Friday Night Fights: No corsage necessary

At their heart, superhero comics are about idealizing the qualities we'd like to see in ourselves — heroism, selflessness, courage, strength, honor. And, of course, bad-assery.

And for my money, there are few comics that stand as icons of The Bad-Ass like the various Grendel Tales mini-series. Spun-off and overseen by Grendel creator Matt Wagner, Grendel Tales told the stories of the warriors, soldiers and killers that tried to find some sort of honor in lives inspired by the legend of the original assassin, and one of the most powerful of those stories was Homecoming.

Susan Verhagen might not sound like a very impressive name, but after dealing with doubts about her role as a grendel, returning home and seemingly finding a chance at peace with her unrequited love Avril only to have it all taken away by a brutal gang — well, they don't call her Grendel for nothing.

Why don't I let Susan do the talking in a language we all understand ...


And she's just getting started!

Bad. Ass.

Just like Bahlactus!

Panel from Grendel Tales: Homecoming #3 (of 3)
Pat McEown, writer and penciller; Dave Cooper, painted art