Hawkmoon: The Battle of the Kamarg Review

 

Hawkmoon: The Battle of the Kamarg Review

Story: Michael Moorcock

Writer: Jérôme Le Gris

Artists: Benoît Dellac & Didier Poli

Colorist: Bruno Tatti

Letterer: Lauren Bowes

Translator: Marc Bourbon-Crook

Assistant: Angélina Rodrigues

Editor: Ibraheem Kazi

Designer: Oz Browne

Publisher: Titan Comics

Hardcover Price: $19.99

Release Date: March 17, 2026

 

Baron Meliadus doesn't fight fair. But then, he can't afford to. He wants to retain his position in the Granbretan Empire at any cost. Count Brass could ensure Meliadus' future. But after a life spent propping up weak leaders and tearing down kingdoms, the weary soldier wants to care for his beautiful and serene province.

 

So, the Baron hatches a plan. Dorian Hawkmoon, the former Duke of Köln, will be his tool to secure the Count's agreement to become Meliadus' military advisor. But will Dorian Hawkmoon play along? And if Dorian resists, will the enchanted stone in his forehead destroy the man who lost his family and his country to Baron Meliadus? Let’s grab our swords, leap into Hawkmoon: The Battle of the Kamarg, and see!

 

Story

When Lieutenant Von Villach brings Count Brass to inspect their uninvited guest, the ruler of this final outpost of freedom asks Hawkmoon about his family. After Baron Meliadus’ attempted abduction of Yisselda, Count Brass refuses to accept foreign visitors at face value. Still, Von Villach worries when Count Brass dismisses the guards.

 

Count Brass does not welcome the news of Lyon's recent downfall. Nor does he dismiss his advisors' warnings about the Granbretan Empire's Human Rights violations. Unifying their divided world cannot justify nearly losing Yisselda and Lyon's destruction. And then there is the Black Jewel fixed upon Dorian Hawkmoon's forehead, another symbol of the Empire's ruthlessness.

 

Jérôme Le Gris’ adaptation of Michael Moorcock’s novel takes place in a distant future. Nuclear war has destroyed all the old nations of Earth. Smaller principalities squabble over resources. All the accumulated knowledge of the old world has passed away. And as science rises again, so does magic.

 

Few people understand the forces that rule their world. So as Count Brass prepares for war with the Granbretan Empire, Councilor Bowgentle devotes his limited knowledge of Magience to grant Hawkmoon a reprieve from Kalan's control. Count Brass needs to ensure that Kalan, Baron Meliadus, and King-Emperor Huon cannot monitor events via the Black Jewel. But unless Hawkmoon can find someone better schooled in Magience, the former Duke of Köln will lose his mind and suffer an agonizing death in Hawkmoon: The Battle of the Kamarg.

 

Art

Giant flamingoes soar over a majestic city arising from the surrounding wetlands. As the camera descends through towers, pillars, and elevated walkways, soldiers surround Dorian Hawkmoon on a circular platform over a pool. The deposed Duke, hands bound behind him, kneels before Count Brass and his advisors. From a landing, Yisselda gazes down past the immense statues as soldiers in sculpted plate armor guard Hawkmoon with spears.

 

Benoît Dellac and Didier Poli’s detailed art conveys the historic grandeur that Count Brass strives to protect. The Count’s advisors and daughter wear sturdy clothing that would serve them well in battle as they dine. Count Brass, Yisselda, Hawkmoon, and the Baron's advisors regard each other with guarded expressions in the sweeping, open-air dining room. Later, Hawkmoon and Yisselda stand atop the palace, looking out over the city and surrounding moors. Small moments—Yisselda and Hawkmoon’s gazes, their hands placed near each other but not touching—bespeak their frustration over being tools in Baron Meliadus’ schemes, and perhaps something more.

 

Surrounded by the blue-and-green wetlands, Bruno Tatti applies a restrained palette of greens, reds, browns, and golds on Count Brass’s stronghold. After suffering torture in Baran Kalan’s dark tower, Hawkmoon braves the black columns and monochromatic stone tiles dominating Bowgentle’s laboratory. The black stone glows purple when Bowgentle tinkers with forces he doesn’t completely understand. And in a vision, gold runes shine on a dark staff.

 

Beige parchment banners denote time and space, while black uppercase letters in white balloons and boxes portray dialogue. The words grow bold with intonation, swell for raised voices, and shrink for lowered voices. The balloon arrows often arc like lightning, while sound effects heighten the conflict threatening Count Brass’s redoubt of peace. Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

In Jérôme Le Gris’ adaptation of Michael Moorcock’s novel, Count Brass realizes Baron Meliadus no longer seeks his advice and leadership. As the ruler of the Kamarg prepares the city of Aigues-Mortes for war, the Count mobilizes his forces, hoping to hold off his overwhelming enemy. Yet while King-Emperor Huon mobilizes a fleet of ornithopters, Councilor Bowgentle utilizes the machinery of a past age to defend their tiny principality in Hawkmoon: The Battle of the Kamarg.

 

Rating 9.6/10

 

To look inside see my preview of Hawkmoon: The Battle of the Kamarg. 

 

For how this series began, see my review of Hawkmoon: The Black Jewel. 

Hawkmoon: The Black Jewel Review

 

Story: Michael Moorcock

Writer: Jérôme Le Gris

Artist: Benoît Dellac & Didier Poli

Colorist: Bruno Tatti

Letterer: Lauren Bowes

Publisher: Titan Comics

Hardcover Price: $19.99

Release Date: July 15, 2025

 

After scientists unlock the power of the atom, nuclear warfare ushers in a new Dark Age. But from the shadows of the Old World, a new one arises. Small kingdoms vie for power among their neighbors until a unifying force emerges. As the Romans who once planted their flag on Britain’s shores, the Granbretan Empire sweeps across the land like a relentless machine of conquest, harvesting small countries and devouring their captured resources to take over more.

 

What happens when Baron Meliadus leads imperial forces against the duchy of Köln? And how will Dorian Hawkmoon, the Duke of Köln, factor into the Baron’s insatiable bid for power? Let’s grab our swords, leap into Hawkmoon: The Black Jewel, and see!

 

Story

As a general of the Granbretan Empire, Baron Meliadus of Kroiden serves as the strong right arm of King-Emperor Huon. But he recognizes that it is one thing to take power, and another to hold it. So, the Baron sets his sights on gaining an advisor who has spent his life commanding armies and upholding smaller kingdoms.

 

When he visits the Duchy of Kamarg, Count Brass welcomes his esteemed visitor. Baron Meliadus seeks a peace treaty between the Empire and Kamarg. But Count Brass distrusts formal relations. Although he longs for a unified world, Count Brass has seen enough of international conflict and governments flawed by power-hungry leaders in Hawkmoon: The Black Jewel. Unlike his advisors, Count Brass doesn’t condemn the Granbretan Empire’s Human Rights abuses. Still, he prefers to keep Kamarg strong and fiercely independent.

 

Baron Meliadus didn’t get where he is by taking no for an answer. After Count Brass refuses to forge an accord with him, he seeks a way to gain power over the Count. His thoughts turn to Dorian Hawkmoon, who is now his prisoner. But the way the Baron conquered Köln doesn’t incline Hawkmoon to work with Meliadus either. So, the Baron consigns Hawkmoon to Baron Kalan’s care. He knows that Kalan, his chief scientist, can convince Hawkmoon to work for him.

 

In Hawkmoon: The Black Jewel, science and magic have merged into a powerful tool for rebuilding society. While a master of Magience, Baron Kalan admits that he still has much to learn. But he knows how to make Dorian Hawkmoon his puppet. By implanting a black stone in Hawkmoon’s forehead, Baron Kalan can see everything he does via his Magience Mirror. And if Baron Kalan sees the slightest disobedience, he can jerk Hawkmoon’s strings and force the Duke of Köln to dance in accordance with Baron Meliadus’ desires.

 

Art

In Benoît Dellac and Didier Poli's future world, cavalry clad in blood-splattered plate armor wield swords and lances. The knights carry shields and raise their heraldic flags as they charge past the burning buildings of Köln. Ornithopters fly above the elevated streets as Dorian Hawkmoon leads his troops toward a medieval cathedral.

 

After the battle, Baron Meladius visits the city of Aigues-Mortes, with its grand white and gold buildings topped by green domes. Inside the palace, Count Brass rests an arm on Lieutenant Von Villach's shoulder as he studies a mural charting the European world. As Meliadus, clad in his leather dress uniform, argues for unification, Councilor Bowgentle peers over glasses equipped with magnifying lenses and frowns in Hawkmoon: The Black Jewel.

 

Bruno Tatti portrays the dark empire's destruction of Köln with yellows, oranges, and brown. Vibrant greenery greets the bright, clear skies over the Kamarg, filling the city with radiance. But even more than Köln, the dark towers rise above Londra to pierce a brown sky. Green glowing windows fail to dispel the pervading darkness, while yellow streetlamps evoke spears. Instead of reclining in a plush apartment, Hawkmoon hangs from his wrists and lower legs in a windowed room filled with black and green.

 

Beige parchment banners locate us in time and space, while black uppercase letters in white balloons and boxes portray dialogue. The characters’ conversations grow bold with intonation. Words swell for raised voices, and shrink for lowered voices. Sound effects heighten battles and arguments as Dorian Hawkmoon watches a device descend, clamp onto his forehead, and implant a stone in his bloodied forehead. Thanks to Titan Comics for providing a review copy.

 

Final Thoughts

Once, Britain was a land ruled by warring tribes. Cities vied for dominance among their neighbors, and would-be kings struggled to unite the island through bloody conquest. Michael Moorcock charts the abuses of power that, over time, craft nations capable of compassionately addressing the needs of their citizens in his novel, The Jewel in the Skull. While drawing on the darker aspects of Moorcock's Elric saga, Jérôme Le Gris portrays Dorian Hawkmoon as a warrior fueled by anger and vengeance while adapting the early chapters of Michael Moorcock's novel in Hawkmoon: The Black Jewel.

 

Rating 9.2/10

 

To look inside see my preview of Hawkmoon: The Black Jewel.