Zenith

I am a person who lives in his emotions. There are many things that are trivial to some, but are deeply important to me. I have an emotional attachment to various digital objects. These can be in the form of a level or character in a computer game, a piece of music, a piece of art, even simple doodles an artist is quick to dismiss. These things are as important and meaningful to me as real friends and people because art is personality, and when you are struck by art, it is a connection to a person and an emotional state. Nostalgia is a lot like this, however I also feel nostalgia for things I am seeing for the first time.

So, getting to the point, I want to share with you with something I find very special to me, a comic produced by a young amateur artist as an outlet for experimentation, growth and just the sheer fun of it.

Stunningly beautiful in moments and soberingly emotional in others, the least I could do is to try bring this comic to the attention of a wider audience. But know ye this, it is highly flawed, and that is key to why it so important to me. I consume tons of digital media all the time, and I don’t feel for all of it. That which is professional and well packaged and well delivered is easy to forget once you’re done with it. It fits neatly into your busy life.

Zenith is a record of a young artist’s life for the last four years. A complete journey into maturity as she slogs it through page after page of improving art, writing, characterisation and complete depth in the story. Zenith begins with naïve enthusiasm, improvising furiously with messy writing and odd pacing.

It is a patchwork of beauty and ugliness as her skill finds itself flung from one corner to another, going from rather unsure and rushed artwork to absolute gorgeousness, and from wacky writing to solid, captivating story telling—and back again.

Nobody has asked her to do this, nobody is paying her to work on this project, it was never started as a commercial venture—where there is some kind of financial goal to work towards. It’s just to scratch an itch, to get an idea out in the open. It is the same solitary effervescence that drives me and my website (it took me five years of repeat attempts to eventually succeed in releasing this site to the public).

Like many good projects, Zenith encapsulates an idea that is greater than the whole. Like the literal meaning of the world “meme”, the comic has gotten to the stage where it defines a world beyond the confines of the comic alone. The comic is like an imperfect ‘slice’ through a world; just one of many possible angles by which to view it. For this, I can easily forgive Zenith’s flawed-by-it’s-nature approach, because I care about the characters, and I care what happens, sod the art; the fact the art is sometimes so captivating is icing to the cake.

You must forgive the awful prologue, in Kameira’s own words originally they were going to indicate Zenith’s massive love for stories, but as I went along (13 years old and attention span of a fly) I sort of forgot about that aspect. Now they lie here, dusty and useless. There’s always that gut feeling of trepidation when you start a new, large scale, project. Like you are stepping into the unknown and you have no idea how far you will have to travel, or if you will even make it. You start, fuelled almost entirely by enthusiasm and caffeine. But as things drag on—as weeks become months—it’s hard to keep at something that you never planned out properly to begin with. I’ve done this hundreds of times alone. But when months become years, that’s iron will. That’s sheer spirit pushing you along on the strength of the idea, even if the implementation is never as good as you want it.

There are many elegant aspects to the story, chapter 2 is really where it takes on its own form. The connection that’s drawn between Vethes and Aviel—these abusive personalities, one evil in intent the other intent on the greater good but the end result sounding much the same to Zenith—is so well played out. A father and mother figure drawn across time and space with Zenith caught in between. We have not seen Vethes in some while but my heart races to know what will happen when the two cross paths. This is better than The Lion King meets Finding Nemo.

So thank you Kameira. Thank you. Thank you for unfurling this story and keeping at it for these years, it has brought me great joy and I am hooked. Please, my visitors, give Zenith your time and consideration and please provide Kameira the much needed feedback and encouragement she deserves.

Kind Regards,
Kroc Camen.