Mystery Graphic Novels Livres Anglais : The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen vol. 2

The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen vol. 2

EUR 6,53


The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume II finds cocreators Alan Moore (writer) and Kevin O Neill (artist) back on familiar ground, revisiting the classic Victorian-era characters that they used to such effect in the bestselling and rightfully acclaimed first volume. It s a superhero tale, but--as expected from Moore--a rather unconventional one. This League is drawn from some of the classic characters from English literature: Alan Quatermain, Captain Nemo, Hawley Griffin (the Invisible Man), Mr Hyde and Miss Mina Murray (formerly Harker, the heroine of Dracula). And this tale is taken directly from HG Wells classic War of the Worlds, as Martian invaders (complete with tripods and heat rays) begin to land in England, bent on conquest. They seem unstoppable as they rage across the countryside towards London, but they hadn t counted on the League, or the eccentric genius of Dr Alphonse Moreau. As with the first League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, it s the meticulous sense of era and place that makes volume II a success. The minutia of Victorian England is set seamlessly alongside objects and ideas that never appeared outside of myth and legend, while references to other famous fictional characters and events are casually introduced, then quickly tossed aside. And, of course, it s a ripping yarn, in the classic Boys Own style (right down to the cliff hanger-style, end of chapter narrations). However, unlike volume I, there are several scenes that aren t suitable for all readers (particularly those of a delicate disposition). It s almost as if Moore and O Neill, anticipating the heightened interest that 2003 s League of Extraordinary Gentlemen film would bring, have willingly set out to shock and even alienate newer readers. So there s a fairly explicit sex scene, some rather brutal violence and, perhaps most unnerving, it s almost inevitable that no reader will ever look at Rupert the Bear in the same way again. --Robert Burrow

Moore at his best - The first volume was almost perfect... you can read it as a simple adventure story or, if you prefer, you can try to decode Alan Moore s references. It s a lot of fun, and a lot more than that at the same time. Now, the second volume is even better. The characters are more complicated, the story even more thrilling... I hope the next volume will be published soon because it sure is Moore at his best.

The League of Extraordinary Gentlmen vs. Invaders from Mars - My copy of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Volume 2 collects the six issues put out by Mr. Alan Moore & Mr. Kevin O Neill courtesy of America s Best Comics over the past year or so. Consequently it has nothing to do with the movie, which seems fair since the movie had relatively little to do with what now has to be referred to as Volume 1 of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. But then the movie merely copied the idea of the comics without capturing the magic.The great conceit that Moore and O Neill came up with was to create a late 19th-century version of a group of superheroes based on literary creations from that time period (in many ways the opposite of the legendary Watchmen series). Back again are the core group: Allan Quatermain from H. Rider Haggard s She, Captain Nemo from Jules Verne s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Mina Murray from Bram Stoker s Dracula, Edward Hyde from Robert Louis Stevenson s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Hawley Griffin from H.G. Wells s The Invisible Man. The works of Wells become a major factor in Volume 2 as two more of his science fiction novels are worked into the tale. The first is The War of the Worlds, as the League is called upon to save England from the Martian tripods. The second plays a decisive role in saving the day, but I think that deserves to be a surprise for the reader.Things do not work as well the second time around, partly because the novelty of the idea has worn off and also because the members of the League are not particularly well suited to dealing with invaders from Mars. That might explain why the soap opera elements are a bit more prominent this time around as Miss Mina becomes romantically entangled with one of the gentlemen and Hyde kicks Jekyll out of the picture. Actually Hyde becomes the most interesting character in this story, although you will need a strong stomach to read about how he deals with the group s traitor. For that matter, you should be forewarned that this trade paperback might look like a collection of comic books, but these are not for little kids. This is not as intense as From Hell, but Moore s readers have long known that he only provides stories that have mature content. Even when Moore is not blazing new territory or reinventing the wheel in some interesting way, he is still worth reading.The stories are still presented as if they were being published late in the Victorian era, with ads and articles that add to the general sense of fun. I liked the final words of the penultimate issue which disparages any one who fails to purchase our concluding number as being a sissy, coward, or girl. Yet Moore and O Neil lampoon the Victorian sensibilities of their characters as much as anything, and despite some major setbacks at the end of the saga, we are told that there is now an intermission before the stories continues again. As always, it will be interesting to see what literary works serve as additional inspiration for the next endeavor, although after the less than inspiring movie I suspect Oscar Wilde might be out of the equation (or should we expect Lady Bracknell?).




The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen vol. 2