8.5 / 10 Rating
What’s QUEEN OF BAD DREAMS about?
Set far enough into the future where flying cars are no big deal, QUEEN OF BAD DREAMS is about a woman who decides the fate of dream entities (called figments) who’ve “dropped” into the real world.
The hero of the story, Daher Wei, is the model employee at the Morphean Annex, the organization that handles all issues related to figments. As an Inspector Judge, she decides if the figments are reinserted into dreams, given residency in the waking world, or are neutralized.
Don’t sleep on QUEEN OF BAD DREAMS #1
In issue one, a particularly powerful figment named Ava escapes from the imagination of a man named Emerson Chase. He’s the son of an influential councilwoman, whose family has a complicated relationship with the Morphean Annex. For years, Ava’s protected him from nightmares, but she seems to have new priorities. Judge Wei’s job is to determine if Ava has enough agency to be granted a life beyond the confines of Chase’s mind.
In issue two of QUEEN OF BAD DREAMS, we’ll likely learn more about Ava, why she escaped, and how Emerson Chase is one of those “Men who fall apart when you challenge their worldview,” according to the narrator, Daher’s ex-wife, Viv. The purpose of Ava’s character, it seems, is to say that certain figments have the same humanity as people — or even more. The QoBD series will be five issues long.
My opinion
Jordi Pérez (inks) and Dearbhla Kelly (colors) work together to create trippy, dreamlike art with a wobbly fisheye-lens quality.
Written by Danny Lore, the plot and relationships between characters are brimming with possibility. As a queer woman, I’m especially interested to learn more about Daher and Viv’s former marriage beyond the work-life balance issues. For such a unfamiliar world, the writing about it was clear. There was one scene, however, between Daher and her partner, West, that was tough to follow.
I’m looking forward to issue #2, releasing next week on May 29.
Secret Society Comics 