Rising Sand is a webcomic series by Ty Dunitz and Jenn Lee. With luminescent artwork and multi-layered storytelling. This looks to become a solid classic and obligatory reading material if it isn’t already.
The story centers around two well-intentioned hustlers who live in the outskirts of Ras Huran which is a port city in a world named Erj. The youngest is a witty and resourceful 13-year-old female Sylph named Dal. Dal ran away from her family to survive out on her own in the hustle and bustle life of the shanty and crowded port city. She survives by thieving and hustling through the local markets. Her friend and protector, Qebrus is the muscle of the two. He believes if he collects enough wealth (gold and glass being of value), he can make it to a heavenly afterlife and become one with the Luminous Body cult.
The story is still relatively new and jumps between the symbiotic journey of Dal and Qebrus and Dal’s troubled older sister Ro. Ro is a 25-year-old young woman who’s a member of the Astral Templar. A small group of zealots who defend the moral and religious core of her Sylph race. Anyone who is a non-believer or seeks to disgrace the culture gets torn to shreds. She delights too much in the violence. So much so that her fellow Templars find it problematic. The Templar Mission Council seem to also be taking notice of her blood-thirst. Will she find herself having to answer for her behavior? Maybe, maybe not. I look forward to finding out how this plays out.
The world is fleshed out in such a manner that one gets the sense of an almost hopelessness for the people within this realm. It feels like they live in a post-POST apocalyptic world, where there are no forests, there are no birds, no sense of life that flourishes anywhere. Even the rich are managing in some way to stay above the fray. Week by week the world is expanding methodically before us, but consistent is this sense of vast yet claustrophobic tension I get when reading it. 
Another thing that jumps out is the collision course that is being masterfully established between Dal’s ultra-violent older sister and Dal and Qebrus. The tension between the two sisters was established in a flashback. We still don’t know the specifics of what exactly caused Dal to run away but we can imagine that it has much to do with her sister as her frustration with her people’s religious obsessions. Ro is impatient with anything and everyone, so I can almost see where this is possibly going. The story already has sunk it’s teeth into me, so I have to find out what’s going to end up happening. A great job is being done to set the stage for something dramatic and ultra brutal. The reason why I feel this extremely graphic incident is almost inevitable is because it’s been already illustrated to us that this is capable of happening in this world. One particular scene that introduces her sister Ro shows us that without hesitation. It’s just one scene, but the extremely efficient and sufficient enough to let us know that this story will not hold back on showing us the finality to its characters. What I love about the use of violence in this web-series is that they use it deliberately and purposefully. It’s not done loosely, but as an element vital to the story structure, so when we see it, it’s mandated. So far there’s only been one scene like that and it’s had a lasting effect.
I’m enjoying this webcomic so far. Tu Dunitz (writer) is really doing an excellent job establishing the setting, the character, and their trajectory. Its characters are already people I care about and worry about. The tragic character of Ro is someone I’m already interested in delving deeper into. I’m worried for our main characters when they inevitably run into this psychopath. The comic has a dream-like lamination about it due to the blissful design, coloring and inks done by Ty Dunitz and the psychedelic nature of the design, pencils and inks done by Jenn Lee . The characters seem to twist in the wind and in our mind as we canvas the panels. I feel like I had a dream about this other world with its unbearably dry heat and alien-like food and architecture only to wake up feeling like I returned transformed by my travel there.
I can’t recommend this comic book enough. It’s comic and dialogue structure perpetually feeds into it’s expanding world. I’m confident in saying that reading through this webcomic will transport you to a place that seems familiar and alien at once. The basic elements and troubles of these people and their polarized living conditions make it something any reader can recognize. They’ve done an excellent job setting us up for some kind of a crash at some point. That’s why I’m going to continue reading this. I can’t wait to see it finally happen. I’m sure when it does, it will leave an indelible mark. This is why we love webcomics!
You can check out Rising-Sand at: http://risingsand.glass/
Follow the webcomic on Twitter at: https://twitter.com/therisingsand
Also check out Tu Dunitz at: https://twitter.com/glitchritual
And Jenn Lee at: https://twitter.com/y2jenn
Support their amazing creative efforts on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/risingsand
Duran Rivera
As an Illustrator, Writer, and Entrepreneur, I’ve had the boundless pleasure to work with various talents and creative organizations. Add me on Instagram @ Drnriv or on Facebook: www.facebook.com/DuranimusPrime
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