teeming with chaos as a result of Ruza’s past actions when he killed the leader of a rebellion against the Citadel while searching for an opponent worthy of a fight. During their quest, they partner with various characters for help and learn more about the god that created them and the world at large.
The story seemed a little quick paced. Tze could have expanded more on the main characters’ journey to The Citadel and used it as an opportunity to expand on the characters and the world. The art style did make it hard to distinguish what was happening sometimes during busy scenes, but also helped lend to the gritty feel that the world had. This is definitely an adult graphic novel, with language, violence, and some nudity that would completely rule it out of middle grade and possibly even high school libraries. I would rate this 4 out of 5 stars and I look forward to reading more of the books as they’re released.

Forgotten Blade is an epic sci-fi fantasy epic. The lore and world is so expansive and intense. It was dark and gritty but deep inside it was filled with hope and love. The story was confusing at times with the constant switching between past and present to tell the story and the art was detail and wonderous it was as times cluttered. Each panel could have been it's own full page spread and I wish everything was given more space to breath.

Overall it was an enjoyable read with a satisfying ending.

The main concept of this graphic novel was an overthrowing of the government with a revenge plot. I adored the plot, and the art was truly amazing.

This book explores many themes including religion, politics, and alien gods. Brilliant worldbuilding and character development and great use of past events to support the plot.

Thoroughly enjoyed this and recommend it to everyone!

An epic fantasy in a world unlike our own, Noa recruits Ruza the washed up mercenary to bring down the corrupt church and save the souls of her murdered children.

This graphic novel will take time and attention to read. The pictures are extremely detailed and the plot and world building are fairly detailed as well. At first I was enjoying it but was not overly invested, but by the end my feelings changed and I came to appreciate the world, characters, illustration, and story more than I originally predicted I would. I was thinking that I would be giving a 3.5 star (and intended to round up to 4 stars on a 5 star system), but by the end I was firmly committed to giving this a 4 star rating.

I enjoyed the illustrations as they were very detailed and showed a lot more than the initial quick glance would portray. At times they needed to be really studied to get all the nuances. The color was interesting as there are 5 rivers in the magic/religious system and each is a different color with a different meaning. Color also showed different ranks and backgrounds of people.

Forgotten blade is a graphic Novel based around a fantasy Sci - Fi setting. The premise of the story is set in the Land of Five Rivers. A land that has five rivers created by the Allfather. There are the rivers of Holy Flame, Voiding, Souls, Pain and life.

When we start the story, we are thrown into the middle of a battle between the Church and the Tribes, led by the warrior prophet Loquan. In a bid to win the war, the church sends their greatest warrior Ruza the Unwashed to fight Loquan in an attempt to defeat the tribes, who do not follow the doctrine of the church and have been labelled heretics.

Skip forward a few years, we see Ruza the unwashed as a dried up old soak, who is trying to forget his past until he is hired by a young shamaness called Noa, who comes with a bold plan to loosen the tyrannical grip of the church in revenge for killing those dear to her - She wants to kill a god!

I am not sure that Forgotten Blade entirely works, but it is quite entertaining with its mix of Asian, Norse and middle European Christian influences, questioning the old adage of whether absolute power corrupts absolutely.

It uses a number of tropes that everybody is quite familiar with; the grizzled old warrior being employed for that final all defining battle, enemies to friends etc etc.

The story itself felt a little too formulaic for me, but I did like the influences of the story. When we are initially introduced to the world that the story is based in, yes there were things that were unsurprising, but with the mix of Sci Fi and fantasy, there was some promise to it. However, as we moved on I found that the story lacked substance. The relationship between the two main characters didn’t feel organic in any way and just seemed to happen rather than grow. In all honesty, for me, I felt like the story could have been that little bit longer, working on some emotional depth for the characters and creating a more all rounded story.

Don,t get me wrong, there are some really good ideas in here, and I liked the general mix of the differing mythologies.

The artwork in the book is quite good and the colour palette worked well, with its mixtures of burnt oranges and turquoise greens giving it that understated otherworldly feel. Reminding me of Frank Miller’s Ronin.

Maybe, I am being too cynical, but on the whole I felt that the book had lots of potential, abut I just didn’t feel it was executed well enough to grab my whole attention.

Super cool art style/coloring! The subdued saturation and limited palette really worked well with the ethereal figures. I appreciated the small clues (i.e. different hair colors) that helped distinguish important characters. While the plot had a pretty predictable ending, I loved the initial setup and think the world-building is done well here. This could be read as a stand-alone, but the ending does leave the door open for future installments.

I voluntarily obtained a digital version of this book free from Netgalley and TKO Studios in exchange for an honest review.

Forgotten Blade is a fantasy story set in the land of Five Rivers. It is a tale of a female magician who enlisted the help of a mercenary to topple a theocratic government in revenge for the curse placed on her two children.

WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THIS BOOK
Forgotten Blade is a beautifully drawn book. The uniqueness and style of the art stand out in the midst of a tale that seems familiar.

DISLIKES
The plot is predictable and holds little or no surprise.

WHO IS IT FOR
Fans of epic fantasy may enjoy the art and possibilities Forgotten Blade has to offer.

Many thanks to TKO Presents for providing a review copy.

'The Forgotten Blade' by Tze Chun is a SF epic graphic novel with unexpected heroes, gods and aliens.

In a place known as the Five Rivers, there is magic and powers to be had if you can get it from the Church of the Citadel. Ruza an mercenary and wielder of the Forgotten Blade once worked for the church but now works for a teacher who wants to save the souls of her two children who were killed by the church.

When I started reading this, I was honestly a bit lost, but by the end, I was completely hooked on this epic fantasy/science fiction story. The characters are great and the story is very cinematic. Fun stuff.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from TKO Presents and NetGalley. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

This book was given to me in in for an honest review from TKO Presents via Netgalley.

The last hope for humanity to fight against the tyranny of the church's oppression is struck down by the forgotten blade.

Ruza the unwashed, who wields the Forgotten Blade joins the Inquisitor to help bring order to all the cities. But when an enchantress comes looking for him to help her destroy the one thing no one in all the 5 rivers has the courage to even think about.

Now, Noa and Ruza the unwashed will journey across the 5 rivers flowing from the citadel where the Allfather is behind the great walls.

That's sums up the plot. Now for things I really liked.

Characters:
Ruza the unwashed:

Ruza the unwashed has this emotionless outlook making seem like nothing more than a savage man that kills with the slash of his mighty Blade. But as he begins his journey across the 5 rivers with Noa, he begins to see that the world is not necessarily black and white.

I loved his character development and when he did everything in his power to save Noa and help her. That was a hard thing to do for a stranger but Ruza rose to the occasion and that's one he'll of a character development.

Noa:

Noa comes off as a strong enchantress who has her mind set on one goal; destroying the all father. But as her backstop reveals itself and you see the layers of hurt that she carries. You'll understand what drives her goals. I loved how she sacrificed everything without single thoughts for her goal. And even had the courage to get a savage man like Ruza the unwashed to help her in her goal.

AllFather:

The creator of the 5 rivers. When he is finally revealed. I loved the technological advancement between him and he's creations. And how the fact that he had lost all hope was portrayed after his failure.


Art style:

I requested an arc of this graphic novel because of the cover. And damn, from the first page all through the end is a masterpiece. I love the character designs and the world. It has this geometric form to it that makes it really cool and brings out that futuristic characteristics of the world.

It's also very colourful. I'm a huge fan of colourful graphic styles and did book gave what it was supposed to give.

Plot:

Up to par that's all I will say. Read and enjoy this graphic novel because it's a world of art.

Written by Tze Chun and illustrated by Toni Fejzula, The Forgotten Blade is a fantasy adventure following a dispirited champion and a vengeful mother who rebel against the authoritarian religious state. If that’s all I said about the story, it would be enough to intuit in almost its entirety; The champion finds purpose, the mother gets revenge and the state is overthrown. That all happens in more or less the manner you’d expect and yet that misses the point.

Somewhere between The Witcher, The Fifth Element and a Zdzisław Beksiński painting is The Forgotten Blade’s world and art style. Each page is rendered in imaginative, colourful detail by Toni Fejzula to the point of the writing distracting from the great undertaking that must have been the artwork.

Tackling multiple genres, ideas and storylines at once, the pace is breathless and potentially exhausting. A tv series would have taken a season to do what the book does in around an hour. It’s condensed to the visual highlights, which makes for breathtaking images but renders the storyline to a level of simplicity that leaves it almost an excuse for the images. Regardless, slowing down to explore the gothic architecture, alien costuming and richly coloured landscapes is deeply rewarding.

But despite all that, the storyline isn’t without its merits. Hiding beneath the magic and alien technology, Tze Chun pointedly uses words and phrases such as peasant and the great wall. It’s both a universal rebellion story and a more direct criticism of some current affairs. These and other associations are never explicit as the efficiency of the script hardly allows for any definition but for the more literary-minded, there are parallels to be drawn and thoughts to be had — or in any case, the story can keep the reader's attention.

Alien gods, creation and religion are discussed in a way that was reminiscent of Alien: Covenant, but The Forgotten Sword is not a graphic novel I could speak for hours about; Its philosophical ideas aren’t given the time nor depth for great thought, only flashes and sparks of it. But I could spend hours looking at it. If a gallery held an exhibition displaying the book’s art, I would go see it; so in the end, the rest is just icing on the cake.

A great quick read. Great character development and interesting to see how the author weaves in the past to address the main plot of the story. I loved the art style and its grim depiction of the world and the inhabitants.

This was a really fun read! The illustrations are cool although sometimes there was too much going on on the page.

The world is an interesting mixture of sci-fi and fantasy, and I wish we got to see more of it!

My only problem with this is that if you asked me to tell you everything that happens in this book, after having read it, I would tell you exactly what the description says because nothing else happens. At least until the end, when there's a twist that's both happy and creepy?...

I have to admit this was an interesting book, some parts felt boring, and I felt that the whole switching sides thing was uneeded for one character. However, I loved the happy ending. And I also really liked we live in a matrix plot, that was a nice touch.

This was a great action packed story based on the consuming power of religion and those who wield the beliefs of others to their own gain, the artwork was fantastic. This was a non-stop ride through a magnificent universe. I really enjoyed it

Forgotten Blade is a graphic novel by The Chun that was a thoroughly enjoyable read that left me hooked from the very start. In the Land of the Five Rivers, the magical waters that through from the Citadel grant those who know how to use them with incredible powers that the Church of the Citadel guards prove jealous and untrustworthy. Ruza the Unwashed, greatest warrior and wield of the Forgotten Blade, destroyed the last change for the people to overthrow the tyranny and is recruited by a schoolteacher to save the souls of her two children. To do this; they must do the impossible - infiltrate the Citadel, discover the source of the Five Rivers, and vanquish the God who created this world in the first place.

The story for this was incredible and the world-building fulfilling in such little page time. We really feel the caste system and the beautiful but deadly landscape of the Citadel. The premise of a teach having her two innocent children really added an emotional hardship that hooked me to the very end.

The artwork really popped in this graphic novel and were drawn perfectly. This art really complimented the story of a fantasy world that was made to shock us.

I would really recommend this and can't wait to (hopefully) see more of this world.

This graphic novel was a joy to read! From start to finish, I was completely hooked and taken in by the land of the Five Rivers! I loved the story behind the five rivers and all the different areas of the land, the people and story behind the Citadel and the characters.

I loved the plot; the idea of ending the power of the Five Rivers in order for the enchantress to free her two innocent children who were accused wrongly of being guilty.
There was great depth to the characters and the mystery of the Allfather makes you hooked to the plot even more!

The artwork is also beautiful! The chapters and different scenes blend together perfectly. The colours and style of art compliments this action-fantasy novel very well! The ending on the graphic novel had be excited and shocked all at the same time!

Brilliant read and deserving of 5 stars!