Writer: Kurtis J. Wiebe
Artist: Roc Upchurch
$9.99, Image Comics, 128 pgs.
ISBN 978-1607069454
Imagine the stalwart band of heroic adventurers headlining your traditional sword and sorcery tale: the kind of troupe you'd encounter in, say, The Lord of the Rings, or your average game of Dungeons & Dragons. Now, re-imagine that group as a team of wise-cracking, booze-swilling women equipped with weapons, magic, and attitude to spare, and you've got RAT QUEENS. Series creators Wiebe and Upchurch have taken a collection of classic fantasy tropes and stood them on their ear, simply by viewing the material from a female perspective as opposed to the male paradigm that typically dominates heroic fantasy. And the result is an absolute blast.
Our heroines are but one band of mercenaries inhabiting their world, a place where parties of adventurers compete to score choice adventure opportunities (modern freelancers, regardless of the field, will almost certainly empathize). Of course, in the Rat Queens' line of work, disgruntled associates don't just sabotage your career...they cast dark magic in your direction and dispatch monsters to devour you whole. Unfortunately for the Rat Queens—but great for the reader!—our heroines have no shortage of enemies and rivals.
A fresh take on a genre that relies too often on business as usual, RAT QUEENS is snarky, funny, exciting, and violently over-the-top, yet strangely poignant: the book never forgets its characters are people. Frankly, if more role-playing games and fantasy books were executed like this comic, I'd be a much bigger fan of the genre.
TIPS FOR LIBRARIANS: It's yet another $9.99 volume one from Image Comics! This pricing strategy is perfect for libraries and for the publisher: you get a cheap graphic novel for your shelves, they create a bunch of new readers. Everyone wins!There's a RAT QUEENS TV series in the making, so get this book on your shelves before the media hype machine kicks into gear.
READERS' ADVISORY NOTES: Suggest this one to fantasy readers, fans of role-playing games (odds are, you've got a group playing in your library!), and those who prefer their comics female-driven. The series' humor and violence will appeal to those who like their comics a little bit on the subversive side, too.
CONTENT ADVISORY: Adult language/themes, fantasy violence and blood
Review©2014, C. Michael Hall.
READERS' ADVISORY NOTES: Suggest this one to fantasy readers, fans of role-playing games (odds are, you've got a group playing in your library!), and those who prefer their comics female-driven. The series' humor and violence will appeal to those who like their comics a little bit on the subversive side, too.
CONTENT ADVISORY: Adult language/themes, fantasy violence and blood
Review©2014, C. Michael Hall.
Sounds like a fun read. Image had a great booth at ALA conference. Tons of freebies.
ReplyDeleteThat doesn't surprise me. Image has long understood that indie comics thrive in libraries, and they have a much more diverse product line than those produced by the Big Two.
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