World Famous Comics: The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Vol. 1: The Absolute Edition
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Vol. 1: The Absolute Edition
By: Alan Moore Publisher: Wildstorm Average Rating: Binding: Hardcover Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 416 Publication Date: July 01, 2003 Release Date: July 01, 2003 Studio: Wildstorm
Amazon.com Review: Proving that mainstream comics could be infused with past literary/cultural ideals and still be bestsellers, the America's Best Comics imprint took the dilapidated superhero genre and created three vastly entertaining hybrids with Tom Strong, Promethea and Top Ten. Now, a stunning coup de grace is delivered with this masterful pairing of Victorian adventure fiction's greatest characters and the old war-horse of the super-group. With the stunning The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, it would be no exaggeration to say that Alan Moore has produced a near-perfect piece of adventure fiction that is clever, literate, rich with excitement and hard to put down.
It's 1898 and at the behest of M, the mysterious head of the secret Service, Campion Bond is dispatched to procure the services of Miss Mina Murray (nee Harker), adventurer Allan Quartermain, "Science-Pirate" Captain Nemo, Henry Jekyll (and his monstrous alter ego) and Hawley Griffin (a.k.a. the Invisible Man). Together, they must combat an insidious threat that will decide supremacy of the London skies, but their success may unleash a far greater threat. With no shortage of action, Moore and O' Neill sustain a high level of suspense, intrigue, mystery and terrific wit that all contribute to an indispensable read. O'Neill's art, so memorable in Marshal Law, produces a London filled with vivid, magnificent architecture and a malevolent atmosphere ripe with thrills and danger. An unmitigated triumph--pure and simple. --Danny Graydon
Product Description: Proving that mainstream comics could be infused with past literary/cultural ideals and still be bestsellers, the America's Best Comics imprint took the dilapidated superhero genre and created three vastly entertaining hybrids with Tom Strong, Promethea and Top Ten. Now, a stunning coup de grace is delivered with this masterful pairing of Victorian adventure fiction's greatest characters and the old war-horse of the super-group. With the stunning The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, it would be no exaggeration to say that Alan Moore has produced a near-perfect piece of adventure fiction that is clever, literate, rich with excitement and hard to put down.It's 1898 and at the behest of M, the mysterious head of the secret Service, Campion Bond is dispatched to procure the services of Miss Mina Murray (nee Harker), adventurer Allan Quartermain, "Science-Pirate" Captain Nemo, Henry Jekyll (and his monstrous alter ego) and Hawley Griffin (a.k.a. the Invisible Man). Together, they must combat an insidious threat that will decide supremacy of the London skies, but their success may unleash a far greater threat. With no shortage of action, Moore and O' Neill sustain a high level of suspense, intrigue, mystery and terrific wit that all contribute to an indispensable read. O'Neill's art, so memorable in Marshal Law, produces a London filled with vivid, magnificent architecture and a malevolent atmosphere ripe with thrills and danger. An unmitigated triumph--pure and simple. --Danny Graydon
Overall Enjoyable ^ I read a few of the bad reviews here as I always do first off to get the lay of the land and most of them seem to have a problem with the morality of the story and the art work. To me this is strange as the art work is it's strength and I didn't find the whole thing particularly immoral though the invisible man character is amoral but is meant to be so... ?!?
Kevin O'Neill drew a lot for 2000 A.D. which I read as a kid and I personally like his style. Yes he isn't a classical artist, has funny ideas of perspective, is weak when doing action scenes, looks like he uses the thinnest pen nib available and his panels can get very cluttered - but I like it! I like the fact that there is so much going on in each panel, sure it can sometimes make following the story difficult but it always keeps me interested and he is obviously a very talented guy with his own unique style. His creativity and eye for detail goes into every panel and his city landscapes are bustling with people going about their every day business who have nothing to do with story. Most artists don't even bother, but Kevin O'Neil gives you the joy of checking out each page to make sure you don't miss anything. The big problem I did have was with the writer/artist mix. I agree with what other people said about this being more an exercise in research and cleverness. Moore's wordy dialogues don't really go with O'Neills detailed art - too much confusion, and that's why I didn't give it 5 stars.I was actually going to give it 3 stars but the art work was too good for that. The story isn't really gripping but a lot of the dialogue is funny especially between Quartermain and Murray. The best part of the book is the too short interlude between Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty - simple, few words and great art work - if the rest of the book had been like that I would have given it 6 stars.
In short this is recommended, it may not be the best comic on the planet but is of high quality and if you love comics you will not be disappointed.
Good Ole Fun, Chap! ^ League of Extroadinary Gentlemen, although not my favorite, was good old Alan Moore fun. I rank it below Watchmen, but definately above V for Vendetta. It has great pacing and dialogue, which kept me reading through all the unfamiliarities. I haven't been a big fan of victorian novels, but I managed to "get into it" for this read. After watching the film and then reading the comic, I have to say the book is SOOOOO much better. It's brilliant in comparison, and I'm sad to see the film do so much injustice. One thing that didn't translate was the perfect role played by the female of our heroes. It was refreshing to see such an intelligent and contributing woman in the League. A lot of stories fail to involve a girl in the adventure and they are limited to being a damsel in distress or the polar opposite, the She-Hulk. I was very impressed to see Ms. Murray as one of the more likeable heroes, through her iron wit and charm.
But as I get along to the end of the book, I lose interest. Alan Moore is in love with these characters in a way I cannot mimic. So when I read the ending story which uses close to no images and long columns of text, I got a little quick to turn the pages. As a comic, The League of Extrodinary Gentlemen is fun and clever, but not all the way entertaining and gripping. I give it a B+
This is a classic graphic novel ^ I'd seen the movie before reading the original graphic novel. I must say, though entertaining, the movie doesn't come close to the storytelling found in Moore's book. As portrayed in the comic, Mina appears to be just a bad-ass chick who always wears a scarf and, despite the protestations of the men, becomes the leader of the team. Their adventures create an intriguingly convoluted tale, full of action and imagination. The over-the-top art suits the story and the steam punk setting perfectly.
Review of Moore League, Vol I ^ Here, again, Moore suceeds with excellent storytelling, gathering an all-star cast of mythical English characters and arranging them for the reader's utmost enjoyment. This work, much like From Hell, presents another great satirization of Victorian culture. There are also a bunch of goodies in the back of this volume, not to be missed.
Just What I Wanted ^ I'd started with the paperback of Vol.1, and loved it -- I enjoyed playing Spot the Reference -- and got the hardback Vol.2 and Black Dossier. Thinking it would be nice to hava an all-hardback set, I kept my eyes open. Spotted it on Amazon and leapt. The seller got it to me quickly and in great condition (though used) as promised.
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