content warnings: violence, death, torture
representation: mlm amputee side character, side m/m relationship


“You can't just go round murdering people. There are rules, Nimona.”


This was an extremely cute graphic novel that made my heart go all warm and fuzzy. As the title suggests, it's about Nimona, a shapeshifter who becomes the sidekick of the villainous Lord Ballister Blackheart.

Whenever there are villains in the lead of anything I always want some good exploration of what the differences between heroes and villains are, as well as the fact that there shades of grey. This graphic novel gave me that in spades, with Blackheart being a manufactured villain for his ex, Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin, and the organisation that runs everything maybe having more villainous tendencies than they're letting on.

The relationships were also super cute. Nimona and Blackheart have an adorable friendship where they spend the entire time exasperated at each other but would also murder everyone for the others' safety. Blackheart and Goldenloin's relationship is a bit more complicated because of Goldenloin blowing off Blackheart's arm in a joust, forcing him to become villain. They still clearly love each other but it's now Complicated, and that leads to some good confrontations and angst. I do wish that their relationship could have been a bit more explicit, but I also think it's pretty obvious when you take your hetero goggles off so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

This is probably the best graphic novel I've read in terms of balancing humour with its dark undertones, and literally everyone should read it.



( this is super irrelevant and feel free to ignore it, but blackheart looks like keanu reeves, right??? like, current john wick!keanu, not matrix!keanu. it was bugging me throughout the whole thing )