Published on July 11th, 2018 | by Dana Folkard
RAT QUEENS VOL. 2 #10 REVIEW
Summary: Betty is the last Queen standing and now must come face-to-face with the reality wizard alone.
5
Killer conclusion!
The epic conclusion is here and it’s not what you were expecting!
Betty is the last Queen standing and now must come face-to-face with the reality wizard alone. Things however, take an unexpected turn as a shocking and tragic truth is revealed.
The conclusion to this arc is finally here, and it comes to greet us with a sucker punch to the face with shocking and totally unexpected developments. I’m going to try and reveal as little as possible, so as to avoid any spoilers, mmkay? We begin this issue with Dee being arrested, as she was found guilty of creating the Skywatcher cult after splitting reality in two. Naturally waiting for her arrival is the reality wizard, there to offer some harsh truths and an end from her pain and suffering. Ta-dah! Meanwhile, with all of her friends gone, Betty now must face the reality wizard on her own. They converse, with the wizard waxing poetic about misery, suffering and regret of course. This in turn triggers Betty to talk about her past as a raiding bandit and how she was involved in a deceptive plot that tricked her into becoming the villain of her own story. The reality wizard then reveals their own tragic tale of regret and betrayal, which in the end exposes the shocking truth behind who they really are.
Kurtis Wiebe is a master of spinning a cleverly crafty tale. I commend him for the clever way in which all of the pieces of the puzzle and clues from previous issues coming together to form a seamless and cohesive narrative. This kind of unfolding reality-warping, time-based storytelling is tricky, but when done correctly can be some of the most satisfying stories to read. I also rather enjoyed how I thought I knew what was going on, only to discover that I was completely wrong with my suspicions. It made the developments even more surprising and unexpected.
I also want to mention that little ol’ Betty shines in this issue, revealing a much more complex and compelling side to herself. Yes, there is more to Betty than eating shrooms and devouring delicious food. She too possesses a dark and troubled past, which for some time tormented her, however, through her power and emotional maturity was able heal, forgive and learn from her mistakes. What a little legend. I love Betty.
Owen Gieni blew me away with his art in this issue. We get to see him flex his artistic muscle, as his style changes not once but twice. During the flashback scenes we see him adopt two very different art styles, the first being a fun and bubbly manga style, with the second possessing an 80’s TV quality to it. I really loved seeing the diversity in his art and thought that it was an effective way to split up and divide these sections of the story. The colouring in this issue was just as diverse and varied as the art. I especially loved the candy-coloured palette that was used for Betty’s flashback scenes. This particular sequence really stood out to me as it injected an intense pop of colour when the story was getting quite dark and bleak. I also love the visual intensity of Hannah in this issue. She looks electric with energy and really comes alive on the page, making her feel both scary and powerful.
Overall, I thought that this was a killer conclusion to this arc. The storytelling is ace and the art is gorgeous and diverse. There isn’t much more for me to say, other than go and grab yourself a copy now!
I’m giving this issue 5 out of 5 stars!
COMIC DETAILS
CREATIVE TEAM: Kurtis J. Wiebe, Owen Gieni, Ryan Ferrier
PUBLISHER: Image Comics/Shadowline Comics
GENRE: High fantasy
PUBLICATION DATE: July 11, 2018
REVIEWER: Dana Folkard