Comic Review: The Forgotten Queen #1

The Forgotten Queen #1

Valiant Entertainment

Writer: Tini Howard

Artist: Amilcar Pinna

One of the best parts about Valiant Entertainment is its ability to create new stories that loosely fit into its universe’s rich lore. The characters come from all sorts of ages, past or present, and it is slowly leading to Valiant creating its own history. The latest addition to ancient (And modern) history in the Valiant Universe is The Forgotten Queen.

The Forgotten Queen brings back War-Monger, a major antagonist from Unity. War-Monger is a woman who has the ability to tempt those around her into violence. In The Forgotten Queen, writer Tini Howard adds to the character’s lore, as she leads the Mongolian Empire to success through her influence.

Tini Howard does an excellent job at both introducing the character to new readers and engaging Valiant fans. This debut is accessible to all readers, and anyone can give it a read, even if they have never read a Valiant book before. There is plenty to learn about War-Monger for longtime readers too, with tons of information that wasn’t in Unity.

Howard utilizes present day discoveries as well as flashbacks to tell the story, and it works pretty well. The pacing moves along fine, and jumping between periods isn’t jarring to the reader. Howard’s characterization of War-Monger is fantastic. The character feels the same (Though maybe a bit less abrasive) as she did in Unity. She feels strong and is an excellent character to get into for readers who want great female leads.  She never comes off as a cliche despite having the “God of War” archetype that we see a lot nowadays, and feels as human as you would expect from a character like herself.

Amilcar Pinna’s art suits the tone of The Forgotten Queen well. There is an excellent amount of detail in every panel, adding a bit of realism to the pages. The characters all look wonderful, especially War-Monger herself. The expressions are appropriate, and the various poses appear natural. Ghengis Khan, in particular, looks terrifying. Ulises Arreola’s colors complete the package. The flashbacks use harsh colors, while the modern day’s ocean looks beautiful and captivating. The juxtaposition allows for the two halves of the book to maintain different tones without the need to change the narration or pencils themselves.

I was a huge fan of the War-Monger arc of Unity, and am thrilled to say that The Forgotten Queen #1 is a great start for the character’s miniseries. Those who are unfamiliar with the character or even Valiant in general will find an enjoyable issue. I look forward to seeing what Tini Howard and Amilcar Pinna bring next.