As I started this new issue of “Rat Queens,” I thought it would be fun and disposable. After a half dozen artists, a renumbering, and loads of other changes, the book had sort of lost its identity. The crackling energy of those early issues had subsided and “Rat Queens” slid into a routine, which would spell death for a book like this. Halfway through though, the issue picked up, and by the end I was fully back on board.
Written by Kurtis WiebeCover by Owen Gieni
Illustrated by Owen Gieni
Lettered by Ryan Ferrier‘THE COLOSSAL MAGIC NOTHING,’ Part One Having escaped the nefarious clutches of the insidious trickster Castiwyr, the Rat Queens return to Palisade with piles of gold and are in a mood to party. But Palisade has a new resident: a strange wizard that wishes to end the suffering of others. Forever.
The issue starts from the perspective of Madeline, the daughter of a retired Bard. Together the two run a tavern, but in her spare time, young Madeline worships the Rat Queens. This all feels like well trod plot. What superhero book doesn’t do the old “kid wishes to be the hero but learns to be careful what they wish for” bit? Hell, that’s the plot of The Incredibles.
I enjoyed slipping back into the world of “Rat Queens,” with all of its casual Dungeons &Dragons references and all of its cussing and drug use. The debate between Hannah and Braga about magic vs might, is classic table-talk. My two most regular D&D players constantly bicker about the merits of axes or boomfingers. Betty tells the Queens about a quest, and away they go.
“Rat Queens” has always been the book that Kurtis Wiebe has the best voices for. He clearly loves these characters, and manages to find interesting words for them to say, even if the topic is a little dull. As they walk through the woods, Betty asks the Queens if they would rather find true love, or live alone but understand themselves. The conversation that follows has all the subtlety of an axe to the face, but Wiebe clearly has taken the time to develop all of their answers.
Then they find a magical psychedelic toad and everything gets amazing. Owen Gieni’s artwork has a style not unlike old-school “Dungeons and Dragons” comic, but a bit more painterly. As the Rat Queens enter the realm of magic mushrooms though, the style changes completely. I mean completely. Everyone is drawn as 1930s cartoon-style versions of themselves, a total redesign that’s somewhere between “Uncle Scrooge” and Cuphead. Not only are the character designs wildly different, the panels become rounded, and flow more easily, like a vintage Disney funnybook.
The effect is so (intentionally) jarring, I had to go back to the credits to see if these pages were by a different artist. They are not. Not only is Gieni credited with penciling every page in the book, he evidently did all the colors as well. Tim Daniel is credited with Frame Design, which implies that he at least assisted on the different shapes of the panels, but color me impressed.
With so many different artists lending their style to “Rat Queens” over the last few years (my personal favorite were the issues by Stjepan Sejic), it’s hard to get overly excited about yet another new one. Gieni is doing excellent work here. He also has worked on a number of other gorgeous Image books, including doing the colors for “Shutter.” He’s a superstar, and carries the book with his pencils and inks.
I had a good time with this issue, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that I was ready to re-commit to “Rat Queens.” The end of the issue may have changed that. We return to Madeline, and what happens is a little too predictable to call a twist, but I’m happy to call it a hook. You’re going to want to grab the next issue to see how the Queens get out of this one. I know that I’d fallen squarely off of “Rat Queens,” but I think this is the issue that dragged me back in.
Continued belowI will admit that Wiebe has gotten a bit complacent with this series. He loves the characters, and loves putting them into weird situations, but comics need to be more than a series of disconnected incidents. As anyone who’s played D&D knows, that can make for a fun campaign, but the ones that really stick with you do so because they’re like any good series. They’re full of twists and turns and character beats. There’s just enough of an element of randomness to keep you on your toes.
Owen Gieni is that x-factor. After a period of contentedly rolling tens, Gieni grabbed the dice and rolled a critical 20. As long as he keeps getting crazy, discordant sequences to draw, “Rat Queens” will be a book that can capture its own initial excitement.
Final Verdict: 8.5 – I came looking for a magic missile, but what I found was more of a delayed blast fireball. It takes a while to get there, but when it does, it’s magical.
