This nearly wordless romp from master cartoonist Roger Langridge is the author’s paean to the silent, slapstick comedies of the 1910s and ’20s, spun for a contemporary audience, starring his most popular character. It finds our hero Fred pitching the woo to a lovely equestrian. But with matrimony-minded fathers, boorish beaux, and malicious mad scientists interfering at every opportunity, what’s a clown―and his faithful pig companion―to do? Langridge’s velvety grays evoke the silent films of his patron saint, Buster Keaton (and, in this volume particularly, the latter’s masterpiece, The General). His craft is at a zenith, and captures every screwball twist and turn of the heiress’s and our hero’s romantic roundabout. "Want to get your kids into Buster Keaton but afraid they won’t watch a silent black-and-white movie? Langridge’s slim graphic novel is a good intro to the form, with a monochromatic palette and almost no words, but the simplicity of the book makes it an easy read for kids." ― Paste "Every so often, lightning strikes―and nails Fred the Clown right in the tokhes. Such is the essence of New Zealand-born London cartoonist Langridge’s sublimely feckless creation that it's a wonder a bolt ever strikes elsewhere. Langridge's art is as funny as his writing and also, despite the pretense that Fred merits no sympathy, touching." ― Booklist ― Starred Review "A hybrid of silent film tribute and the underground comics scene, this latest Fred the Clown book takes his Buster Keaton-influenced protagonist on another journey of violent slapstick, unrequited love and brilliant visual gags." ― Broken Frontier " The Iron Dutchess manages to be a madcap adventure, but also a beautifully structured story with multiple threads moving along and leading to some strange and hilarious surprises by the end." ― Smash Pages New Zealand cartoonist Roger Langridge i s the creator of Fred the Clown, who has earned him multiple award nominations and two Eisners. Langridge has worked for Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse. He has also worked on Boom! Studios’ The Muppet Show , IDW’s Popeye , and DWM's Doctor Who . He lives in Britain.