Well, Naifeh sure does wrap up Ugg nicely. Oh, he hurries it a little to be sure. There’s no reason he couldn’t have stretched this issue out to two and it would’ve done a lot better for the other princesses’ arcs and the diplomatic stuff, but it’s impossible to hold it against him or Ugg.

The conclusion is unexpected, sort of obvious, rather intelligence, rather empathetic. The only thing it’s missing is an appearance from Ülga’s professor, who’d be proud of her. Naifeh is rushing, no doubt. He cuts scenes short in the epilogue too, I just realized.

But again, it really doesn’t matter. Because Ugg brings a tear to one’s eye and Naifeh gets there sincerely. Somehow, Naifeh’s able to bring surprise after surprise and for it all to come across naturally. Like he’d been laying the groundwork for it all along.

Naifeh brings Ugg and Ülga home well.

CREDITS

Writer and artist, Ted Naifeh; colorists, Warren Wucinich and Naifeh; letterer, Wucinich; editors, Robin Herrera and Jill Beaton; publisher, Oni Press.

Naifeh seems like he’s forecasting quite a bit of what’s to come in Princess Ugg, which is fine. The comic has seemed somewhat listless and wandering, but this issue has Naifeh not just giving readers an idea of the situation beyond Ülga’s school, he also gives her a real supporting cast.

Her fellow princesses finally stick up for Ülga against the evil princess, who’s revealed not just to be an evil in a Mean Girls way, but actually evil. Naifeh gets in all the information he hasn’t been giving the previous issues in a few sentences here. Combined with a transcendent surprise sequence, it’s probably the best issue of the comic, if not the most entertaining.

The characters are getting far more complex, with Naifeh still able to fit in crowd-pleasing moments. Ugg has had its bumps, but Naifeh’s more successful turns more than make up for rough patches.

CREDITS

Writer and artist, Ted Naifeh; colorists, Warren Wucinich and Naifeh; letterer, Wucinich; editors, Robin Herrera and Jill Beaton; publisher, Oni Press.

Naifeh unleashes Ülga in battle, which leads to some decent pages, but he doesn’t let her do much fighting. The story keeps getting in the way. There are a lot of plot twists for just one issue–the worst being how her nemesis is nasty to Ülga even when she’s saving the day–and the ending is a little too light.

It’s an amusing issue and has a decent presence, but as the conclusion winds down… it’s clear Naifeh didn’t really have much story to tell. To tell the issue right, he would’ve needed twice the space, maybe three times. There are a lot of little battles and all those plot twists.

He doesn’t seem to like drawing the battle scenes, which is problematic since he’s showing how perfect Ülga is for them. And he gets downright lazy with the art on some of the bad guys.

Ugg’s got problems.

CREDITS

Writer and artist, Ted Naifeh; colorists, Warren Wucinich and Naifeh; letterer, Wucinich; editors, Robin Herrera and Jill Beaton; publisher, Oni Press.

Even though Naifeh has sort of reduced the supporting princesses to caricatures–there’s the nice one, the mean one, et cetera–this issue does have a lot going on. Ülga has been included in activities, though not in the other princesses’ good graces, and so Naifeh gets to showcase the contrasts between the cultures.

Of course, she’s also getting better at being a proper princess, which doesn’t offer much narrative weight but does move the story along. And may eventually provide a good humor moment.

Because Ugg needs good humor moments. When Ülga goes up against bandits in the last scene, even though Naifeh doesn’t make the comparison, she’s actually against honest villains. Her other villains are dishonest–the princesses, the condescending school teachers–and there’s little refuge for the character.

All in all, it’s an outstanding issue of the comic, but Naifeh still doesn’t seem to have Ugg’s footing.

CREDITS

Writer and artist, Ted Naifeh; colorists, Warren Wucinich and Naifeh; letterer, Wucinich; editors, Robin Herrera and Jill Beaton; publisher, Oni Press.

Somehow Naifeh manages to get through all of Ugg's problems to get the comic to a good spot for the finish. He's still on the horse–sorry, unicorn–where Ülga is helping her hideous mean girl roommate get ready for a house competition.

Ülga has the awesome mentor guy for support, but then she has some awfully mean teachers as well. Naifeh has this problem of creating a fantasy school for princesses visually and technologically set in the Middle Ages but socially far more modern and having a mean teacher creates a disconnect. He spent so much time setting up the reality of Ülga's people and nowhere near enough setting up the reality of the other princesses and their respective kingdoms.

He also lays out a couple coming plot lines–romance and war. Presumably they'll do better than bonding over horses, because he still doesn't redeem the nemesis.

But it's a steadier read.

CREDITS

Writer and artist, Ted Naifeh; colorists, Warren Wucinich and Naifeh; letterer, Wucinich; editors, Robin Herrera and Jill Beaton; publisher, Oni Press.

Naifeh partially recovers Ugg this issue with a fantastic flashback about Ülga’s motherhood and then he sets her up with a friend at school. One of the teachers is actually going to help her. That sequence, with her conversations with the teacher and the flashback, is excellent and it seems like the issue is going to go well.

Even the teacher’s assignment–Ülga needs to make friends with her enemy–is interesting and could lead to a decent plot line. But then he immediately reminds the reader this other princess is hideous. Not mildly hideous, but completely so. He’s never shown a single redeeming value to the character and he makes it worse here.

So the solution has to do with Ülga taming a unicorn; because all a comic needs is equestrian training.

There’s some really nice art and the flashback’s wonderful, but the comic is still on shaky ground.

CREDITS

Writer and artist, Ted Naifeh; colorists, Warren Wucinich and Naifeh; letterer, Wucinich; editors, Robin Herrera and Jill Beaton; publisher, Oni Press.

Well, this issue is sure disappointing. It’s basically a montage sequence of the other princesses bring crappy to Princess Ülga. Naifeh could have gotten the same effect with about half the teasing and then an actual story for the rest of the issue. Instead, the soft cliffhanger implies next issue is when there’s actual character development.

All the teasing doesn’t do anything for the characters; Naifeh is writing the comic for the reader and breaking out the scenes for the reader. He’s not showing how Ülga is experiencing the teasing from her classmates and teachers. He doesn’t show her experience until the end of the issue, in a rather predictable turn of events. And then the comic’s basically over.

It’s a bummer of a misfire.

The comic is impeccably illustrated and it retains a bunch of the series’ charm, it just doesn’t do anything. A second issue shouldn’t tread water.

CREDITS

Writer and artist, Ted Naifeh; colorist and letterer, Warren Wucinich; editors, Robin Herrera and Jill Beaton; publisher, Oni Press.

If the first issue is any indication, Princess Ugg is going to be a rip-roaring good time. It’s kind of like a fish out of water story, only maybe a more appropriate description would be a (good-hearted) piranha in the goldfish tank story.

One Princess Ülga–not sure where the title Ugg comes from yet–makes some decisions against the normal way of her people. She’s kind of viking, but tougher. She decides she wants to go get proper princess schooling outside her mountain kingdom. At some kind of royal academy. Ted Naifeh doesn’t really specify yet, because he’s having way too much fun.

The comic works because Naifeh isn’t going the humor route, at least not as how Ülga sees it. She wants this education to further her understanding of the world, to better serve her people. He gets all of that sentiment in quickly. Naifeh knows how to pace.

Ugg rocks.

A 

CREDITS

Down the Mountain; writer and artist, Ted Naifeh; colorist and letterer, Warren Wucinich; editors, Robin Herrera and Jill Beaton; publisher, Oni Press.