Things Are Getting Delightfuly Weird: Reviewing ‘Untold Tales Of I Hate Fairyland’ #2

There are Stories, with emphasis on the capital S, and then there are stories that happen between those capital ones. Thanks to Untold Tales Of I Hate Fairyland we not only get to see those moments, but various creators get to play in the Gert-filled sandbox.

With the second issue of this miniseries, we get three tales of varying types, amounts of blood, and levels of Gertrude.

With the first, Morgan Beem gets to tackle the next step for the dearly departed Queen Cloudia. A moody tale is brought to life by Beem’s artwork which has an otherworldly appeal to it. That’s because it is happening in another realm of sorts. That which is between life and death. Beem really has a realistic, deep sort of artwork, full of details but a more whimsical appeal thanks to the watercolor-like effects. This makes the colors very stark in some cases, toned down, aiming to make sure we feel the battle of light and dark in this story.

It has a very different energy than the types of artworks that normally are part of this series. That’s because of the aforementioned heaviness. It’s not a story that is fun or particularly bloody or even funny. Full on drama here.

Essentially the story is a character talking to themselves, never a good sign, but it’s more than that. It’s actually one of the stories that clearly is very tied into the main series and plots to come. It sees Cloudia falling fully into the dark side ahead of a return that will plague Gert and company most assuredly.

In the middle, we get another story from Dean Rankine very much in the flavor of this series. In the first issue, he gave us a three little pigs parody of sorts. This time the pop culture meter makes a massive leap to The Hangover movies essentially.

Gert got drunk, woke up with a transformation, and must retrace her drunken steps to find out what happened. I love how Rankine’s artwork taps into the fairy tale fun energy but also just has an inherent powerful grossness to it. Gert is an ugly personality and action person, and it really reflects on the page both in her physical nature and the world around her. Every Larry is just so rough and tumble, looking not just haggard and tired but like he’ll leap out of the page and go a round or two in the ring.

Amidst all the blood and delightful crudeness, I actually laughed out loud at a very fun maze page tossed into the middle. That’s just peak hilarious energy and breaks up the ongoing story pulling at something that should be for kids in a book most assuredly not for them.

Just like the last story this feels like a world that Rankine has been part of for years. Everything about Gert feels accurate and he does so much to throw in new characters and spaces, fleshing out this world even more. Everything has a more toned-down appearance with splashes of vivid colors for impact.

Lastly is a tale from Dax Gordine and regular Fairyland colorist Jean-Francois Beaulieu. In its own way this one also ties to the current art of the main series, as it features a Gert and Duncan the Dragon flashback. Duncan makes his comeback in the main series, and things happen, so it’s fun to see this more colorful moment between the two in the past.

Gordine’s art style is more in line with the sort of stuff we see in the main series, playing up the whimsical animated energy of Fairyland. Pairing it with Beaulieu’s colors helps in that regard a ton. Because everything is very bright and vivid, even when it’s somewhat toned down because that is the core of Fairyland. A place where everything looks like what a child would imagine the world should look like, with just a bit of edge to it.

We’re getting a Gert that seemingly appears to be better adjusted during a card game. Gordine sells that with the highly emotive imagery that fills the panels, perfectly framed by empty white space. It gives things a more wholesome appearance while also of course breaking up the space between panels. As the emotions change there are noticeable changes to the colors, including shadows, that really highlight those feelings.

Through the whole issue, it once again falls to Nate Piekos to bring the energy with his letters. Each story has a similar sort of touch to the work but has its own little flair so that they stand apart. Chiefly it comes from the fact that Piekos uses different fonts that fit whatever the tone of the story is. Something a bit fluffier for the first, harsher/rough for the second, and something more Fairyland fun for the final one.

Plenty of color is found in the different curse words and SFX, adding even more to the overall stories. What Piekos is doing in this issue speaks to just how powerful the right lettering can be for any story. It’s a job that doesn’t get anywhere near the spotlight that it deserves. Letterers are truly artists in their own right because what they aren’t just laying out words like the writer wanted. The good and great ones are adding so much of themselves to the work, often helping provide that final piece that creates a gorgeous complete puzzle.

Untold Tales Of I Hate Fairyland #2 is now available from Image Comics.