Nimona, the movie, loses a lot by weakening the comedian’s best relationship

For a longtime fan from ND Stevenson’s webcomic-turned-graphic-novel, Nimona — Someone who followed the release of the original comic week in and week out from 2012 to 2014 and became part of the growing fan base that clung to each new cliffhanger and new reveal – the release of Netflix’s animated adaptation is a bittersweet moment. It’s exciting that the film was actually completed and released to the public after Disney acquired the project and allegedly (and, given Disney’s history, very believably) destroyed it Dislike for the story’s central gay couple. And it’s exciting to see this story and Stevenson’s comic work find a wider audience.

But there’s still that feeling that fans of a book almost always get when they see it adapted for TV or film. Whether the film adaptation is well done or not, whether it stands on its own and finds its own audience, often the small, lost inner voice whispers: But you don’t really tell the story that led people to this title in the first place.

Stevenson says the film version preserves what’s most important about his comic – the personality, powers, and meaning of its fiery shapeshifter protagonist, Nimona. And he says the film reflects a backstory that he’s always wanted to put in the comic but couldn’t find a place for it, and the changes were necessary. He’s not cheated out of anything with this heavily altered version of this story. Still, as a fan, there’s one thing I miss from the book more than anything that was left out for the film.

Netflix version directed by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane (Disguised spies) and written by Robert L. Baird, Lloyd Taylor, and Pamela Ribon, retains many of the book’s most general parameters. In a high-tech retro-future (what Stevenson calls “monk punk”), where knights and kings rule over an easily manipulated peasantry, a knight (Ballister Blackheart in the comics, Ballister Boldheart in the movies) is wronged by his kingdom added guidance. His attempt to uncover the truth about what really happened is complicated by Nimona, a girl with tremendous and unpredictable powers, a surprisingly cheerful, malicious streak, and a belief that Ballister wants a bloody, messy revenge. which she can help him to achieve.

But in the film version, the focus of the story is entirely on Nimona while minimizing Ballister. He’s a softer, more helpless, more easily confused character in the film whose rough edges have worn away. He spends more time being dragged screaming by her than doing anything for himself. And in the film, his friend – a golden-haired hero-knight with the really ridiculous name of Ambrosius Goldenloin – is determined to find out the truth behind Ballister’s expulsion from the kingdom. Ballister and Ambrosius are a sweet, supportive couple who open the film with a chaste, sweet cuddle and experience frustration with each other throughout the film, but always seem to be on each other’s side.

The comic focuses much more on these two characters, their complicated relationship, and the roles they play for the kingdom, with Ballister as the scheming villain and Ambrosius as the kingdom’s shining hero. A lot of critical analysis and approval for Nimona has focused on the main character as Metaphor for trans identity and a fantasy icon exploring homophobic bigotry. But Ballister and Ambrosius’ thorny relationship was always the richest part of the comic, and it’s sad to see how much of that was swept away in the making of this Nimonas story in the first place.

The comic has a wicked, offbeat sense of humor, expressed in part in the odd clash between medieval culture and sci-fi, or between a serious fantasy drama and a breezy humor flick. Stevenson began Nimona As a project at an art school, both the visual style and the storytelling evolved radically over the course of the two-year storytelling process.

But that early humor never seemed like something the strip needed to deny, any more than the later drama felt undeserved. Ballister and Ambrose’s early relationship in the comic has both elements of bitter betrayal and silly nonsense. Ambrosius clearly sees himself as an epic hero, and yells things like “Forget science!” when he catches Ballister raiding a top-secret lab. But he also clearly believes they’re still friends, just like they were when they were kids, despite his own role in destroying Ballister’s life.

The tension between the way Ambrosius sees their relationship and the way Ballister sees it arises in every interaction between them and is the most nuanced common thread of the original story. There are elements of self-deception and self-mythification in Ambrose’s view of the world, and each time reality pervades his fantasies about himself, it is both an intense emotional moment and a vindication. It is possible to sympathize with him as a fool, hate him as a villain, and at the same time desire his salvation.

For his part, the book version of Ballister is a much more complicated character than in the film – more vindictive, more competent and able, more principled, more knowledgeable. And yet, in his own way, he is just as helpless as his film colleague. If anything, the fact that he’s a much richer character makes his helplessness in the face of Nimona’s actions even more tragic and evocative.

Nimona The film features some daring emotional moments – including a scene where a character attempts suicide, which might shock parents who assume it’s a rollicking Disney-style adventure with funny animals. But the book trumps all of the film’s emotion when it comes to the scene where Ambrosius must confront his own illusions and see how much damage he has done by consciously indulging in them. His relationship with Ballister in the film is cute and prescriptive — something mainstream entertainment could use more of when it comes to queer couples. But it’s even more satisfying in the comic, where it’s not only hard-fought but also more comprehensible.

Most people read Nimona will not have been betrayed the way Ballister did, and he will not have had to fight to clear his name the way he does. But there’s something particularly universal about the intricate dynamic between these two men, who see the world in vastly different ways and both struggle to just listen to the other. And the work they have to do to reconcile, and especially the work Ambrose has to do to atone for his decisions, is a real satisfaction.

Nimona The film is an entertaining film with a tricky, important message about misfits and monster girls. But Nimona The comic is a real work of art that hides a lot of nuances, which at first glance looks like a satirical adventure. It’s possible to appreciate the adaptation, although one really wishes it had retained a little more of the most beautiful part of its inspiration.