As I chip away at Robin Hobb's Farseer Trilogy, I've been reading some of the comics I bought over Christmas with my Chapters win. As I mentioned in my post about The Autumnlands, I don't know too much about comics. I grew on Star Wars comics, and that was about it! I've never really been a fan of superheroes, and when it comes to comics, my genre preference seems to be very narrow, I only want to read fantasy. When it comes to literature, I've read and enjoy almost every genre, with the exception of mystery and crime, but of course, fantasy had always been a favourite (surprise, surprise). But having very little knowledge of comics and where to start, and what I'd enjoy, I ended up buying the few fantasy-themed comics I could find, a few of them being the Rat Queens volumes.
Rat Queens is very comedic comic that features a group of four women including Hannah the Rockabilly Elven Mage, Violet the Hipster Dwarven Fighter, Dee the Atheist Human Cleric and Betty the Hippy Smidgen Thief (Goodreads). This first volume finds the girls fighting off hired assassins sent to kill them to make Palisade, their home, a less hostile place. Not that the Rat Queens are in any way villainous, they just drink and party... and brawl... and things get destroyed in the process. The story is written by Kurtis J. Wiebe and illustrated by Roc Upchurch, and like The Autumnlands, is published by Image Comics (the same company that publishes The Walking Dead).
Rat Queens has had really good reviews since appearing in 2014, and while I was doing my research, searching for fantasy-themed comics, everyone suggested Rat Queens. As far as the story went... I liked it, but, I didn't like it quite as much as I did The Autumnlands. And I think that has to do with the fact that Rat Queens is heavy on the comedy. Personally, I'm too fond of comedies, I love wit and sarcasm, and consider myself a funny person, but when it comes to movies and books, I just... never seem to like comedy. The only comedies I do like are indie ones, Wes Anderson style, super quirky and awkward. While the artworks and character building is really well done in Rat Queens, it was just too comedic for my liking.
I was also very divided on the characters. I LOVED Hannah and Dee, their characters brought so much intrigue and mystery with them, I wanted to know more about them, learn about their pasts. I wanted to learn why Dee had forsaken her religious upbringing, why Hannah was so emotionally closed off. But the other two I never warmed up to. I'm about half way through volume two as I write this, and I can say that Violet's given a lot more depth and is slowly coming around for me, but as for Betty... I don't like her. And really it's just because Betty is the comedic relief. I like a heavy story. I like gloomy endings and devastating plot, it's just what I'm drawn to. But will I continue reading Rat Queens? Definitely! These filthy mouthed girls have caught my interest and I am invested in seeing where their journey takes them. It may not have the weight or world-building as The Autumnlands, but it's a fun, quick read with loveable characters, and I suppose every once in a while I need some humour to chase away all the gloom I revel in.
INSTAGRAM: @michaeljohnhalse