Monday, May 29, 2017

Rat Queens Vol. 1: Sass & Sorcery (Review)

Rat Queens Vol. 1: Sass & Sorcery
(Rat Queens, #1)

By: Kurtis J. Wiebe & Roc Upchurch (Illustrator)
Publisher: Image Comics
Release Date: March 26th, 2014
Genres: Adult Fantasy/Fiction

My Review: (4/5 stars*)

Place yourself in a world where it's constant mayhem, full of baddies, assassins, monsters, and groups of gangs who thrive off quests and conquering. Massacres, gore, and filthy language abound emitting from a wily pair of individuals who look more like fantastical pinups diversified in a town of distinct races. The Queens are Betty, Dee, Hannah, and Violet, and their title they go by is the Rat Queens.

After a string of violence occurs in a place named the Palisades the governing officials gather to express their alarm. The killings and destruction threatens to grow unless a worthy or totally unworthy group can stop it. The Mayor Kane asks each band of warriors to take on quests to help clean up the streets. They don't get to pick what their tasked with, these groups are the Peaches, Four Daves, Brother Ponies, Obsidian Darkness, and of course, the Rat Queens.

Between the very inappropriate diction to the outrageous, unfiltered personalities of each character, and the issues they encounter along the wayit's wickedly compulsive. It's a very sarcastic and dark humored story paired with ferocity and adventure. Rat Queens is the absolute definition of a GRAPHIC novel and should be only in the hands of an adult. It has many sexual references, cussing, and illicit behavior. If you are all for that type of storytelling by all means indulge! 

Their is the beginnings of development in each of the Queens' story-lines. Plenty of dirty secrets cropping up that'll be exciting to see how each are carried out in future issues. I enjoyed each and every one of the characters as they are all so different and fun in their own individual ways. Hannah is my favorite due to her kick-ass nature and usage of language, also she's got a lot cool powers. I feel like she can easily take a walk to the dark side if not kept in check by her gang. Also, the artwork by Upchurch is phenomenally illustrated. The visual presentations are beautifully done. One of my biggest problems with comics is when the writing doesn't reflect the art but in this particular series they imaginatively compliment one another.

In all honesty, I thought this graphic volume was terribly violent but the narrative worked with it in a way I wasn't expecting. It gave you just enough of conspiracy, raunch, wit, and bite to get you invested. I can see their is much growth left, and that is worth sticking around for. Rat Queens isn't for the faint of heart, but the beautiful chaos and fascinating warrior women will keep you involved and impatient to see what's next in their exploits. I strongly prompt readers who aren't effortlessly offended to give it a chance.

Synopsis:

Who are the Rat Queens? 


They're a pack of booze-guzzling, death-dealing battle maidens-for-hire and they're in the business of killing all the god's creatures for profit. Meet Hannah the Rockabilly Elven Mage, Violet the Hipster Dwarven Fighter, Dee the Atheist Human Cleric and Betty the Hippy Smidgen Thief. 

This modern spin on an old school genre is a violent, monster-killing epic that is like Buffy meets Tank Girl in a Lord of the Rings world on crack! 

LINKS: GOODREADS | AMAZON | B&N !

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