The League of Extraordinary Gentlement: Black Dossier (ABC) [collects #1-6]
w. Alan Moore; a. Kevin O’Neill
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I thought the first LoEG was brilliant. The second was less so, though still head and shoulders above 95% of the comics produced out there. But with the Black Dossier, Moore, frankly, loses it, losing sight of a coherent narrative to let atmosphere and trivia and Promethea-style musings take over, complete with 3-D glasses. We get all sorts of literary bric-a-brac and inserts to give the feeling of a real dossier, but Moore ends up with too much tell, and too little show.
There’s tons of brilliance here, but it’s all gotten mixed up in the junk drawer, which has been dropped on the floor with half the contents rolling under the bed. Disappointing.
Legion of Super-Heroes: An Eye for an Eye (DC) [collects #1-6]
w. Paul Levitz, Keith Giffen; a. Keith Giffen, Steve Lightle, Joe Orlando
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It’s impossible to know what folks consider “classic” Legion stories, but this comes close — 1984, and LoSH gets its own high-end paper and printing Direct Market version. This is pre-any reboots of the series, and if it sometimes seems like two decades of history itself will topple over and crush the characters, it beats the heck out of not being able to count on LoSH continuity longer than the next writing team. Plus — Legion of Super-Heroes vs. Legion of Super-Villains, and a Legionnaire will Die! It doesn’t get much better than that.
Loki (Marvel) [collects #1-4]
w. Rob Rodi; a. Esad Ribic
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This thin tome is a lovely and essential addition to anyone’s collection of Marvel’s Thor comics. It basically tells the story of Thor and Loki’s rivalry from the latter’s point of view. There’s no question that Loki’s a rat bastard here, but Thor doesn’t come out looking all that great (think of every popular jock you always despised and been bullied by). And even when Loki wins the throne of Asgard, he discovers that wanting is not the same has having. Can he take the opportunity of his success to break the cycle of bitterness and hate? What do you think?
No, really, this is a fine tale, lushly painted, and some of the best Thor material out there. Highly recommended.
Listening to: Howard, James Newton, “Main Titles” (The Fugitive))
The third outing of the League didn’t knock my socks off, but I will give Moore credit for creating a James Bond that suits his own hateful vision of the character. I best he’s been waiting a long time to do that (at least since he wrote the intro to the collected Dark Knight Returns).
Good point. But, then, the entire book struck me as being rather self-indulgent in a lot of ways.