Senzanima Dragonero: the mercenary past of a future hero

Senzanima Dragonero

It is difficult for a comic character to be presented to us in the entirety of his life. There is no lack of examples of persistent continuity, as in the case of Judge Dredd, but it is rare that more moments from the life of the protagonist are presented within a comic book saga. We may have quick flashbacks or larger narrative arcs that reveal distant moments, but usually the focus of the narrative is the present. Yet, the past is often the true matrix of the characters' intimacy, it is the forge in which our heroes are tempered, for better or for worse. It must have been this idea that prompted Luca Enoch and Stefano Vietti to give life to Dragonero Senzanima, the account of the mercenary past of Ian Aranill, the imperial scout protagonist of Bonelli's fantasy monthly Dragonero.

Within our local comic production, fantasy has always struggled to emerge. The growing interest in this genre has led the Milanese publishing house to invest in projects that see a modern vision of fantay as the protagonist of a series, giving life to Gea, a series now concluded that had made urban fantasy its narrative root. However, there was no comic that was a classic fantasy, capable of fascinating readers of classic works of the genre, while showing a new approach to this literary genre, which in recent years has shown a promising thematic evolution. From this desire was born what is now a complete and dynamic narrative setting, the flagship product of Bonelli, and capable of spanning multiple series and also reaching other media, Dragonero. The saga of the Erondar scout created by Luca Enoch and Stefano Vietti is no longer just a typically Bonellian product, but has become an experimentation bench that has brought the traditional Bonellian narrative grammar towards new elements of the entertainment world, part of a renewal of the publisher who is transforming one of the historical names of the ninth Italian art into a new multimedia reality. In this respect, the definition of Erondar as a world capable of hosting a plurality of products united by adherence to this setting represented an interesting turning point within the long experience of the Milanese publisher.

Dragonero Senzanima, the dramatic mercenary past of Ian Aranill

Dragonero Senzanima: from adolescence to maturity The Erondar of Dragonero Senzanima High caliber fantasy

Dragonero Senzanima: from adolescence to maturity

The Dragonero saga is a titanic narrative system that, with the passage of time, has been enriched more and more with chapters that go alongside the monthly series in which we live in the present by Ian Aranill. The construction of the setting in which the series takes place, the Erondar, required the two authors to embark on a progressive narrative that aimed not only at introducing readers to a fascinating adventure hero, but also helping to convey the depth of a multifaceted social context in which the events told were an integral part of a more complex narrative whole. This construction could not be limited to the characterization of the setting alone, but it had to necessarily extend to the characterization of the protagonist, the fulcrum of this universe but at the same time part of this mechanism. A dualism in which the protagonist's actions affect the world and in which what happens in the Erondar affects the hero himself.




The debut of Guerra, the first volume of Dragonero Senzanima, had immediately clarified how the monthly reading of Dragonero was nothing more than a preparatory phase of the experience with this new chapter of the character's life. The references and references to his past, often used as a polite way of weaving Ian's relations with the military circles of the Erondarian court, had hinted that the two fathers of Aranill had left nothing to chance, but rather had set up a narrative that saw in these memories, in these confessions of a past preceding his career as a scout, a new, promising journey into Ian's life.

The choice to rely on the freedom allowed by the Audace label proved to be a winning choice for Dragonero Senzanima. Enoch and Vietti did not want to keep the same emotional root as Dragonero, but they intended to tell a different chapter of Ian's existence, which was the origin of his actions in the present of the main series. The intention was to create a concept of legacy, rather than continuity, creating a progressive characterization of the life of the main character of the saga that would allow it to show echoes in the regular series, while contributing, at the same time, to the entry of new characters. The presence of Dragonero Senzanima, in fact, was central in the progressive construction of the Erondar seen in Dragonero - Il Ribelle, where the past of Ian told in Dragonero Senzanima takes on an increasingly important value.


After having lived a protected existence within the family estate, Ian must accept his destiny as a varliedart, a legacy that, through his maternal blood, binds him to a tradition of knights of legendary fame. All his childhood, as also told in Dragonero Adventures, was characterized by a subtle but constant training aimed at guiding him to this destiny.

Having reached the set age to start this life of his, Ian has a movement of rebellion that pushes him to rebel against this predestination, leading him to escape from the family home and enlist in the gang of Greevo Senzanima, one of the most lethal and infamous companies of fortune. At the outbreak of war with Merovia, the Soulless Dragonero are involved in the bloodiest theaters of battle. For the young Ian, accustomed to the comforts of a life of wealth, this radical change of life leads him to see the world in a different light. Not only as a result of the violence seen on the battlefield, but also in the relationship with his comrades in fortune and in the way the world itself takes on a different tone.


"In the two years preceding the day of my salvation, because this is how I like to remember it, before my grandfather's hand Herion tore me out of that hell, I lived one of the most incredible adventures that a country boy could ever experience "

The tone of these lines suggests that the rebellious character is still spoiled by the legacies of a childhood of ease and security has changed in contact with the brutal and concrete way of war. Vitti and Enoch have grasped this aspect in the best possible way, often pushing Ian to the limit of human brutality, forcing him to face moments of rare cruelty, both as a witness and as an actor in the violent campaign against Merovia. The two authors must be credited with having maintained consistency with the world of Dragonero, enriching it with a chapter from the protagonist's past that recounts both his growth as an individual and the vision of the Erondar, including the expansionist dynamics of this empire. .

The Erondar of Dragonero Senzanima

The tone of the presentation of Dragonero Senzanima suggests how the rebellious character but still spoiled by the legacies of a childhood of ease and security has changed to contact with the brutal and concrete way of war. Vitti and Enoch have grasped this aspect in the best possible way, often pushing Ian to the limit of human brutality, forcing him to face moments of rare cruelty, both as a witness and as an actor in the violent campaign against Merovia. The two authors must be credited with having maintained consistency with the world of Dragonero, enriching it with a chapter from the protagonist's past that recounts both his growth as an individual and the vision of the Erondar, including the expansionist dynamics of this empire. .



Accustomed to a lively narrative and more turned to world building, in which the authors' attention was on the emotional enhancement of the protagonist and his world, the reading of Dragonero Senzanima showed another face of the Erondar. In having to portray the conflict with Merovia, Enoch and Vietti wanted to focus on the brutality of the war, on its consequences not only on the young Ian, but also on his fellow soldiers and on the populations they interact with during their advance.

A dark and violent tone, which is reflected not only in the spectacular and bloody atmospheres of the tables, but also in the language, scurrilous and cynical as one would expect from a company of fortune. In the Italian panorama a similar narrative basis can be found in La Compagnia della Forca, where however the element of grotesque humor mitigated the ugliness of the mercenary life, while Dragonero Senzanima makes this element the vital root of the story, not losing an opportunity to push the young man Ian at the emotional limit. A constant construction of a tension which, except for rare moments of lightening, does not fail to impress a cynical and merciless vision of this long, exhausting military campaign.



With extreme attention, every detail is focused to convey this flawless nature of Soulless Dragonero. Not only the narrative tone and the choice to show masterfully managed elements of dark fantasy, but also a use of particularly inspired coloring, entrusted to the masterful touch of Paolo Francescutto, and the birth of a new font specifically for the series, also designed to mark a detachment with the narration of the monthly series, created by the 'lady of lettering' of the Bonelli house, Marina Sanfelice. Within the rich Bonellian offer, Dragonero Senzanima is configured as a unicum, a long-distance series which, despite having a point of arrival known to fans of the franchise, does not fail to offer a different vision of the character.

Fantasy of high caliber

The change of pace from monthly series to product aimed at a mature audience accustomed to a different vision of the ninth art has pushed the authors and the publishing house towards a graphic and editorial identity different. The approach to a 'French' edition has allowed the various designers who have approached the series to be able to grant themselves wide-ranging tables, with a free cage in which to build violent and merciless portraits of this world made of battles and ugliness of the human soul.



The chosen format allowed us to entrust the curator of the series, Luca Barbieri, to guide us in the discovery of this Erondar never seen before through the creation of editorial contents that emphasize what is read, projecting it in a broader perspective and inserted within the continuity of the series. Dragonero Senzanima is a journey still in progress, which already has a rich series of volumes:

Buy Dragonero Senzanima: Guerra on Amazon Buy Dragonero Senzanima: Fame on Amazon Buy Dragonero Senzanima: Buio on Amazon Buy Dragonero Senzanima: Jungle on Amazon Buy Senzanima Dragonero: Redemption on Amazon Buy Senzanima Dragonero: Victims on Amazon Buy Senzanima Dragonero: Siege on Amazon Buy Senzanima Dragonero: Truce on Amazon