The concept of a city living in a constant state of fear, ruled by a power-hungry supervillain with an indifferent attitude towards murder and extortion, is a good one. Her lazy, feel-good approach to villainy -- she'll even appear at a school's show-and-tell session to promote her lifestyle and philosophy -- could have made for good storytelling, as could the city's designation of appropriate "crime zones" and other amenties for the criminally motivated.

I could even overlook the costuming, which seems to suggest the anti-heroine believes abrupt nudity during a fight is a useful distraction to her opponents. I mean, I suppose that could actually work, although she pops out of her top far more often than necessary. And the scenario involving a supposedly upstanding politician who wants to clean up the city -- well, that's just bursting with potential story options that are, largely, rushed through and wasted.

But Jimmie Robinson's Bomb Queen passes into unforgivable territory with its use of rape, incest and pedophilia as comic set pieces. I'm sorry, Jimmie, but that's just not funny under any circumstance, and even dark comedy has its boundaries. You crossed it, and Bomb Queen flops as a result.

by Tom Knapp
Rambles.NET
23 December 2006