Nimona I Review #26

“Unhand that science!”

Title: Nimona

Author: Noelle Stevenson

Pages: 272

Publisher: Harper Teen

Official Synopsis

The graphic novel debut from rising star Noelle Stevenson, based on her beloved and critically acclaimed web comic, which Slate awarded its Cartoonist Studio Prize, calling it “a deadpan epic.”

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.

Review

This is the first graphic novel I have ever read and I have no idea why because I loved this!

The first time I heard about Nimona was after first adding Fangirl to my TBR actually – I took one look at the cover and fell in love. I immediately searched up the cover artist and found myself introduced to the wonder that is Noelle Stevenson.

Nimona is centred around a supposed ‘villain’ named Lord Blackheart and his new shapeshifting sidekick and partner in crime Nimona. If anyone reading this has watched adventure time she reminds a lot of Fiona just a bit (lot) cooler.

Nimona’s thirst for doing evil is both amusing and at times slightly disturbing but it made me smile anyway. The plot of this is mainly centered with a very heavy bad vs corrupted good sort of story which makes for an action packed and exciting story.

Art-wise of course this graphic novel was amazing! Each chapter seemed to have its own designated colour scheme which is something I really enjoyed and found aesthetically pleasing. The character style was consistent and unique throughout the whole novel – I mean seriously Nimona’s hair really is one of a kind!

I can’t decide whether I want a sequel to this or not because despite the fact it did have a solid ending I would love to find out what happens next anyway! Either way this really is an amazing graphic novel and one that I think is a very good novel to start with if introducing yourself to the world of graphic novels for the first time.