Mihas and Doru’s perilous quest to assassinate the tyrannical ruler of Transylvania continues in Regicide #3 by Patrick Kindlon, Ludovic Lalliat, and Rio Oka. Most of the action takes place in the city of Orasul Supuhere, or Obedience City, which is more BDSM club or a scene from Hellraiser than a nice place to have a beer, some food, and a place to rest. The burly peasant Mihas and the masked Doru immediately stand out and don’t have the best time as violence ensues. This isn’t the best issue of Regicide, but I love that Kindlon and Lalliat get their freak on and don’t just give us another generic fantasy village.

The comic especially shines in its character design and fight choreography. Patrick Kindlon and Ludovic Lalliat play the situation in Obedient City fairly deadpan, with the cropped harness-sporting Wellthen immediately offering our protagonists hospitality. It’s nothing that the farmer Mihas is used to, and there’s humor in his awkward facial expressions as he’s surrounded by folks wearing leather, latex, and less. But what is initially a public display of kink turns into paralleling the very forces that Mihas is commissioned to take out: tyranny and control. The people of Obedient City have been gaslit into being beaten bloody without their consent while thinking it’s consensual. Kindlon uses the keyword “compulsory” to show that these people have been conscripted into the BDSM lifestyle and didn’t choose it willingly. This plot point gels pretty well with the two full-page flashback sequences of the founding of Obedient City where Ludoviv Lalliat’s art doesn’t match Patrick Kindlon’s propaganda-infused words.

One of my favorite things about Regicide, other than Lalliat’s unique visuals, is how he and Kindlon infuse elements of Romanian, Eastern European, and general Medieval European culture into a violent, anti-authoritarian fantasy quest story. I’m unfamiliar with a lot of the references, but the antagonists in Regicide #3 are totally based on the Flagellants, a Christian sect that thought they could gain salvation by being beaten and tortured. The comic ups the ante by building an entire city around their beliefs in a similar way to how an extreme, theocratic sect of Anabaptists took over Munster, Germany in the 16th century. Common sense versus fanaticism is a relatable conflict, and Ludovic Lalliat revels in the battle royale between Mihas and Odeta, which involves lots of whips and chains and a little bit of levitation. This is because my other favorite thing about Regicide is when Mihas is a badass and kicks ass regular guy style with Lalliat using varied angles to show his physical prowess.

In addition to the main quest narrative, Regicide has a short backup from Kindlon and Matt Battaglia setting up a battle between monks and demons. This installment builds the tension as supernatural forces mass outside the gates of the city. Battaglia’s use of color and light (Or lack of light.) creates a feeling of darkness overwhelming what little good is left the world. “The Monastery” continues to complement the themes of Regicide‘s lead story as it tells a more conventional historical fiction tale with just a smidgen of the supernatural.

In Regicide #3, Patrick Kindlon, Ludovic Lalliat, Rio Oka, and Matt Battaglia continue to put their own spin on the horror and fantasy genres as regular Joes and freak shows collide in a sexy, yet unsettling rest stop on their way to join assassination nation.

Story: Patrick Kindlon Art: Ludovic Lalliat with Rio Oka, Matt Battaglia
Story: 7.5 Art: 9.0 Overall: 8.3 Recommendation: Buy

Image Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

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