Warning: If you don’t feel like the cheek and tummy pain you get from smiling and laughing too much, then I Hate Fairyland is not the comic for you. For the most part, I actually don’t like comedy. There I’ve said it. All you comedy fans can sharpen your axes, but the truth remains: I find most funny things to be dumb.
I’ve always been much more of a horror fan. I like reading a comic and feeling scared because my imagination makes me think that the things on the page might actually be real. Even worse, might be hiding in the dark shadows of the room I’m sitting reading in. I don’t like being scared by bad jokes. It’s just not my idea of a good time.
With that being said, watching my partner laugh his way through the entire I Hate Fairland collection made me feel like I was missing out. Going against my better judgment, I decided to give it a try. Upon finishing the collection for myself, I can honestly say that I Hate Fairyland is one of the most brutally funny comics I have ever had the pleasure of reading. Emphasis on the brutal part.
Written and drawn by none other than Scottie Young (Strange Academy; Middlewest; Oz) for Image Comics (Skyward; Invincible; Saga; Paper Girls), I Hate Fairyland is, at its core, a brightly coloured black comedy fairy tale for adults.
Without spoiling too much of the fun, I Hate Fairyland tells the unfortunate story of a girl named Gertrude and her often reluctant sidekick, Larry as they try to escape from Fairyland.
At only 10 years old, a bright-eyed and fun-loving Gertrude finds herself magically falling into the fantasy world of her dreams called Fairyland. Upon arriving at this magical place she gets a mighty quest of searching the land to find a key and with it, her way back home. At first, this is a quest filled with laughter, awe and excitement. After 30 years of searching and still not finding the key, it is not.
I Hate Fairyland is bloody and violent
Gertrude is now 4 decades old but still trapped in her 10-year-old body and the novelty of Fairyland has completely worn off. Once bright-eyed and fun-loving, Gertrude is now a blood-thirsty, violent sociopath who rains terror on all of Fairyland and those unfortunate enough to live there. A lot has changed throughout the many years, one thing has not – Gertrude has never stopped searching for her way home.
For someone who doesn’t enjoy bad jokes and puns, I could not stop laughing all the way through I Hate Fairyland. Everything from the premise to the dialogue, and the brightly coloured art that just compliments and ties everything together. I Hate Fairland is the very definition of entertaining. It took my comedy-hating heart and warmed it.
I’ve always liked Scottie Young’s art style, but I Hate Fairyland is the comic that’s turned me into a fan.
Want to pick up I Hate Fairyland for yourself? You can click here to grab it from Critters and Comics. The entire series is available in the following formats: Digital; Single Issues (20 Issues); Trade Paperbacks (4 Books); or as Hardcovers (2 Books).