An Entertainment in Londinium

Girl Genius #21

by Kaja Foglio, Phil Foglio, Cheyenne Wright (Colorist)

In a time when the Industrial Revolution has become an all-out war, Mad Science rules the World... with mixed success.

Agatha is the last of the Heterodynes-a notorious family of Mad Scientists that everyone had thought safely wiped out. Now, the ancestral city of the Heterodynes has been trapped in a bubble of stopped time, and Agatha is on a journey to find a way to reverse the effect and save the people she loves.

In this volume, Agatha may finally have a chance to relax! That is, as long as her evening at Queen Albia's ball isn't interrupted by too many odd surprised or party-crashing monsters. Old friends, new troubles, and weird fashions abound as Agatha navigates the royal court of Londinum as only a madgirl can!

Genres: Steampunk, Comics, Fantasy, Webcomic, Graphic Novels

123 pages, Paperback

Published February 1, 2025

About the author

An artist and comics author, Kaja Foglio writes the Hugo Award-winning Girl Genius comics with her husband, Phil Foglio.

She has also produced illustrations for Magic: The Gathering and various fantasy novels.

Awards:
Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story (2009, 2010, 2011)

Reviews

[Raj · Rating 4 out of 5]

So Girl Genius trundles on. Now up to volume 21, this book gives Agatha a bit of space to breathe after a hectic few volumes, where both she and Gil had their respective parents removed from their heads, fought the Other, and got swallowed by giant cetaceans. This one has nothing more dramatic than a party. Agatha et al get a chance to relax, meet up with some old friends (including the Circus of Adventure from waaaaaay back) and build a giant clank. You know, as you do.

But this doesn't mean that there's no plot developments. This one is setting up a war in Europa, investigation of the "cursed waters" and more. It's all a lot of fun and I'm glad to get to read the full volumes to read whole swathes of story in quick succession that would take months at webcomic speeds. I enjoy my thrice-weekly hit of steampunk mad science, but reading it like this really helps keep the story in your head.

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not much to say here. More Girl Genius. I enjoyed *spoiler* and *spoiler* and there were several fun bits. Overall, this volume felt like it was setting up later events.

[Mary Catelli · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spoilers ahead for the earlier volumes

Though not so much that Agatha and friends are, as the title indicates, in Londinium as the guests of Queen Albia.

Parties. A callback to the earliest volumes. Agatha violates protocol but amuses the queen while doing it, so gets away with it. Ancient writings in unknown script. Intrigue. Sparring practice. Visits to the lab. Zeetha teaching a Skifander drinking song. Krosp is insulted by a cat. And more.

[Jordan Booth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another fun installment of Girl Genius. As always, it is chaotic and irreverent. Reading each volume only once a year instead of following the webcomic weekly is starting to cause some confusion when so much has happened so quickly. Still, the humor is cute without being saccharine.

[Barnesm]

Everything you can expect from Agatha Heterodyne Girl Genius AND MORE

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

The return of Master Payne's circus! Agatha prepares a surprise, and there's a lot of political machinations going on behind the scenes.