Review: I Hate Fairyland Vol. 2- Fluff My Life

Quick Summary

Pros: The humor is just as bizarre and fun as it was in the first book. The story has improved significantly and treats readers with a different type of adventure in each issue. The artwork is still wonderfully brutal.

Cons: If you don’t like dark humor then you, most likely, won’t enjoy this book.

Overall: This is a fantastic improvement on the series as a whole and a solid comic on its own. Gertrude’s adventure have never been more fun, as her trek across Fairyland has become more diverse and unique than ever before. Plus, Scottie Young’s artwork continues to look beautiful and deliver the dark comedy for which this series is now famous. If you were unsure about I Hate Fairyland after reading this first volume, this book will completely change your mind and leave you loving it by the end.

Story

In our review of I Hate Fairyland Vol. 1: Madly Ever After (Review), we were a little negative about the overall appeal of the series. We criticized it for relying too heavily on its juxtaposition of excessive violence with cute visuals in order to achieve comedy, even going so far as to call it a “one-trick-pony” in this regard. In addition, we thought the plot in each issue was too repetitive and didn’t hold interest. All in all, we liked the book but weren’t sure if the series would be good enough to provide lasting entertainment.

In I Hate Fairyland Vol. 2: Fluff My Life, all of these problems go right out the window. This is a book that maintains all of the charm and appeal of the original, while also diversifying the plot and humor. Each issue is an exploration of a different concept or location in Fairyland and leads to a unique adventure for Gertrude and Larry. This means that the series as a whole is more attractive in general and that this book is a must read.

(spoilers start here)

The book starts out right where the last one left off, Gertrude is Queen of Fairyland with little hope of ever returning home. However, she proves to be a terrible queen and does about as much damage to her kingdom when ruling it as she did when she was attacking it. This is a unique change up in the status quo and sets the tone in making this book different than the one before it.

From here, each subsequent issue goes on to explore a different aspect of Fairyland. Issue seven explains that the line between Fairyland and the real world is pretty blurry, issue eight is a Street Fighter inspired video game parody, issue nine explores the world inside Larry’s hat, and issue ten is an apocalyptic look into a potential future for Fairyland. Each of these tells a different story and tells it in a unique way. I, personally, loved this style of storytelling, it makes the series feel more similar to shows like Adventure Time which helps in making it more endearing and entertaining.

This alone is a huge improvement on what we saw in Madly Ever After. In that book, each issue involved Gertrude encountering a problem, arguing about it for a bit, and then simply killing whoever was opposing her. This was repetitive and caused any drama to dissipate instantly. After all, if each issue ends the same way, then the conflict is almost meaningless. In this volume though, the formula changes. Gertrude doesn’t win every fight she enters, nor does she solve all of her problems though fighting. It is this variation that gives the series some lasting appeal and makes each issue about more than just the comedy.

That isn’t to say that comedy isn’t important though. This volume is just as funny as the first one, if not more so. Gertrude and Larry’s banter is on point, Duncan is a hilarious addition, and the over the top violence is still just as good. This is a book where a cute bunny rabbit creature rips out his enemy’s heart in order to pay Gertrude tribute and a boy in a dinosaur costume causes the apocalypse. It is ridiculous but hilarious at the same time.

(spoilers end here)

Art

I Hate Fairyland would absolutely not be the same without Scottie Young’s artwork. As we said in our review of Vol. 1, this is a visual book where the dark violence clashes with the cute scenery in a way that provides a delicious dose of dark comedy. The splash pages look fantastic, with scenes of Duncan at the book’s conclusion being my favorite of the series so far. Artwork is still the meat and potatoes of this series and is what will keep readers constantly coming back for more.

In this volume, Young’s art is supplemented with an interlude by Jeffrey Cruz. Without giving too much away, this interlude is a unique piece of the story that fits in perfectly with what is happening in Gertrude’s adventure at that moment. It also just looks nice in general and fits the shift in tone better than Young’s art would.

Continuity

I Hate Fairyland Vol. 2: Fluff My Life is published by Image Comics, a creator owned publishing company who’s titles do not often crossover with each other. Thus this title, like many other Image Comics, maintains its own continuity. This means that all you need to do to understand this book is read I Hate Fairyland Vol. 1: Madly Ever After (Review).

The story here continues in I Hate Fairyland Vol. 3: Good Girl (Review).

 

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