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Queen and Country #6
Queen and Country, Vol. 6: Operation: Dandelion
Every job has its office politics, but when you're a spy in service to your queen and your country, the politics in play take on a much larger scale. When the chief of S.I.S. is forced into retirement by a stroke, Head of Operations Paul Crocker is forced to play a new game in order to keep his good standing and his job. But are agents Tara Chace and Tom Wallace prepared to be Crocker's pawns in this new match? And how will it be for Poole, the new minder who has to step over two dead bodies in order to take his post?
128 pages, Paperback
First published August 24, 2004
6 people are currently reading
129 people want to read
About the author
Greg Rucka
1,487 books1,906 followersGreg Rucka, is an American comic book writer and novelist, known for his work on such comics as Action Comics, Batwoman: Detective Comics, and the miniseries Superman: World of New Krypton for DC Comics, and for novels such as his Queen & Country series.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
March 23, 2021
After the events of the last few volumes, the department is in a chaos, and further departmental changes threaten the existence of the minders in the days to come.
Man this book just keeps getting better and better. When I first started the book and saw that it was going to be more about the behind the scenes dealings of departmental drama, I was less than excited for it. But Rucka manages to make it one of the best volumes of the series so far, as a lot is on the line, including the very department itself. And the main reason why it's so engaging is that the controversy is built off of all the history that has been built from the previous volumes. So we know who the players are, we know how important the roles of each person are, and we know how much is riding on the right person making the right calls at the right time.
The art this time round is handled by Mike Hawthorne, who uses heavy shadows to cast doubt in every corner of the book. From the expressions on peoples faces, to the shadows cast from objects, to the blackness lurking behind half closed doors, Hawthorne manages to make a well lit government building feel like a dangerous and seedy place. I think Hawthorne was a fantastic artist for this book as he has a mix of cartoon like details mixed with a realism that is essential for the tone.
Overall, I feel more invested not only in Tara Chace and her adventures, but also the whole department as well after reading this volume. Cant wait to see what happens next.
Man this book just keeps getting better and better. When I first started the book and saw that it was going to be more about the behind the scenes dealings of departmental drama, I was less than excited for it. But Rucka manages to make it one of the best volumes of the series so far, as a lot is on the line, including the very department itself. And the main reason why it's so engaging is that the controversy is built off of all the history that has been built from the previous volumes. So we know who the players are, we know how important the roles of each person are, and we know how much is riding on the right person making the right calls at the right time.
The art this time round is handled by Mike Hawthorne, who uses heavy shadows to cast doubt in every corner of the book. From the expressions on peoples faces, to the shadows cast from objects, to the blackness lurking behind half closed doors, Hawthorne manages to make a well lit government building feel like a dangerous and seedy place. I think Hawthorne was a fantastic artist for this book as he has a mix of cartoon like details mixed with a realism that is essential for the tone.
Overall, I feel more invested not only in Tara Chace and her adventures, but also the whole department as well after reading this volume. Cant wait to see what happens next.
October 24, 2017
Inter-office intrigue and spies? Alright then. It's great how the book is expanding it's scope not just in action (even though this one takes place entirely in one city - odd that) but also in players with deaths and retirements and even illnesses, with two of those three things being something you rarely if ever hear about in a story progression.
July 26, 2015
Good book. Every one of these trades is different, no two stories are the same and you never know what's coming next. I can't wait for the next trade, but I am a little upset that this series went away.....WHY?!?!? What happened....?
August 10, 2021
Another great storyline from Greg Rucka. I am really enjoying this spy series. Not a lot of action, but the plot and story develop very well. Plenty of political intrigue and character studies. I suspect only a few more issues are left for me to enjoy.
August 22, 2024
“Operation: Dandelion” (illustrated by Mike Hawthorne) is much more deep in internal politics. C, the head of SIS, is being replaced. The most likely prospect has a personal grudge against Paul Crocker since Prague and a couple of other operations that they blame each other for the failure of. A government minister offers Paul support if his agency will produce a plan to allow a rebel to take control of Zimbabwe. Crocker realizes he needs to get more information on the rebel before making the plan, and the man is conveniently in London, so he sends Tara Chace to do the femme fatale thing.
However, Crocker’s team isn’t supposed to operate domestically, and “Box”, the division that is, is also investigating the man. They don’t appreciate the intrusion.
In a subplot, there’s another opening for Minder Three, and a surprise candidate is found. He’s SAS, but has been outed as gay, which caused a fellow soldier to engage in “friendly fire.” Rather than lose his skills, couldn’t he do intelligence?
This is tense, gritty stuff. There’s a lot of “shades of grey” as both our agents and their opponents do morally repugnant things in the service of their country or their personal goals. Some of the characters let personal ambition or grudges guide their actions more than seems wise. There’s little compunction about manipulating others to get desired results, and less regret if it goes wrong. Hawthorne's art is the best the series has seen so far and it enhances the impact of the story. Highly recommended.
However, Crocker’s team isn’t supposed to operate domestically, and “Box”, the division that is, is also investigating the man. They don’t appreciate the intrusion.
In a subplot, there’s another opening for Minder Three, and a surprise candidate is found. He’s SAS, but has been outed as gay, which caused a fellow soldier to engage in “friendly fire.” Rather than lose his skills, couldn’t he do intelligence?
This is tense, gritty stuff. There’s a lot of “shades of grey” as both our agents and their opponents do morally repugnant things in the service of their country or their personal goals. Some of the characters let personal ambition or grudges guide their actions more than seems wise. There’s little compunction about manipulating others to get desired results, and less regret if it goes wrong. Hawthorne's art is the best the series has seen so far and it enhances the impact of the story. Highly recommended.
March 19, 2018
Q&C is always good, but I really dug this one. It felt like life. When your life is in greatest turmoil, things seem to go even more out of control; your most valuable man quits, your boss is replaced by a prick, and some jerk uses your confused ass to get what he wants.
This is Tara's series, but with every successive book I become more and more convinced that it's really Paul's. I just love the guy. He has NO people skills, but he's smart, dedicated, professional, and he cares a damn lot about his people. The shot of his face on the last page, when he realizes that Seccombe has used him, was like a punch in the gut. I just wanted to give the guy a big hug and say that there will be better days ahead.
Too many initials, btw. SIS, JIC, FCO, UBL.... I lost track of who some of them represented a few times. Maybe a glossary would help. Or maybe I should just read more closely.;)
The change from Ed, Tom and Tara, to Tara and Nick is going to completely subvert the dynamic of the Minder office. I can't wait to see more!
Hawthorne's art, although not as stunnning as my favorite Q&C artist Carla Speed McNeil, was fantastic. The characters are largely distinctive, which is important in a book like this, and his storytelling is always completely clear.
This is Tara's series, but with every successive book I become more and more convinced that it's really Paul's. I just love the guy. He has NO people skills, but he's smart, dedicated, professional, and he cares a damn lot about his people. The shot of his face on the last page, when he realizes that Seccombe has used him, was like a punch in the gut. I just wanted to give the guy a big hug and say that there will be better days ahead.
Too many initials, btw. SIS, JIC, FCO, UBL.... I lost track of who some of them represented a few times. Maybe a glossary would help. Or maybe I should just read more closely.;)
The change from Ed, Tom and Tara, to Tara and Nick is going to completely subvert the dynamic of the Minder office. I can't wait to see more!
Hawthorne's art, although not as stunnning as my favorite Q&C artist Carla Speed McNeil, was fantastic. The characters are largely distinctive, which is important in a book like this, and his storytelling is always completely clear.
June 23, 2022
Crocker and the lads are up shit's creek after C's stroke, and his replacement being the guy from the 86 Prague shitshow that had a beef with Crocker ever since those events.
I haven't read Declassified, there's no Kindle version of it, but I could follow along well enough without that background - you got that Barclay has beef.
In steps Lord Seccombe with a proposition to shield Ops from Barclay; if only they could get some intel ready for the man on a possible... replacement for Robert Mugabe????
Technically all these books are about office politics but this one the mostest so far, and frankly, I was into it. I hope the curse of Minder #3 does not strike new lad Poole, the first of Rucka's trademark Queer Ops Hard Lads in this series.
Cute seeing Tara do some glam shit for once -- maybe this one should have been drawn by Fernandez.
I haven't read Declassified, there's no Kindle version of it, but I could follow along well enough without that background - you got that Barclay has beef.
In steps Lord Seccombe with a proposition to shield Ops from Barclay; if only they could get some intel ready for the man on a possible... replacement for Robert Mugabe????
Technically all these books are about office politics but this one the mostest so far, and frankly, I was into it. I hope the curse of Minder #3 does not strike new lad Poole, the first of Rucka's trademark Queer Ops Hard Lads in this series.
Cute seeing Tara do some glam shit for once -- maybe this one should have been drawn by Fernandez.
May 31, 2020
The politics get ramped up in this volume of Greg Rucka's spy thriller. Not just international politics but those within the SIS. While the book sometimes is too acronym heavy, the different players here were all spectacular. The art was very good and really took advantage of the black and white scheme. I felt a lot was still left up in the air as this ended but overall, another very good read.
March 1, 2019
Away from operations in the wider world, Paul Crocker finds himself drawn into the murky world of politics and political jockeying for position and power. He reluctantly takes on a task from a Whitehall Mandarin and into a turf war with Mi5 along the way. Meanwhile Chace is stuck in the middle while following Crocker's orders.
December 23, 2015
3.5 Stars
So far this was my least favorite volume of the series. Not that it was terrible, but it was mostly talking heads and seemed to lack the suspense and thrills of the earlier volumes. The story itself was still solid, dealing with backroom deals and the shady side of politics. I prefer a little more action, but I'm sure some people found the drama refreshing as you rarely see its type in comics. Art was still strong.
Overall, I wouldn't call it a weak volume, just weaker than the others.
So far this was my least favorite volume of the series. Not that it was terrible, but it was mostly talking heads and seemed to lack the suspense and thrills of the earlier volumes. The story itself was still solid, dealing with backroom deals and the shady side of politics. I prefer a little more action, but I'm sure some people found the drama refreshing as you rarely see its type in comics. Art was still strong.
Overall, I wouldn't call it a weak volume, just weaker than the others.
March 26, 2014
This series has had almost all strong artists, but Mike Hawthorne is now my favorite of the lot. He achieves the best balance of style and storytelling that I've seen, heck not just in this series but in quite a while! And he makes very strong use of black & white. Definitely going to seek out his work now.
February 24, 2010
This one was a slow starter for me, but by the end I liked it as much as the others.
January 29, 2015
decent inside baseball story and the best artist of the bunch so far.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews