EC Comics is at it again with another fantastic anthology series. This time they take the world of fantasy & fairy tales and make them just a little twisted.

Cruel Kingdom #1

Letters By Richard Starkings & Tyler Smith

Edited By Sierra Hahn & Matt Dryer

Published By EC Comics/Oni Press

***Minor Spoilers Possible***

Blood of the Robo King

Written By Greg Pak – Art By Leomacs – Colors By Inaki Azpiazu

In a dystopian future a village of religious zealots has separated themselves from other communities. When they are threatened by another community one of the elders figures out a way to skirt the no killing rule. He creates a Robo King to protect them. After the Robo King dispatches the invaders, he kills the Robo King. However, whenever they need “protection” the Robo King returns.

This opening tale has a great take on human nature. Instead of following rules, just find the loophole. But just like real life, sometimes that ends up backfiring on you. The twist at the end is also very fitting. The art looks great and really makes the story come to life.

Friendly Vistors

Written By Al Ewing – Art By Kano

In a village of what appear to be hobbits. Berrydew witnesses the arrival of a spaceship. He goes to see the sorceress Stormeye. She informs him that she has seen them coming in her magic ball. She also warns that science and magic can’t coexist, and these are creatures of science. The visitors offer advanced technology to protect the lesser beings. However, maybe it’s the visitors that need protection.

This story melds the worlds of fantasy and sci-fi. It also answers the question of which is stronger, magic or science? Once again this has an ending that comes out of left field. The art in this story reminds me of the old school Lord of the Rings cartoon.

Check Out My Review of Epitaphs From the Abyss #6

Death and Pickaxes

Written By Chris Condon – Art By Charlie Adlard

Next up is a twisted take on Sleeping Beauty. In this version there was an extra Dwarf that dealt with the loss of his seven brothers. His obsession with the Princess that left them behind has taken a dark turn. Now armed with his trusty pickaxe the Prince & Princess had better watch out.

If you are going to have a twisted fairy tale, Sleeping Beauty lends itself perfectly to that. This tale makes some really dark choices, that have a wonderful payoff at the end. The art is straight of a fairy tale book and sets the tone flawlessly.

The Demon’s Face

Written By Ben H. Winters – Art By Andrea Mutti – Colors By Michael Atiyeh

The final tale is inspired by The Sword and The Stone. Only in this tale the prophecy says that the New Age will begin when a great man pulls the blade from The Demon’s Face. As all the mightiest and bravest men try and retrieve the blade, it is for not. One day a young woman says she wants to give it a shot. She is told since she is not a man, she won’t be able to accomplish it. Will she prove them wrong? And if she does, will the New Age be all they were promised?

This story has a great be careful what you wish for feeling to it. At the same time, it also works as a morality tale about judging a book by its cover. Most importantly it has another great twist ending you don’t see coming. The art is bleak and makes you feel like all hope is gone.

Final Thoughts

Cruel Kingdom #1 is a great first book in this new line of anthologies from EC. Mixing the world of fantasy and fairy tales with the monkey paw style twists we’ve become accustomed to is a winning formula. You should definitely pick up a copy at your LCS this week.

Overall Grade: 9.5/10

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