Alan Moore is a pretty weird guy. Besides sporting a tremendous beard, he is an active anarchist and part of some strange cult that worships a snake god. He also hates the major comic book companies and prefers to write for smaller publishers. Moore totally disowns all of the movies made out of his graphic novels. He doesn’t even want to see them!
The most well known work of his is Watchmen (DC Comics, 1986). It is often called the most important graphic novel ever. It was drawn by Dave Gibbons. The story takes place in an alternate universe where most superheroes have retired and someone begins murdering them. But really it is about the end of world. There isn’t an easy way to summarize it, so I’d recommend just reading it. You’ve never read anything this serious before that was about men in capes. You’ll also be able to say “the graphic novel was way better then the movie” after everyone has seen the upcoming movie.
Before Watchmen, Moore began V for Vendetta (DC Comics, 1988) which was drawn by David Lloyd. This story also takes place in an alternate reality in which England has a fascist government which is being terrorized by a vigilante/terrorist named V. Moore’s anarchist side is pretty apparent throughout. Maybe you saw the movie, but the graphic novel is much better and worth picking up.
Maybe you also saw The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. If so, I’m sorry you wasted your time. But don’t hold the film version against the far superior graphic novel drawn by Kevin O‘Neill (America’s Best Comics, 2000). In fact they’re completely different except for the basic premise- characters from different works of fiction (such as Mina Harker from Dracula, Alan Quartermain, Captain Nemo, and the Invisible Man) are banded together to have various adventures. The tone of the story is very adult and not something you’d want kids reading.If you enjoy these works, also look for From Hell (Top Shelf Productions, 2000) and Swamp Thing: Saga of the Swamp Thing (DC Comics, 1998).
No comments:
Post a Comment