The Beat is pleased to offer exclusive looks at full first chapters from manga publisher Saturday AM’s catalog of comics featuring diverse creators and characters. Today’s look is at Nigerian cartoonist Odunze Oguguo‘s Apple Black, part of the publisher’s Saturday AM line, which follows a young sorcerer destined to become the savior of the world.
Here’s how Saturday AM describes Apple Black:
Raised in isolation to be the world’s savior known as the Trinity, young sorcerer Sano ventures out to train with other talented magic-users just as evil emerges again to threaten the world.
Many years ago, humans acquired fruits called “Black” from a tree that descended from the skies, which turned humans into sorcerers. Although all of Black is now extinct, humans still have sorcery inherited from their ancestors. As generations go by, the effects of Black in the bloodline diminishes and sorcerers use a variety of objects as “wands” to harness their magical power. Blessed by “Merlin,” the god of sorcery, with the Arodihs arm, Sano, a young sorcerer, has the ultimate wand. He is raised and trained in isolation and secrecy to be the world’s savior known as the Trinity. The savior is believed to be the one who dawns the Infinite Night, an eternal night of chaos.
Sano begins his training amongst a group of other talented new magic-users where many already know his name. Sano gets a fiery start after being admitted to Black Bottom Island’s guild for young sorcerers with his newfound freedom. As his fellow gifted allies and sorcerers accompany Sano on his quest, the treachery, betrayal, and evil that have plagued nearly all of Eden emerge again to threaten the world. Can Sano survive the threats on his young life?
Check out the exclusive look at the first full chapter of Apple Black below. The series is serialized in Saturday AM’s Saturday AM digital magazine. Three print volume collections of the series are currently available in stores, with a fourth set to arrive in early November 2023.
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