Vol 1 Princeless
Ah Fairy Tales! To many women they were a staple of our girlhood, the source of many of our romantic dreams and expectations. There is still something intrinsically attractive in them for young girls. Lucky for me my mother was partial to the Brothers Grimm as opposed to the Disney versions in my bedtime reading. So my Princesses were a bit craftier, and used smarts as well as quick thinking to outwit those pesky evil step mothers and villainous henchman.
With Princeless, we get all the wonderful essences of a classic fairytale with a delightful twist. Princess Adrienne has heard the stories a million times: beautiful princess, tall, foreboding tower guarded by a fearsome dragon, a parade of young princes risking their lives for a chance to rescue and romance the lovely princess.
However she can’t blindly accept this situation. She questions the whole process and yet upon her 16th birthday she finds herself in the same predicament. Adrienne however is not content to wait idly by for a rescuer. Finding a sword in her tower room she convinces her guardian Dragon Sparky to join her on a noble quest: rescue other Princesses trapped in similar towers starting with her sisters!
I really loved this issue. The story moves at a great pace showing us Adrienne’s formative years and her wonderful questing nature to her choice to break out of the stereotypical Princess role. Goodwin, Belton and Kim did such a wonderful job on the art. It is crisp and colorful. I was overjoyed to discover Adrienne was a racially diverse character.
Read more from Kai Charles: blackgirlnerds.com