Queen of Mars’ Book 1: …He May Yet Conquer! is a comic created by Mick Beyers. This was inspired by the public works of Edgar Rice Burroughs, the creator of John Carter and Tarzan. This is a fantasy tale that thrusts us right in the middle of two characters’ day. The first creature we meet is a Thark named Jedwar who is angry at what transpired during his absence and wants to die a glorious death. He’s also about 12 feet tall. The second creature we follow is a human named Phaidor who claims to be the Queen of Therns. This story will follow both of these characters as they work together and separately to achieve their goals. This is an old fantasy story through and through. While modern fantasy seems a bit more character focused, this one is clearly influenced by the world-building of the classics. The dialogue is a bit hammy which is apt for the genre but it doesn’t overdo it. This comic is narrative-free do the dialogue has to do extra work to carry the story and it does its job well. There is also a bonus story that place in the same world.
There is some great art here. The characters are drawn with significant definition. The facial expressions and movement of Jedwar look so fluid and will stick in your mind. You can feel the tenacity of Phaidor through her actions and read her face to tell her thoughts. Some comics wouldn’t hit the same if the color was removed but this comic is black-and-white and packs a punch. There are a few gory scenes but they aren’t as jarring due the lack of color. The limited scenery contributes to intense moments and the overall feeling of dismay.
“Is this worth reading?”
Yes.
“Would I like this?”
If you like any of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ work you might like this. Classic fantasy fans might enjoy this, as well as those who appreciate some good introspective storytelling.
“What would this comic’s film rating be?”
R for the gore. There are two versions of this comic, one where everybody basically naked and one where they have clothes.
“Could I get a quote from the comic?”
“It would be a poor queen who didn’t know her kingdom.”
Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/hmyc/he-may-yet-conquer-a-martian-tale/description
***IN-DEPTH COMIC STATS BELOW***
Probably Contains Spoilers
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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 36
Violent Pages: 15, for 42% of the comic
Sexy Pages: 0, for 0% of the comic
**The levels below aren’t necessarily maintained throughout the whole comic, but they were definitely reached**
Violence Level – 3
“Wasn’t no tussling at all.”
“Sometimes you gotta hit somebody.”
“I’m getting charged with how many counts of assault?”
“This was a tournament arc.”
“All my life I had to fight.”
Gore Level – 4
“The only thing leaking out your face is tears.”
“Looks like somebody spilled some ketchup.”
“Might need to soak that up with a bath towel.”
“That isn’t supposed to be outside the body.”
“This is a slaughterhouse.”
Death Level – 2
“And everybody lived happily ever after.”
“We might have gone to a couple funerals.”
“It just LOOKS like a serial killer was here.”
“Yeah this was a tragedy.”
“Think Gettysburg.”
Porn Level – 1 or 3, depending on the version
“Everybody kept their clothes on.”
“I guess it was too hot for a bra.”
“Sometimes you got to let everything air out.”
“This is like late night Cinemax in the early 2000’s.”
“Oh. This is porn.”
