What do you think?
Rate this book
Queen and Country: The Definitive Edition #2
Queen and Country: The Definitive Edition, Vol. 2
Queen & Country, the Eisner Award-winning and critically lauded espionage series from acclaimed novelist and comic book author Greg Rucka, is back in a new series of definitive editions collecting the entire classic series in just four affordable soft covers. In this second collection, SIS field agent Tara Chase is put through the ringer as she must contend with espionage of the industrial kind, ghosts from her director's past, and politicians eager to use the service to their own ends
376 pages, Paperback
First published May 7, 2008
8 people are currently reading
301 people want to read
About the author
Greg Rucka
1,513 books1,929 followersGreg Rucka, is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his work on such comics as Action Comics, Batwoman: Detective Comics, and the miniseries Superman: World of New Krypton for DC Comics, and for novels such as his Queen & Country series.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
July 12, 2013
A good deal more personal and political than the first volume had been. This is on point for me, but I imagine more than a few people would rather have the more action-fueled first volume back. I'm very grateful that, this time around, none of the artists felt the need to overly sexualize Chace.
October 26, 2015
One of the big selling points of James Bond is how much every James Bond movie can be your first James Bond movie. There isn't (for the most part) overarching continuity. You can pick one, jump in. It'll follow the same basic structure just about every time. The Bond girl will always be there, but different. I mean, Austin Powers referenced its first movie in its first sequel and it was honestly more lip service than you see in most James Bond movies.
But I digress.
Queen & Country is the "no let's make it real" answer to James Bond. It's one of my favourite spy stories ever by one of my favourite comic writers. The selling point is that it's "real", that Greg Rucka has done his research, that this is how it actually works in the real world what with spies having to deal with not just real world footwork, but the people controlling the spies having to deal with actual bureaucracy, political entanglements, and real world consequences.
That's what's gripping about the first volume of Queen & Country, anyways. The first volume is so much about the politics and the establishing of what sorts of stories Queen & Country is interested in telling. Now that we're out of the scene setting, this book pushes the limits of what Queen & Country can do by telling three utterly phenomenal Queen & Country stories (established in the books as "Operations", e.g. "Operation: Stormfront" or "Operation: Dandelion") that all build on not only what the first volume of Queen & Country established, but also where Queen & Country is going.
Because the selling point of Queen & Country is that this story never ends. It cannot end. It will not be over until everyone in this intelligence community is either dead or retired, because there is work as needs doing. Tara Chase should probably not be in this profession. She deals with it exceptionally poorly (as we saw in the first volume). But she's incredibly good at what she does and there's a line in here that makes me SO desperate for Rucka to keep telling this story beyond the most recently released novel (which, I'll admit, I haven't read, but I have heard Rucka give interviews where he establishes what post-Last Run Queen & Country novels look like and I just want it).
And that's the compelling thing. Really fucked up shit happens in these books and Rucka is not afraid of having the story go into unexpected directions that are incredibly compelling. And I don't mean with like... insane action bits. There is a distinct lack of action in these books. Hell, some of the most exciting bits of this novel (and all Queen & Country novels) are the bits that's just stuffy British people sitting around dealing with politics and/or emotions of their particular situations and each major climax (in terms of actual SPY ACTION) is always quiet and subdued and almost anti-climactic in its scope. And yet you never feel it, because in the real world, spies don't end in massive Jack Bauer blowouts or in some James Bond villain secret base. They happen in a room, with one person watching another sleep.
Really, these books are just tremendously special. This is about as far as I made it the last (and first) time I read it. I think I made it halfway through the next volume before I stopped because I didn't have time to read the interstitial novel Rucka wrote. That won't be the case this time, though. Because I need to see all the things that Rucka does with this world and these characters because I've never read a spy story like this. That I'm not sure I will again makes me sad, but makes this special. So maybe that's a fair trade, I guess.
But I digress.
Queen & Country is the "no let's make it real" answer to James Bond. It's one of my favourite spy stories ever by one of my favourite comic writers. The selling point is that it's "real", that Greg Rucka has done his research, that this is how it actually works in the real world what with spies having to deal with not just real world footwork, but the people controlling the spies having to deal with actual bureaucracy, political entanglements, and real world consequences.
That's what's gripping about the first volume of Queen & Country, anyways. The first volume is so much about the politics and the establishing of what sorts of stories Queen & Country is interested in telling. Now that we're out of the scene setting, this book pushes the limits of what Queen & Country can do by telling three utterly phenomenal Queen & Country stories (established in the books as "Operations", e.g. "Operation: Stormfront" or "Operation: Dandelion") that all build on not only what the first volume of Queen & Country established, but also where Queen & Country is going.
Because the selling point of Queen & Country is that this story never ends. It cannot end. It will not be over until everyone in this intelligence community is either dead or retired, because there is work as needs doing. Tara Chase should probably not be in this profession. She deals with it exceptionally poorly (as we saw in the first volume). But she's incredibly good at what she does and there's a line in here that makes me SO desperate for Rucka to keep telling this story beyond the most recently released novel (which, I'll admit, I haven't read, but I have heard Rucka give interviews where he establishes what post-Last Run Queen & Country novels look like and I just want it).
And that's the compelling thing. Really fucked up shit happens in these books and Rucka is not afraid of having the story go into unexpected directions that are incredibly compelling. And I don't mean with like... insane action bits. There is a distinct lack of action in these books. Hell, some of the most exciting bits of this novel (and all Queen & Country novels) are the bits that's just stuffy British people sitting around dealing with politics and/or emotions of their particular situations and each major climax (in terms of actual SPY ACTION) is always quiet and subdued and almost anti-climactic in its scope. And yet you never feel it, because in the real world, spies don't end in massive Jack Bauer blowouts or in some James Bond villain secret base. They happen in a room, with one person watching another sleep.
Really, these books are just tremendously special. This is about as far as I made it the last (and first) time I read it. I think I made it halfway through the next volume before I stopped because I didn't have time to read the interstitial novel Rucka wrote. That won't be the case this time, though. Because I need to see all the things that Rucka does with this world and these characters because I've never read a spy story like this. That I'm not sure I will again makes me sad, but makes this special. So maybe that's a fair trade, I guess.
October 21, 2013
I liked the stories- they were exciting and well written. But the way the style of the illustrations kept changing from book to book and story to story, felt schizophrenic. The main character, Tara, went from a normal-looking woman, to a super-sexy one with a completely unrealistic body, to someone not good-looking, and so on. Same with the other characters. Made it hard to know who was who and kept me from fully enjoying the stories.
May 26, 2022
Recap: Tara Chace is a special agent for Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) code-named “Minder Two.” Unlike regular agents who are stationed in a specific place, she and the other two Minders are sent wherever a developing situation needs an extra hand. It’s dirty work, and there is a lot of behind-the-scenes politics between the various divisions and departments of the intelligence community. It’s more likely that Tara will burn out from the stress and ethical conundrums than that she’ll die, but the latter is always a possibility.
This volume contains three long stories.
“Operation: Blackwall” (illustrated by Jason Shawn Alexander) pits our British agent against England’s traditional enemy–France. It seems that tech giant Colin Beck is being pressured to give a major contract to a French conglomerate. Rene Dupuis has used his connections with French Intelligence to bag a sex tape starring Colin’s daughter Rachel Beck and is threatening to release it unless Colin signs a disadvantageous agreement. Mr. Beck has turned to SIS.
As it happens, Tara went to college with Rachel, so she can investigate while making it look like just catching up with an old friend. Tara quickly discovers that Rachel’s lover was an amateur who’s hung around too long for his masters. She rescues him from the French spies, but he might have preferred not to be once Tara starts asking pointed questions.
Meanwhile, Tara breaks off her affair with Minder Three, who does not take it well.
There’s a bit of classism going on here. Colin is the sort of crass, greedy businessman who’d normally be the baddie in an action movie. But he’s “new money” so he can’t get the respect of the people he really wants to respect him, and wants to keep his daughter scandal-free so that she can climb the social ladder. Dupuis is old money and looks down his nose at Mr. Beck and gloats when he thinks he’s put the nouveau riche man in his place.
The ending is a success for the British economy, but a downer for Tara and Rachel, as the latter learns only the negative truths about her lover.
“Operation: Storm Front” (illustrated by Carla Speed McNeil) opens with Minder Three already dead in Caracas. Probably naturally, but with a special agent, you can never be quite sure. Over in Georgia (the country), a Russian businessman is kidnapped for ransom. This is just the latest in a series of such kidnappings, but it’s more personal for Director of Operations Paul Crocker. It turns out that he was once assigned to bring the man’s father out of Prague safely, which didn’t happen, creating some bad blood in the agency. He’d like to save the businessman as a way to repay his debt.
This doesn’t involve any British interests directly, so he can’t send a rescue mission. But strings are pulled to send Tara and a prospective new Minder Three to T’blisi in an advisory capacity. They manage to trigger an overreaction by the kidnappers, and Tara must now find a way to escape the country by “the safest route.” Tara does a horrible thing, which turns out better than it well might have.
“Operation: Dandelion” (illustrated by Mike Hawthorne) is much more deep in internal politics. C, the head of SIS, is being replaced. The most likely prospect has a personal grudge against Paul Crocker since Prague and a couple of other operations that they blame each other for the failure of. A government minister offers Paul support if his agency will produce a plan to allow a rebel to take control of Zimbabwe. Crocker realizes he needs to get more information on the rebel before making the plan, and the man is conveniently in London, so he sends Tara Chace to do the femme fatale thing.
However, Crocker’s team isn’t supposed to operate domestically, and “Box”, the division that is, is also investigating the man. They don’t appreciate the intrusion.
In a subplot, there’s another opening for Minder Three, and a surprise candidate is found. He’s SAS, but has been outed as gay, which caused a fellow soldier to engage in “friendly fire.” Rather than lose his skills, couldn’t he do intelligence?
This is tense, gritty stuff. There’s a lot of “shades of grey” as both our agents and their opponents do morally repugnant things in the service of their country or their personal goals. Some of the characters let personal ambition or grudges guide their actions more than seems wise. There’s little compunction about manipulating others to get desired results, and less regret if it goes wrong.
The three artists have very different styles, and it’s a good thing the cast are introduced with minibios at the beginning of each mission to help us figure out what they look like now.
Notably, this volume feels less “American politics with a British wash” than the first one.
Content note: Violence, sometimes bloody. Male and female nudity, onscreen sex. Alcohol abuse. A pregnant woman is endangered. Torture. Attempted rape. Homophobia. Considerable rough language. For “mature readers.”
Overall: In some ways a better volume than the first. Recommended to “gritty” spy fiction fans.
This volume contains three long stories.
“Operation: Blackwall” (illustrated by Jason Shawn Alexander) pits our British agent against England’s traditional enemy–France. It seems that tech giant Colin Beck is being pressured to give a major contract to a French conglomerate. Rene Dupuis has used his connections with French Intelligence to bag a sex tape starring Colin’s daughter Rachel Beck and is threatening to release it unless Colin signs a disadvantageous agreement. Mr. Beck has turned to SIS.
As it happens, Tara went to college with Rachel, so she can investigate while making it look like just catching up with an old friend. Tara quickly discovers that Rachel’s lover was an amateur who’s hung around too long for his masters. She rescues him from the French spies, but he might have preferred not to be once Tara starts asking pointed questions.
Meanwhile, Tara breaks off her affair with Minder Three, who does not take it well.
There’s a bit of classism going on here. Colin is the sort of crass, greedy businessman who’d normally be the baddie in an action movie. But he’s “new money” so he can’t get the respect of the people he really wants to respect him, and wants to keep his daughter scandal-free so that she can climb the social ladder. Dupuis is old money and looks down his nose at Mr. Beck and gloats when he thinks he’s put the nouveau riche man in his place.
The ending is a success for the British economy, but a downer for Tara and Rachel, as the latter learns only the negative truths about her lover.
“Operation: Storm Front” (illustrated by Carla Speed McNeil) opens with Minder Three already dead in Caracas. Probably naturally, but with a special agent, you can never be quite sure. Over in Georgia (the country), a Russian businessman is kidnapped for ransom. This is just the latest in a series of such kidnappings, but it’s more personal for Director of Operations Paul Crocker. It turns out that he was once assigned to bring the man’s father out of Prague safely, which didn’t happen, creating some bad blood in the agency. He’d like to save the businessman as a way to repay his debt.
This doesn’t involve any British interests directly, so he can’t send a rescue mission. But strings are pulled to send Tara and a prospective new Minder Three to T’blisi in an advisory capacity. They manage to trigger an overreaction by the kidnappers, and Tara must now find a way to escape the country by “the safest route.” Tara does a horrible thing, which turns out better than it well might have.
“Operation: Dandelion” (illustrated by Mike Hawthorne) is much more deep in internal politics. C, the head of SIS, is being replaced. The most likely prospect has a personal grudge against Paul Crocker since Prague and a couple of other operations that they blame each other for the failure of. A government minister offers Paul support if his agency will produce a plan to allow a rebel to take control of Zimbabwe. Crocker realizes he needs to get more information on the rebel before making the plan, and the man is conveniently in London, so he sends Tara Chace to do the femme fatale thing.
However, Crocker’s team isn’t supposed to operate domestically, and “Box”, the division that is, is also investigating the man. They don’t appreciate the intrusion.
In a subplot, there’s another opening for Minder Three, and a surprise candidate is found. He’s SAS, but has been outed as gay, which caused a fellow soldier to engage in “friendly fire.” Rather than lose his skills, couldn’t he do intelligence?
This is tense, gritty stuff. There’s a lot of “shades of grey” as both our agents and their opponents do morally repugnant things in the service of their country or their personal goals. Some of the characters let personal ambition or grudges guide their actions more than seems wise. There’s little compunction about manipulating others to get desired results, and less regret if it goes wrong.
The three artists have very different styles, and it’s a good thing the cast are introduced with minibios at the beginning of each mission to help us figure out what they look like now.
Notably, this volume feels less “American politics with a British wash” than the first one.
Content note: Violence, sometimes bloody. Male and female nudity, onscreen sex. Alcohol abuse. A pregnant woman is endangered. Torture. Attempted rape. Homophobia. Considerable rough language. For “mature readers.”
Overall: In some ways a better volume than the first. Recommended to “gritty” spy fiction fans.
March 30, 2021
Love it. The only thing I dislike is the art for the second of the three stories (each has a different artist). Looking forward to the next volume.
March 17, 2017
Five stars! Even better than volume 1. Compelling!
May 24, 2009
I quite like this series, but the one frustrating thing is the change of illustrator from operation to operation. I like the idea in general since you get a nice showcase of each illustrator's interpretation of the same brilliant work by writer Greg Rucka, but it always takes a few panels to acclimate to the new illustrator's style and recognize the characters you were familiar with in the previous story. Thank goodness there is a roster before each operation.
February 19, 2009
This book taught me to never have sex with strange french men.
April 9, 2018
I really enjoyed the first Definitive Edition volume of Greg Rucka's Queen and Country, and this second one really ups the ante.
The volume opens with the three-parter Operation: Blackwall, illustrated by Jason Shawn Alexander, whose art I found interesting and suitable. The plot brings the minders into a blackmailing scheme, the victim of which turns out to be an old friend of Tara Chace.
In the five-parter Operation: Stormfront, the art duties have fallen on Carla Speed McNeil who does an amazing job. In fact, while I have long been interested in getting and reading her own comic Finder, her work on this arc had me immediately ordering the first two volume of that series. This is the best arc of the entire volume; not only because of McNeil's work, but also because Rucka's plot here is absolutely fantastic in its many levels of complication and emotional depth (without losing a single action beat either).
Finally, Mike Hawthorne draws Operation: Dandelion, a four-parter which signals further important changes in the set-up of the series. Again, Rucka's plotting and writing is top notch, and seems to use the qualities of the artist he is working with eminent.
Overall, the plots are really good and well executed both in narrative and visual terms, which I think motivates the five stars I have given the volume.
The volume opens with the three-parter Operation: Blackwall, illustrated by Jason Shawn Alexander, whose art I found interesting and suitable. The plot brings the minders into a blackmailing scheme, the victim of which turns out to be an old friend of Tara Chace.
In the five-parter Operation: Stormfront, the art duties have fallen on Carla Speed McNeil who does an amazing job. In fact, while I have long been interested in getting and reading her own comic Finder, her work on this arc had me immediately ordering the first two volume of that series. This is the best arc of the entire volume; not only because of McNeil's work, but also because Rucka's plot here is absolutely fantastic in its many levels of complication and emotional depth (without losing a single action beat either).
Finally, Mike Hawthorne draws Operation: Dandelion, a four-parter which signals further important changes in the set-up of the series. Again, Rucka's plotting and writing is top notch, and seems to use the qualities of the artist he is working with eminent.
Overall, the plots are really good and well executed both in narrative and visual terms, which I think motivates the five stars I have given the volume.
October 22, 2019
A friend of mine asked me if Greg Rucka was my favorite graphic novelist. It wasn't a question I had considered before. But after he pointed all the works by Greg Rucka I've enjoyed, I have to say he's at least in the top 3.
This is my second time rereading the entire Queen and Country series, and really this review applies to all of the volumes, because they are all quite good. I have never traveled to any of the locations the minders are sent on their missions, so I can't speak to the validity of the writing, but as an outsider their missions ring true to me. Both the story and the writing make me feel like I'm there. I never feel forced to suspend my disbelief or question plot points. I can accept that what Tara and the other characters do is believable and in line with their personas.
My one criticism is the way Tara is portrayed. In some storylines, she has depth and complexity and is a fully flushed out protagonist. In other stories, she comes across more two dimensional and I question whether she's representative of actual women or simply a caricature.
This is my second time rereading the entire Queen and Country series, and really this review applies to all of the volumes, because they are all quite good. I have never traveled to any of the locations the minders are sent on their missions, so I can't speak to the validity of the writing, but as an outsider their missions ring true to me. Both the story and the writing make me feel like I'm there. I never feel forced to suspend my disbelief or question plot points. I can accept that what Tara and the other characters do is believable and in line with their personas.
My one criticism is the way Tara is portrayed. In some storylines, she has depth and complexity and is a fully flushed out protagonist. In other stories, she comes across more two dimensional and I question whether she's representative of actual women or simply a caricature.
April 3, 2018
Tense thrillers, I love this series. I've read most of it, except only the last Tara book (Red Panda) and the last two Declassifieds, but I liked this format better and I wanted to finish reading it. Anyway, it's really smartly written and mixes politics with the personal, emotional turmoil incredibly effectively. Most of the art is solid to good. The only series I was indifferent to was Declassified 3, by Antony Johnston and Chris Mitten. Mitten's art was too rough in comparison to the other artists, and the script was good (though more than a bit cliche in the delivery of the ending), but clearly not up to Rucka's standards. I didn't need a story about Nick Poole, a character I like quite a bit, so much that I couldn't have waited for Rucka to write it himself.
June 30, 2019
The illustrations were different in the first volume of this book and I wasn’t a huge fan. It was nice that I understood what was going on as I speak French, but was surprised they only put the translations at the back. I feel like most readers never would’ve found them until the book had been read. The illustrations were great for the rest of the book, and I noticed that they didn’t make Tara all big boobed and small hipped like they did in the previous volumes. This doesn’t really matter to me, but I’m sure it will placate some of the critics of the previous volumes. The story was easy to follow even though it was heavy on the politics, but it balanced well with the action and missions. Solid, as Rucka always is!
May 15, 2022
I enjoyed this set of 3 stories even more than the last. The art was more consistently good, even using 3 different artists again.
There is a lot more interpersonal stories in this set and a whole lot more of the inter workings of department and other gov’t agencies.
The first one had a ton of French that I felt that I needed to translate and it distracted from the story.
The second one had probably the most impact on the story as a whole and was really well written.
The third was probably my favorite of the stories. The plot was the most interesting, with a lot of moving parts and intrigue going on all at once.
Really loving the series.
There is a lot more interpersonal stories in this set and a whole lot more of the inter workings of department and other gov’t agencies.
The first one had a ton of French that I felt that I needed to translate and it distracted from the story.
The second one had probably the most impact on the story as a whole and was really well written.
The third was probably my favorite of the stories. The plot was the most interesting, with a lot of moving parts and intrigue going on all at once.
Really loving the series.
July 21, 2022
Antes de leer a Greg Rucka, las historias de espionaje no me llamaban la atención, ahora planeo leer toda su bibliografía relacionada con el tema. Lo que más me ha gustado de este volumen es que te muestran una forma diferente de resolver los conflictos políticos, más allá del clásico "Mata A para salvar a B". En estas novelas si vez el manejo que hay detrás de las organizaciones secretas.
En esta oportunidad tenemos a 3 ilustradores diferentes quienes supieron narrar perfectamente cada cuadro de la historia. Me ha gustado cada uno de los estilos que van muy bien con los capítulos, el tema y el ritmo.
En esta oportunidad tenemos a 3 ilustradores diferentes quienes supieron narrar perfectamente cada cuadro de la historia. Me ha gustado cada uno de los estilos que van muy bien con los capítulos, el tema y el ritmo.
October 12, 2020
Queen & Country begins to hit its stride in volume 2. The characters are well-developed. We know their ticks and traits. We care for them. We despise them. We know it’ll hurt as they start their inevitable fall. As always, I was shocked at how brutal Rucka can be with his storytelling. There were a number of plot points that I did not see coming, but that’s what makes them so effective. You can also start to clearly see in this volume why the series is centered on Tara Chace. She is a memorable, flawed heroine that is even more relevant now than perhaps when these stories were first written.
February 13, 2025
Volume 2 continues the series, but many of these storyarcs are somewhat standalone. Tara's relationship with Minder 3 Ed carries over to a sad conclusion, but not one that would work for James Bond. It's good espionage, but I haven't any idea if there is an overarching narrative to the work. That said, I do hope to read the remaining two definitive editions some day.
January 20, 2019
Hard hitting action and a compelling main character--two factors that make this series a favorite of mine. Dark in tone, grimdark at times, it isn't for kids. Rather, a mature reader will appreciate the complexities of politics, corporate executives playing god, and grey morals of survivors.
January 2, 2018
Absolutely enjoyable. No more to say.
August 11, 2020
Love the story, love the characters, love the plot. Artwork is a little inconsistent but overall Queen and Country is stellar.
December 2, 2021
The art seems a bit rough, but the stories are still excellent.
January 22, 2022
I enjoyed Queen & Country Volume 2. Things seemed to ramp up a little more and it looks like we are going to get some interesting story lines coming down the path. Looking forward to Volume 3.
October 1, 2023
Fully expected this to be mid or worse. Pleasantly surprised it was slightly better.
July 4, 2024
Good content but the wild changes in illustration style are distracting to me personally
September 24, 2024
The amount of boring is disproportionate to the fact that this is a series about spies.
July 31, 2017
Another fine collection of Spy adventures. Still reminds me a bit of Strikeback, and now maybe even Atomic Blonde. Not action all the time, good plots and story developments. Looking forward to Queen and Country: The Definitive Edition, Vol. 3.
February 19, 2017
This was a revelation to me. As a book I stumbled on and impulsively purchased, I came with no particular expectations. In the end I loved it and read it in one sitting, enjoying the mix of illustrators, and how this added different shades and nuances to the characters. Greg Rucka's style is taut, pacy and has enough procedural detail to feel authentic. I'll be hunting out all the other Queen & Country collections and novels.
October 20, 2012
This book collects comics 13-26 of Greg Rucka's "Queen & Country" series.
Like the first volume in the series, it centers around an elite operations group in Britain's intelligence service, especially the exploits of Tara Chace, one of several people sent abroad to tackle covert assignments when official channels won't do.
Whereas the first volume focused heavily on international Islamic terrorism, which interludes to dwell on domestic political pressures in London, this book takes a different tack. There's relatively little about terrorism beyond an aside suggesting that our main characters are sick of U.S. pressure to focus on Osama Bin Ladin. Intrigues are more political, and in several cases involve the interactions between British businesses and foreign governments. More of the action seems to take place in London, as well, as the team we're following faces budget cuts and leadership changes that -- author Greg Rucka hints -- could ultimately transform the service. Paul Crocker, director of operations for the team, comes into sharper profile in these stories as he fights for funding and even to keep his job.
People who loved the action of volume one may be disappointed in the second "Queen & Country" collection, but I enjoyed the political games at least as much as I liked the fighting and killing of the earlier book. And there's still a decent share of fighting and killing.
For the most part, I also like the illustrations better in this book. Different artists drew each of the three story lines it's divided up into, and were given fairly free reign to interpret Rucka's characters and the worlds they inhabit. My only complaint -- and it's a small one -- is that Carla Speed McNeil seemed to draw many white male characters with very similar strokes. In several of the scenes she illustrated I had a hard time knowing who was who.
Like the first volume in the series, it centers around an elite operations group in Britain's intelligence service, especially the exploits of Tara Chace, one of several people sent abroad to tackle covert assignments when official channels won't do.
Whereas the first volume focused heavily on international Islamic terrorism, which interludes to dwell on domestic political pressures in London, this book takes a different tack. There's relatively little about terrorism beyond an aside suggesting that our main characters are sick of U.S. pressure to focus on Osama Bin Ladin. Intrigues are more political, and in several cases involve the interactions between British businesses and foreign governments. More of the action seems to take place in London, as well, as the team we're following faces budget cuts and leadership changes that -- author Greg Rucka hints -- could ultimately transform the service. Paul Crocker, director of operations for the team, comes into sharper profile in these stories as he fights for funding and even to keep his job.
People who loved the action of volume one may be disappointed in the second "Queen & Country" collection, but I enjoyed the political games at least as much as I liked the fighting and killing of the earlier book. And there's still a decent share of fighting and killing.
For the most part, I also like the illustrations better in this book. Different artists drew each of the three story lines it's divided up into, and were given fairly free reign to interpret Rucka's characters and the worlds they inhabit. My only complaint -- and it's a small one -- is that Carla Speed McNeil seemed to draw many white male characters with very similar strokes. In several of the scenes she illustrated I had a hard time knowing who was who.
May 18, 2015
There are two volumes, and 3 "operations" in this volume: Operation: Blackwall and Operation: Stormfront and Operation: Dandelion (The definitive editions are comprised of two 'regular' volumes, and issues 13-24 of the monthly issues.)
Operation: Blackwall
The first 3 pages, of agents watching two people have sex, which is shown, is in FRENCH. Both the agents and the lovers… The scenes are in translation at the very end of the book, NOT the segment, btw. Tara Chace is on the case again; this time a very rich man is being "blackmailed by the French Government". The sex scene mentioned is his daughter caught in a honey trap. It's up to tara to clean up the crime, stop it. The daughter, Rachel, and Tara were friends in college, as it happens. (There's more French but it's not translated.) This one is personal.
The art is excellent. Fits the events, dark, moody, efficient.
5 stars
Operation: Stormfront
Ed Kittering, Tara Chace's most recent lover, and recently jilted by her, is found in a hotel bed after a finished operation, dead of a possible aneurysm. She's found a new #3 for her team. Soon, Tara (#2) and her new #3 are sent on a job that goes horribly wrong. Tara, however, find a very simple solution. That is, if you really believe "the Ends justifies the Means".
The art is great!
5 stars
Operation: Dandelion
The character of Tara Chace is developing well, becoming more human, someone who can be identified with. This mission is "in-house", actually in London, plenty of sleight of hand, with the actual mission not revealed until the last page.
Good job!
5 stars
Operation: Blackwall
The first 3 pages, of agents watching two people have sex, which is shown, is in FRENCH. Both the agents and the lovers… The scenes are in translation at the very end of the book, NOT the segment, btw. Tara Chace is on the case again; this time a very rich man is being "blackmailed by the French Government". The sex scene mentioned is his daughter caught in a honey trap. It's up to tara to clean up the crime, stop it. The daughter, Rachel, and Tara were friends in college, as it happens. (There's more French but it's not translated.) This one is personal.
The art is excellent. Fits the events, dark, moody, efficient.
5 stars
Operation: Stormfront
Ed Kittering, Tara Chace's most recent lover, and recently jilted by her, is found in a hotel bed after a finished operation, dead of a possible aneurysm. She's found a new #3 for her team. Soon, Tara (#2) and her new #3 are sent on a job that goes horribly wrong. Tara, however, find a very simple solution. That is, if you really believe "the Ends justifies the Means".
The art is great!
5 stars
Operation: Dandelion
The character of Tara Chace is developing well, becoming more human, someone who can be identified with. This mission is "in-house", actually in London, plenty of sleight of hand, with the actual mission not revealed until the last page.
Good job!
5 stars
February 12, 2014
Much improved over the first volume, although the art in the third included arc is sadly just flat as can be, lacking even Fernandez's gonzo commitment to the grotesque from the first book.
But the first two-thirds feature some truly fantastic artists: Jason Shawn Alexander's manic, sketchy line is a perfect fit for Rucka's more intimate tale of Tara and her erstwhile friend, dealing in paranoia and victimization. Aboard for the second arc is Carla Speed McNeil, who also letters the dialogue/SFX by hand. Her art is a complete reversal of Alexander's; where his is drenched in noir lighting and characters so detailed you can smell the cigarettes and sweat, hers is lighter, using hatching for shadows and a more stylized approach to characters.
The only knock - and it's a small one - is that Tara and co. occasionally look like bobbleheads, with their heads a stitch bigger than their bodies. But whatever. McNeil works the transition from routine op to shitstorm by introducing heavy charcoal blacks into her palette, effectively casting the remainder of the story in shadow - supporting Rucka through the art. And the ending...just contrast Tara at the end of the first and second arcs.
The third part is not my bag. It's shorter, and feels rushed. The art is not bad, not good, just there, and dull. Eh.
But the first two-thirds feature some truly fantastic artists: Jason Shawn Alexander's manic, sketchy line is a perfect fit for Rucka's more intimate tale of Tara and her erstwhile friend, dealing in paranoia and victimization. Aboard for the second arc is Carla Speed McNeil, who also letters the dialogue/SFX by hand. Her art is a complete reversal of Alexander's; where his is drenched in noir lighting and characters so detailed you can smell the cigarettes and sweat, hers is lighter, using hatching for shadows and a more stylized approach to characters.
The only knock - and it's a small one - is that Tara and co. occasionally look like bobbleheads, with their heads a stitch bigger than their bodies. But whatever. McNeil works the transition from routine op to shitstorm by introducing heavy charcoal blacks into her palette, effectively casting the remainder of the story in shadow - supporting Rucka through the art. And the ending...just contrast Tara at the end of the first and second arcs.
The third part is not my bag. It's shorter, and feels rushed. The art is not bad, not good, just there, and dull. Eh.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews