Illustrated in traditional manga style, Runaway Mayhem, available from ShortBox Comics Fair, is an examination of humanity’s attempt to desperately cling to life. The tenacity of the human spirit may be admirable, but what if we’ve already tried to learn the secrets of immortality? And what if we failed? From UK up-and-comer Zen K. comes a chilling take on the sci-fi trope of artificial intelligence gaining cognisance, and where that leaves fallible humans.
Runaway Mayhem begins with an omniscient narrator telling us about a terrible event that happened many years ago, in which humanity almost became extinct. Involving automatons, blood and disease, the event was named ‘The Humanity Conservation Project’. And yet, no records of the event still exist. Now considered an urban legend, our protagonist Kido is fascinated that robots may have once gained human-like consciousness and is one of the few who still genuinely believes that it happened. It seems that his theory has finally been proven when he comes across a real-life automaton, Eraks, who remembers all too well what happened all those years ago…
The sci-fi drama plot of Runaway Mayhem was incredibly intriguing. During this day and age, the use of artificial intelligence is often a heated point of discussion. Whether you are for or against it, the idea that something robotic and human-made could achieve human intelligence is both intriguing and terrifying. It is also fascinating to question what it is that fundamentally makes us human. The story was left open-ended allowing for potential new additions, which will be hugely exciting for indie sci-fi fans.
This is Zen’s first time exhibiting at a comic festival, and, in my opinion, it has been a triumph. So, show her some love and purchase Runaway Mayhem, available exclusively at ShortBox Digital Comic Fair this October!
Zen K. (W/A) • ShortBox Comics Fair, £5.00
Review by Lydia Turner
