I’m just going to get this out of the way right off the bat: I already love this book. See, I’ve been a gamer for most of my natural life. I was ten the first time I played a game of Dungeons & Dragons. It’s been a while since I’ve played it regularly, but even at 35 I’m still a huge fan and some of my fondest memories of gatherings with friends come from long D&D sessions.
My history burdens me with a natural predilection toward fantasy stories. And although I love very traditional high fantasy fare, I can’t help but be tickled by anachronistic stories like The Princess Bride and Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters. In the comics world, it’s why I love Skullkickers so much, and now Rat Queens fits right into that canon for me.
Kurtis J Weibe, author of the critically acclaimed Peter Panzerfaust, hits all the right notes in this opening issue. The story centers around a group of mercenary ne’er-do-wells who, in order to avoid a dungeon sentence for destructive activity in Palisade’s town square, take on a simple sweep-and-clear of goblin caverns outside the city. What should’ve been a simple job turns complicated quickly, and that little twist is where we’re left hanging at the end.
Weibe doesn’t bother with stilted language or the typical medieval trappings of the fantasy genre, instead peppering the pages with modern language and hilarious epithets. At one point, Hannah uses a magical communication device that operates like a cell phone, receiving a poorly-timed call from her parents.
And it all works. Rat Queens knows what it is right from the start and doesn’t try to be anything else. There’s never a point where the story feels stilted or traditional, so you’re never really worried about the language or the modernized bits, because you just expect them to be there. The story revels in what it is without claiming to be something it’s not, and that makes it a wonderfully fun read.
Roc Upchurch, whose previous work includes the Image title Vescell, is a perfect fit for the style of Rat Queens. While I could go on for a while about the dynamism of his action scenes or his beautiful and unique renderings of each of the Queens, I’m going to focus for a moment on what I think is the most important aspect of his work: facial expressions.
There is so much sarcastic comedy in this book that would completely fall apart if the artist weren’t capable of rendering the appropriate expressions, and Upchurch just nails them all. From Betty’s dreamy-eyed remembrance to Violet’s mild annoyance to Hannah’s well-practiced bitchface, everything is right on key without being over the top. Rat Queens is littered with these little subtleties, and Upchurch’s renderings knock Weibe’s comedy out of the park.
Issue #1, and I’m hooked.
