Victory for Ukraine, a new comics anthology due out in print on Sept. 27, seeks to humanize the ongoing war in the country, doing so via nine stories from Ukrainian creators.
Published by Tokyo Pop, the anthology is available now digitally. Today, The Beat has a 4-page excerpt from of one of the book’s stories, Ghost of Kyiv, as well as an exclusive note from Eduard Akhramovych, one of the book’s producers. In the piece, Akhramovych shares insights about how the book was produced, as well as stories about the circumstances in which the creators were working.
You can find the excerpt below, followed by the note…
And now the note…
My name is Eduard Akhramovych, and I’m the Founder of the Ukraine-based creative company, ART NATION, and General Producer of the ПЕРЕМОГА: VICTORY FOR UKRAINE graphic novel anthology.
Many people in the West think that the invasion and atrocities that been happening in Ukraine only began in February, but in reality, they have been happening for almost 8 years, going back to Russia’s unprovoked invasion/annexation of Crimea in 2014. The memorable events of the first difficult weeks of the Ukrainian-Russian war of 2022 and the heroism and ingenuity of ordinary Ukrainians inspired me to merge them into several stories, mixing myths and real events to immortalize moments of this brutal and bloody war on pages of a comics.
Originally created to rally and inspire my countrymen, ПЕРЕМОГА: VICTORY FOR UKRAINE is now able to be read by people in the West thanks to TOKYOPOP, and my company ART NATION – which creates at the intersection of art, marketing, and innovation – is honored to have these stories be accessible to a global audience. This book was created under extremely difficult circumstances with air raids and constant bombardment by Russian aircraft and artillery. But our desire to stand for freedom and to use art and the comics medium to deliver something unique and impactful is unstoppable.
The events that inspired stories such as “Zmiinyi Island 13”, the iconic battle for Snake Island, where a band of brave Ukrainian soldiers defied the Russian navy, and “Azovstal”, the siege of the Avostal Steel Plant in Mariupol, are widely known in the West. But others, like the story of a brave Ukrainian farm tractor stealing Russian tanks, or “The Witch”, how Russian soldiers meet a vengeful Ukrainian witch on a deserted road, are lesser known, but equally poignant and inspiring.
I invite people around the world to read ПЕРЕМОГА: VICTORY FOR UKRAINE, to think about the challenges to civil society from authoritarian states and to join us as we defend freedom and democracy and as we continue to create art in the face of dark forces.
