Nimona: A Subversive Graphic Novel Adventure About Villainy, Identity, and Unexpected Loyalty

Nimona was first publsihed by Stevenson herself as a webcomic, which eventually grew into this fantastic 256 page graphic novel that earned recognition for being a finalist of the National Book Award! And although the graphic novel takes its name from the it's shapeshifting female protagonist, the story is not *really* about Nimona herself. It isn't really about protagonist Ballister Blackheart, once a hero in training and now the appointed villain, or his "nemesis" and the kingdom's champion Ambrosisus Goldenloin either. Rather, the story of Nimona - at it's heart - is about more than just good versus evil but the difference between good and just, nice and right, and the importance of intention. As Blackheart, now aided by the impulsive and massively destructive Nimona, endeavors to bring the injustices of the Insitution - the kingdom's version of the State Department and Department of Defense - to light and their "antics" soon reveal more than slightly sinister plots at the heart of the kingdom, the novel also reveals to each character the truth about themselves and the secrets held deep in their hearts. This graphic novel, at once whimsical and harrowing, pushes us to do the same and look inward, asking ourselves the question of whether or not we really are the people we *like* to believe we are, and are we ready to take the steps into becoming the people we're truly supposed to be? Slate reviewers said of Nimona, "[It's] [f]unny and vibrant. A kind of deadpan epic," and it's hard to describe the experience of the work in any other way (I also strongly recommend reading the reviews from the New York Times and the UK's the Independent). The never named fantasy realm the characters inhabit, with it's medieval setting and many anachronistic elements, also deepens the sense of...well, magic. The detailed choices of what looks modern by reader's perspective versus what remains in a more medieval style is really interesting, but doesn't distract and makes you want to know more about this world and dive deeper. In the same way, Stevenson tooled around with a number of stylistic options before deciding on the work that we see now, and in reading the bonus pages offered in the graphic novel you can see clearly how that choice impacts the action and movement present in each panel and our investment in the characters generating these actions. Color is another element which was obviously thought out carefully in the creation of Nimona. With Blackheart's and Goldenloin's names not only having color present in their names, but their designs being dark versus light to symbolically reinforce their positions as villain and hero - and then totally reject that cliché and turn it on it's head! Nimona is truly a work of art in both the visual and literary sense. Something that is gripping and tender and appropriate for all ages. Such an impressive and beautiful work.

I just received my copy of Nimona in the mail earlier tonight and have already devoured it in its entirety. It's not what I expected, but in all of the best ways. For some background, my recent avalanche of purchases of girl-centric comics was inspired by the Kickstarter for the anthology, Valor. Valor is, in short, amazing. The idea was to get together a bunch of comics and stories written by women featuring diverse girls kicking butt. And in that aspect, it succeeded wonderfully. However, due to the short nature of the pieces, it's hard to really develop a story. So I went seeking other fun girl power stories to share with the children (and adults, because comics are awesome) in my life. I couldn't be happier with Nimona. First of all, the entire story is contained in this hefty (at least for a comic/graphic novel) volume. There is enough story to really get a feel for the characters and their individual struggles, as well as the world that they live in. Nimona is not your typical protagonist. She's cheeky and likes to annoy her boss and often throws herself into bad situations for the fun of it. She has dark secrets and often makes the wrong decisions. She isn't concerned with the "rules" of being a villain. Her dialogue with Blackheart (and really all of the dialogue) is snappy and goofy and had me laughing out loud. The whole story is both hilarious and touching, even heartrending at times. So as an adult, definitely a must buy. For kids, I'd leave that to parent discretion. WARNINGS: Nimona is a smart story that doesn't pull punches. The characters are flawed individuals, and when the protagonists are villains, that often means that someone gets killed. There is also a certain running gag with names of heroes, particularly Sir Goldenloin and Sir Girthrod, and one joking news story about whether Sir Goldenloin's codpiece is overcompensation.

See this review and more at: http://idiosyncraticlibrary.com Noelle Stevenson's Nimona started out as an art school experiment, turned into a webcomic and after wild success, was published in the summer of 2015 and now finds itself as a finalist for the National Book Award. It's not hard to see why. Set in a strange kingdom that is one part medieval realm, one part high tech society and one part dystopian nightmare, Ms. Stevenson effortlessly mixes these disparate genres into an oddly familiar world that is full of contradictions and surprises. As a parent of a elementary school children and an adult who grew up in the 90s, graphic novels have generally been outside my orbit. Nimona caught my attention though. Featuring a tough, stocky girl, sprouting dragons wings, Nimona is a refreshing hero. Nimona appears out of nowhere in the lair of Supervillain Ballister Blackheart. A teenage girl clearly on her own, Nimona aspires to be Blackheart's sidekick and longs to help Blackheart battle Hero Ambrosius Goldenloin and the shadowy Institute of Law Enforcement and Heroics that Goldenloin serves. At first Blackheart is dismissive, but when he discovers Nimona is powerful shapeshifter he decides to take a chance and employs her. What develops is a tale where the heroes aren't necessarily to good guys, the villains are not necessarily the bad, and a teenaged girl who likes pizza, soda, and zombie movies is also a powerful, frightening shapeshifter who is both impulsive and violent, but also loyal and brave. While the story is full of exciting scenes where Nimona and Blackheart break into the bank, blow up part of the Institute and fight both Goldenloin and the Institute guards, the meat of the story is in its relationships. A man of science, Blackheart's very beliefs are challenged by Nimona, a very powerful magical being, While Nimona brings youth and energy to Blackheart's plans, she is also impulsive and excessively violent, and needs Blackheart to guide her moral compass. Also pivotal, is the long relationship between Goldenloin and Blackheart, once best friends both turned out by the Institute to fill their respective roles as hero and villain. Instead of an empty adventure tale, Nimona has a beautiful resonance. While I thought the comic style of the graphic novel might be off putting or distracting, Ms. Stevenson's illustrations only strengthen her story. Wonderfully capturing the familiar gestures that are universal in teen body language, Nimona is no longer an unknown squire in an unknowable realm, but a relate-able girl, exploring the limits of her power, finding her strength and her humanity, and lounging on the furniture in an unending number of poses. Have a girl with a dragon heart? Introduce her to Nimona.

This was a fun and surprising read. The pages pop and the story pulls you in. The concept of a side-kick wannabe seeking out a villain to minion for is only the beginning of this multilayered story. I thought I’d seen it all but was so glad to be wrong when reading this book. The first thing that pulled me into this fantasy world, aside from the characters, was the blending of science and magic. This gothic-like society has some pretty high tech devices available to both sides of good and bad, but it’s definitely the magic that steals the show. Then there’s the frenemy/bromance between the two main male characters. No spoilers here, but I like both of these characters, even when they are being bad. Then there’s the titular character of Nimona. She’s a strong and powerful female lead with flaws and complexity galore. She’s probably the best troubled teen character I’ve read in a fantasy, in the past few years. This story packs in a lot of action, intensity, and emotion, but there are some sweet and funny moments along the way. The simplistic drawings allow the reader to focus on the story without being pulled away until a slight change of color signifies something important. The writing and drawing styles compliment each other well to deliver a story, I can’t imagine being told any other way. This book will likely become one of my yearly re-reads. Highly recommended to fans of YA Fantasy, Sci-fantasy, and Sword and Sorcery graphic novels.

I came across Nimona recently from general book browsing, and I decided to give it a try. I very glad I did! Starting off with the art, it's very good! I am familiar with the art styles of comic book and manga artists, and at first this art style seemed daunting, but it really doesn't distract from the experience at all. In fact, I'd say it enhances it! I love how as the book goes on the colors get darker and darker, until the end when things resolve and it brightens again. It reminded me a little bit of Adventure Time, but had much more adult themes and realistic colors. The story was extremely well written. It grabbed onto the plot right from the beginning and never let go! The main characters are fairly well developed and have great chemistry. It's written like a fairy tale, so you're going to have to use your imagination for some aspects of the character. If I were to give the writing one critique, it would be that transitions between time need some work. You don't have to say, "five days later...", but there are other things that can be done to get around that. That's fairly comic for web comics though because of the time difference between chapters released. It was no distraction at all, really. If you're teetering on whether to buy this graphic novel or not, teeter towards the side of buying it because it is a beautiful piece of art and a great adventure story full of heart!

I had such a great time reading this graphic novel! I immensely enjoyed the art style and story of the book. Some of the general premises of it were perhaps a little obvious, but it was executed with enough twists, add-ons to the story, and strong characters that it turned out really special. Throughout the story, there were many amusing bits that were just pure gold with or without context. I think the medieval-ish aesthetic of it all with the knights, peasants, nemeses, and castles mixed with advanced technology really added to my amusement. The characters were wonderful and there were multiple really good relationships that stood out so well and made me care about the story. I would have loved to just keep reading and wanted a bit more from the ending. Luckily I wasn't too frustrated with it. Maybe because it kind of worked out story-wise and the extras at the end of the book helped (although the one about Christmas at the Institution was rather bittersweet). Anyway, all in all, a wonderful book!

I really liked the characters and the fact that their (in truth tragic) backstories weren’t made soppy or given as an excuse for everything they do. The art was super dynamic, which gave a real shine to all the fight sequences. The story is somewhat open-ended, but otherwise has a satisfying conclusion, although I would have been over the moon if there was at least one more sequel. It’s one of those stories that you like so much you actually dread finishing it - you get so attached that it leaves a hole inside of you, a vague longing upon reaching the end. As a side note, I am not usually the romance fan, but I kinda wish there was at least one kiss. Come on, all the build up for some chaste hugging?? It’s not actually an issue - the main story is quite solid and as a result captivating - just a little something I felt the characters in question (and the readers) deserved.

When Lord Ballister Blackheart, a villain with a vendetta, meets an impulsive young shapeshifter named Nimona, he reluctantly takes her on as a sidekick. Despite some rule breaking, the two end up working well together in their mission on exposing the not-so-heroic Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics. But Lord Blackheart begins to worry that Nimona’s powers may be more dangerous than she lets on. Nimona was recommended to me by a friend from a writing group I manage (who was also nice enough to let me borrow her copy since my book budget is non-existent right now). From the books she had seen me reading, she thought it was a graphic novel I would enjoy. And she was right! Nimona was magical. I was hooked by the first page and read it in about 3 days. I loved Noelle Stevenson’s art style and I loved the overall story. It reminded me a lot of a short story I had written several years ago combined with a one act play I wrote in college. The characters were beautifully created, and I especially loved the spunky Nimona who was there to shake up the traditional ways of the hero and villain. I also loved the potential love story that just poked it’s head out a little bit. I would love to learn more about all of the characters and know what happened to them after this story ended. As someone who doesn’t usually read graphic novels, Nimona was one of those stories that made me want to check out more just like it. I would recommend it to anyone looking for a good fantasy/sci fi crossover.

Leuk boekje waar de film losjes op gebaseerd is. Verpakking was heel, boekje was flink beschadigd. Jammer maar geen zin en tijd om weer helemaal terug te sturen en lang wachten op een nieuwe. (Dat was overigens wel netjes aangeboden door Amazon hoor.)

Thankyou. Item as described. Easy postage.

Ho adorato il personaggio di Nimona, anche se questo fumetto c'entra poco con la serie su Netflix come trama, mi è piaciuto molto di più della serie, la quale però mi ha fatto conoscere ed innamorare di Nimona quindi non mi sento in una posizione di poter criticare la serie più di tanto. Ma questa non è una recensione della serie e forse sono già andato fuori tema. In ogni caso personaggi molto ben caratterizzati, simpatici quando serve e profondi al punto giusto, anche lo stile non è per niente male, ha quel non so che di simil grezzo e poco curato in alcuni punti che a me personalmente piace molto usato così.

El libro llegó en perfecto estado, al día siguiente de ordenarlo. Es una muy bonita edición, perfecta para regalar o si coleccionas novelas gráficas.

Enchanting, alternative, fantasy and modern reality, jumbled in a mix thats totally Metal... life isn't all knights and unicorns.. or is it.....