All’s fair in love and war!

True to the name she’s been called throughout history, the War-Monger knows how to get a good fight going among even the best of friends. The outcome of the battle never mattered to her – at least, not until she fell head over heels for the Mongol Empire’s most fearsome warrior. She can poison hearts against one another…but can she win one for herself?

The Forgotten Queen #2 focuses more on the motivations of Vexana, the War Monger, as we glimpse her trying to win the heart of a warrior queen in the late 13th century. Though not explicitly a flashback sequence, the glimpses into the past are told as a story within a story as the research team learn more about the mysterious armour that they’ve retrieved from the sea bed.

This issue seems to fall somewhere between good and really good; it’s a comic of moments that almost blend together seamlessly, but like a slide at a water park, you can feel the edges even if you don’t necessarily see them as you zip down the covered tube. Tini Howard peels away a couple of layers on the onion that is Vexana, but the lack of cohesive flow to the comic detracts a little from the story’s characterization of its lead. The ideas and intent present in the comic are very interesting, but the ridges on the slide are a touch distracting.

Amilcar Pinna and Ulises Arreola to flex their collective artistic muscles with sweeping vistas and vibrant colours across land and sea, but, to return to the previous analogy, you can still feel the ridges in the slide. Facial expressions, body language and the figures themselves do feel a little off at times. Nothing hugely distracting, but certainly noticeable when it comes to your eyes following the page.

Ultimately, this is still a solid entry in the series, though it falls far from being a Must Read, it is still worth checking out if you’ve read the first issue. Yes, there’s still room for improvement over the next two issues, but even if things continue as they’re going, Forgotten Queen will remain an above average read.

Story: Tini Howard Art: Amilcar Pinna
 Colours: Ulises Arreola Letters: Jeff Powel 
Story: 8.1 Art: 8.0 Overall: 8.0 Recommendation: Read

Valiant provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

An ancient evil returns!

Long ago, the mighty generals of the Mongol Empire rode from Siberia to Carpathia and conquered all who stood in their way. Legends tell of a witch who walked with them, who could infect the hearts of any warriors in her midst with an unquenchable thirst for battle and bloodshed…a War-Monger. And now she is walking again.

Look, War Monger isn’t exactly a nice person. One could say she’s an outright villain with very little in redeeming qualities. What one cannot say is that the first issue in her solo series is devoid of quality. For despite the series focusing on the villain, the debut issue is really quite good; the story is split between the deep past and the present as we follow War Mother’s early(ish) life as it’s split with the present day where we follow a group of treasure hunters combing the depths of the ocean.

The Forgotten Queen tells the story of one of Valiant’s more underrated, though straight up, villains. From what we’ve seen of War Monger so far in the Valiant Universe, she’s a character who delights in causing chaos, claiming to be responsible for almost every major conflict in history. Last seen being dropped to the bottom of the ocean toward the of the Unity series, War Monger has been absent from the publisher’s comics for a couple of years now.

With Tini Howard setting pen to paper (or more likely tapping on a keyboard), one of Valiant’s more one dimensional characters is getting fleshed out. The first issue does it subtly, adding a gradual layer of humanity and allowing you to get a gradual understanding of the character without it being forced down your gullet, and the division of the story between the past and present flows smoothly and allows Amilcar Pinna and Ulises Arreola to flex their collective artistic muscles with sweeping vistas and vibrant colours across land and sea. Some of the facial expressions can be a little questionable, but nothing that’ll detract from the story itself.

Ultimately, this is a solid first issue, although there’s still room for the series to get better, this is still a worthy addition to your pull list – whether your a Valiant fan, or you just want a comic about a tough, sarcastic character. This isn’t a must buy, not yet, but it is worth your time and money.

Story: Tini Howard Art: Amilcar Pinna
 Colours: Ulises Arreola Letters: Jeff Powel 
Story: 8.3 Art: 8.2 Overall: 8.3 Recommendation: Buy 

Valiant provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review