Written by: Scottie Young
Art by: Scottie Young & Jean-Francois Beaulieu
Publisher: Image
*SPOILER WARNING sort of. Because this is a comedy comic, talking about the plot means talking about some jokes. So if you don’t want to know any of that, then just go buy it already*
I was actually kind of nervous going into issue 6 of I Hate Fairyland. The first arc was so goddamn good—I gave each issue a 9.5—and after a bit of a hiatus, I was afraid either the comic or I might have changed in that time period. What if I didn’t like it, or worse, what if I only liked it a little bit! I’m not sure I want to live on a planet where this comic is only kind of enjoyable for me.
And then someone was dying in a truly horrific way by page four and I realized all my fears were stupid! Take that voices in my head. You suck!
So we last left off with Gertrude accidentally-ing her way into the throne. She’s now queen of Fairyland, and unlike Game of Thrones where kings and queens get to have tons of fun, sex, and then maybe die if you’re a little shit with blonde hair, Gertrude is stuck signing papers and helming conferences. She’s bored as hell!
She’s also, and let’s just be honest here, too stupid to rule anything.
Issue 6 of IHF is a nice change of pace, then. At first Gertrude is too stupid to leave Fairyland, and now she’s too stupid to rule it. What we get is page after page of jokes as Queen Gertrude acts like Queen Gertrude. The comic is as violent and angry as ever, but in a totally different way that still manages to make me smile and then feel bad about it.
Senseless death shouldn’t be this funny.
What really stands out is the development between Gertrude and Larry. They were always partners, but the first arc kept them together out of a magical Fairyland rule. I get the feeling they didn’t really like each other but stuck together because A) they had to and B) no one else would bother with them. In this issue though, their camaraderie really feels genuine. Gertrude’s rise to monarch and subsequent depression over not being able to kill everything in her path (on purpose anyways), and Larry’s…well, Larry has seen them become pretty good friends.
I like it. I’ve always thought the two were good together, with a fantastic rapport and penchant for running jokes, and Issue 6 only keeps that going all the harder.
On the art front, Scottie Young and Jean-Francois Beaulieu are at their A-game. The comic is wonderful, that perfect mix of silly and kind of gross, only now there are like 40% more explosions. Jean-Francois Beaulieu is really good at coloring explosions.
Basically: this comic is back and that makes me stupid happy (I’m drinking to celebrate), so you should go read this one because it’s just the best. And to toast in the new arc, let us continue our own running joke of almost-perfect review scores!
(Shut up you aren’t my real dad.)
