One Bad Rat is the most mainstream of Talbot's works and is drawn in a simple, naturalistic style with painted colours.

Unusually for Talbot (and the comics industry in general), all of the characters were drawn from life, and the locations from photographs of real places.

She moves into a squat with some young men who save her from the unwanted attentions of a man (who turns out to be a Conservative MP) by mugging him.

"Road" sees Helen making her way north towards the Lake District, drawn by its connection with Beatrix Potter, and accompanied by a giant vision of her rat.

Walking in the hills (still with her giant imaginary rat) and reading self-help books helps her to heal her wounds and prepares her to face her parents.