Comic Stripped: Nimona

We present our reviews of Nimona the comic and the movie!

Nimona is a science fantasy graphic novel by American cartoonist ND Stevenson. The story follows the title character, a shapeshifter who joins the disgraced knight Ballister Blackheart in his plans to destroy the over-controlling Institute. Blackheart's intent to operate under his code of ethics contrasts with Nimona's natural impulsivity.

Stevenson began working on Nimona while attending the Maryland Institute College of Art, revisiting a character he had created in high school. Stevenson published Nimona as a webcomic from 2012 through 2014, initially through Tumblr, developing the story and the art style as time progressed. The finished work ultimately doubled as his senior thesis. After an agent reached out to Stevenson, HarperCollins released Nimona in print form in 2015. It has been translated into at least 16 other languages and adapted into an audiobook.

Nimona's accolades include an Eisner Award, a Cybils Award, and a Cartoonist Studio Prize. Reviews and academic analyses have highlighted themes of queerness and fluidity of identity and how they oppose and subvert traditional controlling institutions and exclusionary systems.
Nimona is a 2023 American animated science fantasy action-adventure film directed by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane from a screenplay by Robert L. Baird and Lloyd Taylor, based on the 2015 graphic novel of the same name by ND Stevenson. Set in a medieval-futuristic kingdom, the film features the voices of Chloë Grace Moretz as the eponymous shapeshifting character and Riz Ahmed as her boss and former knight Ballister, with Eugene Lee Yang and Frances Conroy voicing supporting roles.

Originally a production of Blue Sky Studios, it was set to be directed by Patrick Osborne, with an initial release date of 2020. Following the Walt Disney Company's acquisition of 21st Century Fox, the parent company of Blue Sky, it was delayed multiple times before being canceled due to Blue Sky's closure in April 2021. However, Annapurna Pictures revived the project the following year, with Bruno and Quane announced as directors, DNEG Animation providing animation, and Netflix acquiring worldwide distribution. Christophe Beck was hired to compose the film's rock-inspired score.

Nimona had its world premiere at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 14, 2023, was released in select cinemas on June 23, and made its streaming debut on June 30. The film received critical acclaim and was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the Critics' Choice, Annie Awards and Academy Awards.


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