Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson is a collected webcomic which tells a single story over the rather lengthy volume. It's a fantasy story set in a world that also has futuristic/magical technology/science.

Nemeses! Dragons! Science! Symbolism! All these and more await in this brilliantly subversive, sharply irreverent epic from Noelle Stevenson. Featuring an exclusive epilogue not seen in the web comic, along with bonus conceptual sketches and revised pages throughout, this gorgeous full-color graphic novel is perfect for the legions of fans of the web comic and is sure to win Noelle many new ones.

Nimona is an impulsive young shapeshifter with a knack for villainy. Lord Ballister Blackheart is a villain with a vendetta. As sidekick and supervillain, Nimona and Lord Blackheart are about to wreak some serious havoc. Their mission: prove to the kingdom that Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics aren't the heroes everyone thinks they are.

But as small acts of mischief escalate into a vicious battle, Lord Blackheart realizes that Nimona's powers are as murky and mysterious as her past. And her unpredictable wild side might be more dangerous than he is willing to admit.

At about 260 pages, it's much heftier than the comics I'm used to reading. But on the other hand, it was nice to read a fully fleshed-out and complete story in one volume. Nimona is a shapeshifter who decides that she wants to be sidekick to a arch villain. She's the sort of person that just does what she wants, so Ballister, the villain, is powerless to stop her. Well, there's also the part where she's actually insanely powerful as far as shapeshifters go.

The story is mostly about Nimona egging Ballister on and helping him make nefarious plans (and pushing his plans too far). The world it's set in sort of initially seems like a fairly traditional fantasy world, with knights and jousts, but then we see that they have technology as well as magic, with TV, computers and magic-related technology. I also really loved the character of Nimona. It was kind of empowering seeing a female character be powerful and allowed to do whatever she wants (mostly). (Of course there were complications because otherwise there wouldn't be a plot.)

Nimona was a fun read. It's not quite the kind of comic I usually read but it's definitely the kind I would read again. And as I said at the start, it was satisfying to have a complete and somewhat lengthy comic story all in one volume.

4.5 / 5 stars

First published: May 2015, Harper Teen
Series: No. Self-contained.
Format read: Paperback
Source: Non-Amazon-owned online book shop