By: Mike Carey Publisher: Vertigo Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Vertigo Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 168 Publication Date: April 01, 2005 Release Date: April 01, 2005
Product Description: Exploding from the pages of Neil Gaiman's multi-award winning Sandman comes the latest chapter in the former ruler of Hell's extraordinary existence, as Lucifer continues his quest to break free of God's influence and forge his own destiny. Having rescued God's granddaughter Elaine from the Mansions of the Silence, Lucifer is now intent on exiling all deities and demons from the alternate universe he created. But not all of them are willing to go quietly...The seventh volume in Titan's popular and acclaimed series weaves multiple narratives into a complex ongoing story, tackling themes as varied as identity, morality and the struggle for autonomy in a deterministic universe.
Packaging differs a lot Not everything Amazon ships has quality packaging. They can do it very well, like when they wrap it tightly in plastic with an extra piece of cardboard and then put it in a box. But mostly, like with this title, thet put my ordered comic trade paperback in a simple bubble envelop, so you know it's gonna be damaged or bent during shipping.
To kill an immortal. Mike Carey, Lucifer: Exodus (Vertigo, 2005)
God has departed Heaven, and, as Lucifer says, "every god, demon, and tooth fairy will want to step into his shoes." Thus, once again, Lucifer finds himself on the side of the angels as the first usurpers try to attain the throne. Worse, Lucifer's own realm holds thousands of immortals who might be plotting, so Elaine, Mazikeen, and a small handful of assistants, on Lucifer's orders, must banish the immortals-- or kill them if they resist. (Which begs the question of how one kills an immortal.) While Carey's series has never quite gotten to the complexity level of Gaiman's original Sandman, he's always excelled at plotting, character, and writing, and this is no exception. Another strong entry in the series. ****
Grand events seen from insignificant people The theme in this volume seems to be how 'lowly workers' percieve the 'grand events'. There is a fascinating character study of Beatrice Wechsler (formerly waitress in Lucifer's piano bar) who just tried to stay out of harm's way so far. The fallen Cherub Spera has a great line about picking up the slack when a serious flaw in Lucifer's creation becomes apparent.
But my personal favorite is the story of the evil puppet theatre that fist plunges the audience into depression before going for the kill. The size of the Teatro Crepusculo depends on the mood of the audience so when Gaudium defeats it by radiating joy (as is his original nature), it can be swatted like a nasty bug. Besides being a masterful use of the artistic possibilities of the grahic novel this says something quite deep about the human mind, feeling good and feeling bad.
And then Gaudium has a great line about reverting back to his old shape and what he expects when everybody else starts realizing what the absence of God really means.
Therefore still five stars for this volume, although some stuff about time travel and immortal beings producing offspring is hard to swallow from a logical point of view.
A little uneven but still worthwhile As a first note, if you haven't read the previous books in this series this is not the place to jump in. The focus of the stories in this book is present more on the supporting characters and provide more in the way of atmosphere to the series than they do to advance the plotline. That said, the stories are well done and enjoyable. You could probably skip this installment completely without losing much plot continuity but I wouldn't recommend it. Particularly as one of the main threads involves ridding Lucifer's domain of any immortals, there are a number of interesting oneshot characters that are presented with the final pages introducing a new major character.
Anything Goes Trivia
Megaton Man
Trevor
