Rose is a red haired beauty whom her father gives - what else - a rose for her eighteenth birthday. As she lays in a pond shortly afterwards, attempting to communicate with nature, the "cleansing" that took place in her neck of the woods years earlier suddenly reappears, and this time, her mother's fatality is the price. Such is the fate of a rare enchantress who possesses no thorns of her own.
In the premiere issue of Image's new serial Rose, writer Meredith Finch and artist Ig Guara (variant cover is by David Finch) have created a medieval world of fantasy, bloodshed and political injustice reminiscent of Game of Thrones. Finch's narration and dialogue are on par with the best that this genre has to offer (this includes Rat Queens, Green Valley and Seven to Eternity; I dare say that Rose debut tops all aforementioned ones). Guara's artwork is sharp, clean and gorgeous to look at; something tells me that even Saga's own Fiona Staples may be envious of it. Would anyone really blame her if she was?
The clash at the center of Rose involves a powerful queen Drucilla, who rules the city of Venta Belgarum, and with with several young men and women chained like dogs in her immediate vicinity, she orders the execution of anyone in her dominion who is using magic. Drucilla is a post-modern vixen monarch, as ruthless as she is sexy, and her blood-thirsty persona recalls the evil queen from Snow White, with Rose mirroring the plight of that enviable maiden. This series may not have the humorous charm of the seven dwarves engraved in it, but as a magical fantasy featuring the conflict between two very different - albeit both alluring - women, it captivates the reader like that most enchanting flower in existence.
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