I Hate Fairyland #12

• Writer and Artist: Skottie Young
• Published by: Image Comics Publish Date: April 19, 2017
• Notes: Monthly series with occasional breaks

Synopsis:

“LONE GERT AND GRUB Gert’s tired of being a complete piece of sh!# and decides to be a helpful member of the Fairyland society, starting off with rescuing a kidnapped baby and returning it to its loving family. Gert. A baby. Probably some poop. Buy this.”

Personal Thoughts (spoilers):

A return to a favorite guilty pleasure in comics, and it’s still and dirty and fun.

So here we are at the 12th issue, where Gert enters into another aspect of Fairyland, being some sort of medieval Japan driven tropefest, complete with kimonos, katanas, and castles. There is a battle for an age, that Gert finds herself winning, or does she?

Such is another great little standalone story, a rest stop on her grand adventure. Not many changes for her, other than her slow acceptance of her place in Fairyland and a forward goodness about her. In this case, she chooses to save a baby and bring her to its mother, or so she thinks. The end is a lesson learned, towards her misunderstanding of culture, which is sort of hinted at through the book in her playfulness of the fantasy. It’s all cute and fun, and a continual reward for the loyal readers. New fans on board may enjoy this too but should back up a few issues at least, to see Gert’s slow and steady development as a character and the overall multi-dimensional nature of Fairyland.

The art of Skottie Young is as supreme as his storytelling. But this issue, he plays a bit with the panels, trying for a bit of an anime style showdown with unnecessary banter and speed lines. The touch of snowfall and quick action also adds to the drama, giving a bit of the tense momentum felt from classic Japanese cinema fanfare. The design of the Shiitake mushroom warriors are also badass; more bold additions to the overall bizarre dreamlike fantasy.

Another great issue in this wonderful series. Much like Gert, I can not pull away from this grand adventure anytime soon.