Rose (comics)
Encyclopedia
Rose is a prequel
to the Eisner-winning
comic book
Bone
. It was written by Bone creator Jeff Smith
and illustrated by Charles Vess
, who earned an Eisner nomination for his work on it. The story was originally published as a fourteen-issue miniseries and was later included in both trade paperback and hardcover collections.
Rose, the youngest of two sisters, is being trained to be a Veni-Yan-Cari (an "Awakened One"). Her mastery of the Dreaming Arts, a talent possessed by nearly everyone in her family except her sister Briar, is renowned throughout the Valley. She sets off for Old Man's Cave to take her final exam with Briar, Lucius, the Captain of the Guards, and her two dogs, whom Rose can understand and talk to. It is clear that Rose is falling for Lucius and that he reciprocates her feelings, but he behaves oddly around Briar. The Red Dragon appears and meets with the headmaster to alert him that the River Dragon has gone rogue. On the way, Rose gets her "gitchy feeling" (a manifestation of her dreaming arts), alerting her that something is wrong. She then dreams about freeing a dragon from a river.
Next day, Rose encounters the Red Dragon, who orders her to go to her headmaster. On the way, she is attacked by locusts and then by Balsaad, the River Dragon she freed in her dream. She cuts off his hand, but it suddenly regrows. Balsaad flees and Rose describes the ordeal and her dream to Briar, who asks her to not tell the Order about it. Rose goes after Balsaad once more and is told by the Red Dragon how to defeat it – at a price. She must take Balsaad to the river where she freed it, kill him, and then kill the next living thing she sees. Meanwhile, Lucius then leads the Veni-Yan-Cari in battle with the rat creatures, who are being led by a mysterious new master to take back the valley.
As Rose leads Balsaad back to the river, she is knocked out and has a dream. It is revealed that Briar is Balsaad's new master and the one who led the rat creatures to the valley. The Lord of the Locusts has discovered Briar's hidden hatred of her sister, inspired by jealousy of the powers Briar would never have as a dreamer and future queen, and has taken advantage of it through her dreams. Rose is about to be killed by the Lord of the Locusts, but Briar stops him, as she wants to be the one to kill her. Rose then wakes up and kills Balsaad. Briar then appears at almost the same time as one of her dogs. She has aged as punishment for defying the Locust King and begs Rose not to kill her. Rose brings Briar back to the valley and bursts into tears when her dog asks where its companion is. The people of the valley cheer her victory while the Red Dragon looks on disapprovingly.
In Bone flashbacks, Briar looks a little older than Rose. In Rose, however, Briar ages for failing the Lord of the Locusts.
from north-east England. The Lambton Worm regenerated itself by reattaching body parts that were cut off. It was defeated in the River Wear
when John Lambton cut it into pieces that washed away. A witch or wise woman had told Lambton that he must kill the first living thing he saw after defeating the worm. Lambton saw his father first, but instead killed the hound that he saw second.
Prequel
A prequel is a work that supplements a previously completed one, and has an earlier time setting.The widely recognized term was a 20th-century neologism, and a portmanteau from pre- and sequel...
to the Eisner-winning
Eisner Award
The Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards, commonly shortened to the Eisner Awards, and sometimes referred to as the Oscar Awards of the Comics Industry, are prizes given for creative achievement in American comic books. The Eisner Awards were first conferred in 1988, created in response to the...
comic book
Comic book
A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...
Bone
Bone (comics)
Bone is an independently published graphic novel series originally serialized in 55 irregularly released issues from 1991 to 2004. Bone was drawn and written by Jeff Smith....
. It was written by Bone creator Jeff Smith
Jeff Smith (cartoonist)
Jeff Smith is an American cartoonist, best known as the creator of the self-published comic book series Bone. His current series, RASL, focuses on an art thief who hops through dimensional barriers, hiding out on various parallel worlds.-Early life and education:Jeff Smith was born in McKees...
and illustrated by Charles Vess
Charles Vess
Charles Vess is an American fantasy artist and comic-book illustrator who has specialized in the illustration of myths and fairy tales. His illustrations are strongly influenced by the work of artists and illustrators such as Arthur Rackham and Alphonse Mucha...
, who earned an Eisner nomination for his work on it. The story was originally published as a fourteen-issue miniseries and was later included in both trade paperback and hardcover collections.
Plot
The prologue tells the story of how the world was created by a powerful dragon named Mim, who maintained peace and created powerful dreams. She was possessed by the powerful Lord of the Locusts, driving her mad and leading the other dragons to seal her, as well as the Lord of the Locusts, away in stone.Rose, the youngest of two sisters, is being trained to be a Veni-Yan-Cari (an "Awakened One"). Her mastery of the Dreaming Arts, a talent possessed by nearly everyone in her family except her sister Briar, is renowned throughout the Valley. She sets off for Old Man's Cave to take her final exam with Briar, Lucius, the Captain of the Guards, and her two dogs, whom Rose can understand and talk to. It is clear that Rose is falling for Lucius and that he reciprocates her feelings, but he behaves oddly around Briar. The Red Dragon appears and meets with the headmaster to alert him that the River Dragon has gone rogue. On the way, Rose gets her "gitchy feeling" (a manifestation of her dreaming arts), alerting her that something is wrong. She then dreams about freeing a dragon from a river.
Next day, Rose encounters the Red Dragon, who orders her to go to her headmaster. On the way, she is attacked by locusts and then by Balsaad, the River Dragon she freed in her dream. She cuts off his hand, but it suddenly regrows. Balsaad flees and Rose describes the ordeal and her dream to Briar, who asks her to not tell the Order about it. Rose goes after Balsaad once more and is told by the Red Dragon how to defeat it – at a price. She must take Balsaad to the river where she freed it, kill him, and then kill the next living thing she sees. Meanwhile, Lucius then leads the Veni-Yan-Cari in battle with the rat creatures, who are being led by a mysterious new master to take back the valley.
As Rose leads Balsaad back to the river, she is knocked out and has a dream. It is revealed that Briar is Balsaad's new master and the one who led the rat creatures to the valley. The Lord of the Locusts has discovered Briar's hidden hatred of her sister, inspired by jealousy of the powers Briar would never have as a dreamer and future queen, and has taken advantage of it through her dreams. Rose is about to be killed by the Lord of the Locusts, but Briar stops him, as she wants to be the one to kill her. Rose then wakes up and kills Balsaad. Briar then appears at almost the same time as one of her dogs. She has aged as punishment for defying the Locust King and begs Rose not to kill her. Rose brings Briar back to the valley and bursts into tears when her dog asks where its companion is. The people of the valley cheer her victory while the Red Dragon looks on disapprovingly.
Characters
Rose, Briar, Mim, the Lord of the Locusts, Lucius Down, the Captain of the Guard and, in the original series, the bartender at the Barrelhaven Tavern, have significant roles. The rat creatures, monsters for which Bone is well known, also make an appearance, though the ones that have individual personalities in Bone do not appear in Rose. The Veni-Yan, a benevolent religious order, also make a return appearance. The only characters in Rose that do not appear in Bone are Rose's two talking dogs, whom only she can understand.In Bone flashbacks, Briar looks a little older than Rose. In Rose, however, Briar ages for failing the Lord of the Locusts.
Balsaad and The Lambton Worm
It appears that the whole plot of Balsaad, the way to defeat him, and Rose's choosing to kill her dog instead of Briar are all influenced by the legend of Lambton WormLambton Worm
The Lambton Worm is a legend from North East England in the UK. The story takes place around the River Wear, and is one of the area's most famous pieces of folklore, having been adapted from written and oral tradition into pantomime and song formats....
from north-east England. The Lambton Worm regenerated itself by reattaching body parts that were cut off. It was defeated in the River Wear
River Wear
The River Wear is located in North East England, rising in the Pennines and flowing eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea at Sunderland.-Geology and history:...
when John Lambton cut it into pieces that washed away. A witch or wise woman had told Lambton that he must kill the first living thing he saw after defeating the worm. Lambton saw his father first, but instead killed the hound that he saw second.