Quince #10 & #11 Review

Quince #10 & #11 Review

Publisher: Fanbase Press
Creator: Sebastian Kadlecik
Writer: Kit Steinkellner
Artist: Emma Steinkellner

Review by Anelise Farris

The creative team behind Quince have been spoiling readers this summer by releasing two issues each month instead of one! With only four issues left, it is hard to believe that we are just now seeing Quince handle a supervillain. To be clear, I mean that as a total compliment. The series has such strong character development and compelling real-life problems. It hasn’t had to resort to including a bunch of filler fights or action scenes. In issues #10 and #11, we are given just the right amount of bad-guy tension without sacrificing the character-centric storyline.

At the end of issue #9, Lupe realizes that perhaps she isn’t the only kid with superpowers at her school. In Quince #10, she and her siblings do a stakeout at her school to figure out who the mysterious vandalizer is. Lupe’s fears come true. Not only is the villain (or “anti-hero”, as he calls himself) a kid at her school; there is also the threat that a confrontation will reveal Lupe’s identity.

Then in Quince #11 the villain, who boasts of his super strength and telekinesis, continues to vandalize the school with threatening messages. Lupe must work to build up the courage to confront him.

As I rave about with each issue of Quince, the art pairs perfectly with the story: warm, affecting, and familiar. Each issue makes you feel like you are part of Lupe’s family, and the sibling banter mixed with a whole lot of love is entirely relatable. One of my favorite aspects of the art is the facial expressions: deceptively simple yet capable of communicating a lot of emotion. 

In Quince #10, Sophia’s face of little sister stubbornness makes her loud-mouthed protests almost audible. In the following issue, when Lupe questions whether her crush Devin would like her without her Quince mask, you feel her anguish. I will also say that the neon touches on the covers of these two issues brought a wonderful surge of energy that makes sense with the impending showdown.

Verdict
Buy it! Quince #10 and Quince #11 give us a familiar hero situation — the arrival of a supervillain — but they do it uniquely, with strong characters and plenty of moments both heartwarming and heartbreaking. Check out ComiXology on the 15th each month for new issues (available in both English and Spanish).