Genius: Siege (Comics) | Review

What happens when Napoleon's strategic brilliance manifests in a 17-year-old from South Central Los Angeles? Adam Freeman and Marc Bernardin answer that with devastating clarity in Genius: Siege. This isn't another coming-of-age story against urban struggle. It's a war thriller where the protagonist holds all tactical advantages.

The series won Top Cow's 2008 Pilot Season but took six years to reach publication. That delay proved prophetic. By 2014, America was grappling with Ferguson protests and police violence scrutiny, making Destiny's war feel less like fiction and more like inevitable collision.

Destiny Ajaye watched police kill her parents as a child. Instead of breaking, she sharpened herself into something far more dangerous. This collection gathers the original Pilot Season issue plus the five-part weekly mini-series that launched in 2014. Artist Afua Richardson brings South Central to life with unflinching raw realism.

Destiny Ajaye possesses military genius that appears once in a generation. Her intellect rivals history's greatest tacticians but circumstances placed her in South Central rather than West Point. Growing up surrounded by gang violence taught her lessons most generals never learn.

After years navigating street politics and gang hierarchies, Destiny makes an impossible decision. She unites rival gangs across racial and territorial lines, forging them into a disciplined fighting force with purpose. Then she does the unthinkable: she secedes three blocks of South Central from the Union and declares war on LAPD.

The premise sounds absurd until you watch her execute it. Destiny doesn't throw bodies at a problem. She studies police tactics, identifies weaknesses and exploits them with precision. Every ambush, retreat, feint serves a larger tactical objective most people can't see.

Detective Reginald Grey becomes the story's Fox Mulder. For years he warned superiors about someone uniting gangs, building an army under their noses. Nobody believed him. They laughed him out of meetings and dismissed his theories as nonsense until body bags piled up.

The violence escalates quickly as Destiny's forces dismantle SWAT teams and elite tactical units. Bernardin and Freeman don't glorify the bloodshed but don't shy away from consequences. Both sides suffer losses. The body count rises with each engagement, forcing readers to face some uncomfortable questions about revolution.

What makes Siege compelling isn't tactical warfare. It's watching Destiny grapple with command. She sends people to die for her vision, carries that burden and questions whether cost justifies outcome. Her genius separates her from everyone, even those fighting beside her.

The team frames Destiny's war as statement rather than sustainable victory. She knows she can't win against law enforcement. But she can force the world to acknowledge her community matters, that ignoring systemic problems carries consequences nobody wants to face.

Supporting characters like Gerald and Chavonne provide necessary perspective on Destiny's leadership. They believe in her vision enough to risk everything but they're also watching their friends die for abstract ideals. Their loyalty gets tested repeatedly as casualties mount and the endgame remains unclear to everyone but Destiny.

The story contextualizes Destiny's actions within discussions about police violence, racism and community empowerment. Published in 2014 around Ferguson, Siege feels uncomfortably prescient. The issues it tackles have only become more urgent and acknowledged.

Bernardin and Freeman refuse to make Destiny heroic. She manipulates, sacrifices pawns and crosses boundaries most would never consider. Her motivations remain understandable even when methods disturb. She's fighting a system designed to crush her community.

The collection ends with consequences rather than resolution. Destiny's siege forces a reckoning but lasting change requires more than tactical victories. This arc serves as foundation for Genius: Cartel, which picks up with Destiny imprisoned in a government facility for prodigies, facing new battles on different terrain.

Afua Richardson delivers career-defining work. Her South Central feels lived-in and authentic, capturing beauty and brutality without romanticizing. Character designs balance distinctive features with realistic proportions, making background characters feel like actual people.

Richardson excels at action choreography, rendering combat with kinetic energy that never sacrifices clarity. You can track every tactical movement and understand spatial relationships between combatants. Her panel layouts control pacing brilliantly, using varied compositions to build tension during quieter planning moments.

The color work enhances mood. Richardson employs muted palettes for planning sequences, then shifts to harsher lighting during combat. Night scenes feel dark and dangerous. Every visual choice serves the narrative rather than existing for purely aesthetic reasons.

Bernardin and Freeman's script crackles with authenticity and raw energy. The dialogue sounds natural without falling into stereotype, giving characters distinct voices that reveal personality. Destiny speaks with measured precision, while her lieutenants bring different communication styles reflecting their very unique backgrounds.

Genius: Siege succeeds as both gripping military thriller and unflinching social commentary. Bernardin, Freeman and Richardson craft a story that refuses easy answers while delivering spectacular tactical warfare. The creative team treats their subject matter with respect.

This collection works best for readers who appreciate morally complex protagonists willing to explore uncomfortable territory without easy answers. The violence serves narrative purpose but remains graphic and deeply unsettling. Destiny's methods force difficult questions about revolution and whether ends justify the means.

Richardson's artwork elevates already strong writing into something truly memorable. Her visual storytelling matches the script's intensity, creating a complete aesthetic experience. Every panel choice contributes to building a world that feels dangerously real and immediate.

The timing of Siege's publication in 2014 proved both blessing and curse. The story resonated powerfully amid heated national conversations about police violence. Networks reportedly struggled adapting it for television, uncomfortable with depicting police officers as antagonists regardless of narrative context or thematic depth.