A single change turns the tale of Sleeping Beauty upside down with the beginning of a dark fantasy branch off of the story of Briar Rose in “Briar” #1!
Written by Christopher CantwellCover by Germán García
Illustrated by Germán García
Colored by Matheus Lopes
Lettered by Andworld DesignWhat if Sleeping Beauty never got her happily ever after… and instead had to save herself?
Set in a brutal fantasy world that time forgot, this isn’t the fairy tale you know!
Eisner Award-nominated writer, producer, and director Christopher Cantwell (Iron Man, The United States of Captain America, Halt and Catch Fire) and rising artist Germán García (Ka-Zar: Lord of the Savage Land) reimagine the classic tale as an epic dark fantasy adventure.
Dark fantasy retelling of old fairy tales is by no means a new trend. While the versions known by way of the collections from the Brothers Grimm are definitely less sanitized than modern audiences may know from films, other writers take the original stories and warp them into something else. As such, readers can be forgiven for believing “Briar” #1 would be yet another “warping a classic tale for its own sake” story. But in actuality, how accurate is that assumption when it comes to Christopher Cantwell’s approach to the story of Sleeping Beauty?
In short, calling the result of Cantwell’s script “dark” is overly simplistic. Instead of just taking the original story and saying it was always darker, there is one significant, in some ways relatively minor change, one that makes absolutely clear that the tale of this particular version of Princess Briar Rose is quite different. Perhaps more important than that change is the fact that Cantwell acknowledges that what is happening is not what should be the case within the narration, with him making sure that the audience knows that the original intent remains, albeit not in this story. In so doing, he manages to allow darker themes into a branch off of the usual path, and to encourage the audience to feel disgust at the sheer wrongness of the world to which the princess awakens.
That said, the story that Cantwell presents is itself rather dark, even if it is not inherently a corruption of original intent. The world of “Briar” #1 includes racism (including of apparently new species outside of humans or fairies), slavery, and brutal murder. Monsters roam, be they literal such as rodents of unusual size, or even figurative ones in the form of human slavers, with the implication of other creatures beyond. Briar Rose is an intentional insomniac, not to mention she could be considered somniphobic if not for the fact that her fear of sleep is quite understandable given her magical coma. This is not a tale for the faint of heart, as would be made clear by the very reason the story took a drastic turn in the first place, namely the fate of the original storyteller. However, in spite of these moments of brutality, the result is not to beat down the fallen princess, but for her to slowly rise above them, using the darkness to show a cruel world, but one that, be it through wits, strength, or perhaps pure luck, Briar Rose can ultimately move through and make the fractured fairy tale into a hero’s journey of her very own.
Germán García’s artwork is absolutely beautiful, filling two different sides of a spectrum at different points. When the story appears to be a classic fairy tale, the line work is soft and rounded, catering to the idea of it all being almost a dream. The ink seems relatively light, and the overall effect almost appears like the panels are downplayed variations on stained glass. It feels almost fanciful, and too good to be true.
By contrast, after darkness falls upon the tale, García’s illustrations are much more detailed, focusing in on deeper shadows and evil. The angles shown emphasize an underlying menace, a terror that pervades the world. By utilizing added detail, closer shots of important characters, and the aforementioned perspectives, García invites an unsettling sense of not knowing what is next, but also excitement to find out the answer to the implied question of what there is to discover in the world around Briar Rose herself. Gore is rather disturbing due to both its detail and the limitation of how much it is shown, emphasizing the way that the world is not as it likely should be in the fallen kingdom.
Continued belowThe colors from Matheus Lopes really draw out the true tone of these two completely different time periods, to the point that they almost feel like different stories altogether. In the classic pages and panels showing what would be the usual, familiar story, Lopes uses soft, bright colors, one that give feelings of warmth and joy, or in the very least some form of comfort. Readers can feel Briar Rose’s satisfaction, and that of much of the kingdom’s ruling family. That feeling becomes a bit disturbed by the turning point, but the contrast is played up rather well by not changing the color palette.
It is when the story of “Briar” #1 shifts entirely into new territory that Lopes alters the palette completely. Gone are the comforting lights of the sun and related images, replaced entirely by blues, greens, and even fiery reds or oranges that are harsh, cold, and terrifying. Even before the princess opens her eyes once more, there is, as mentioned before, a sense of a complete change from what should be, to what will be going forward. Deep shadows feel overwhelming, splashes of red blood shockingly presented after the relatively gentle past. Even the brightness of a campfire feels oppressive when contrasted against the way light was dealt with in the earlier pages of this origin issue.
Final Verdict: 7.5– A fascinating origin sets itself apart from many other dark takes on famous fairy tales.
