Mr.Duck on 19/3/2013 at 04:12
Quote Posted by demagogue
I saw that duck bought
Habibi. @duck, have you started it? How is it. Reviews made it look interesting; definitely the arabesque art style was great.
I actually had read it previously on my iPad. Epic, yet also very intimate and emotional. The artwork is sublime and detailed. Craig Thompson has reached a new plateau of awesome. A must buy!
Thirith on 19/3/2013 at 07:52
I agree that Habibi looks wonderful, and it's pretty good all in all, but I am getting a bit tired of Thompson's over-idealisation of his main female characters. It made sense in Blankets, but in Habibi I definitely felt that the story and especially the characters lagged somewhat behind the art. Still, it's already worth it for the visuals.
Mr.Duck on 19/3/2013 at 08:57
Hmmm....I can imagine why you'd reach that conclusion, though I disagree some. I guess in Blankets there is more catharsis through the main character once all's said and done, but I still consider Habibi to be his superior work if only for just the massive scope and hitting most of the notes right in the head. :D
Just my 2 humble cents.
Thirith on 19/3/2013 at 10:23
It's probably this for me: I thought that Habibi was the more ambitious work, but it doesn't achieve those ambitions as much as it wants to. Still, one of my favourite graphic novels of the last few years.
Talking of visually amazing GNs: I can very much recommend the wordless, gorgeous The Arrival by Shaun Tan.
Also, I'm slowly coming to think that Alan Moore's run out of artistic ammunition. It's been a while since I've really enjoyed one of his works.
june gloom on 19/3/2013 at 18:34
Given that his favourite ammo is a rape scene (or implied one) of some sort, that's hardly a surprise.
the_grip on 20/3/2013 at 12:51
Found a local store that sells Transmet TPBs, so I will be looking into that today.
I tried Drow Tales last night (read the Prologue issue), and, while I think a story about the history of Drow Elves is intriguing, I felt like I needed to take notes due to the complexity. It also seemed fairly hard to read - although I was a few beers in when I was reading it, the writing still seemed a bit disjointed. I'll stick with it through the next issue, but it was tough going.
Quote Posted by Volitions Advocate
Has anybody read Elephantmen? I saw a preview for it in a Walking Dead issue and I'm intrigued. One of the local shops has the 1st volume and I'm wondering if I should buy it....
(
http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2013/02/14/what-i-bought-13-february-2013/) Greg Burgas likes it... his Feb 13 "What I bought this week" list has a little blurb on issue #46 if you scroll halfway down the page.
Mr.Duck on 20/3/2013 at 23:10
Quote Posted by Thirith
It's probably this for me: I thought that
Habibi was the more ambitious work, but it doesn't achieve those ambitions as much as it wants to.
Gonna have to agree on that. It certainly succeeds a good 2/3rds of it, but yes, it doesn't mesh perfectly. Still a very compelling read, the artwork alone is worth the price of admission. :D
For the rest of you guys and gals: try his previous work,
Blankets, as mentioned before. Another big book also worth the read.
Man, I -really- need to update myself on all the Batman I've missed from the last continuity up to Flashpoint and then begin reading new DCU Batman, raaarrr!
It's tough (and expensive) to be a comic book buff....gah.
june gloom on 21/3/2013 at 03:36
Okay, so I've been composing a reading list for post-Crisis DCU, but I realized it was getting far too large and unwieldy, because I kept listing entire series rather than individual arcs or eras, which I didn't want to do. So I'm going to have to take the time to sort out the really good stories. I'm also going to hold on to it until I get to Flashpoint so it'll be comprehensive.
Stitch on 21/3/2013 at 19:08
Quote Posted by Thirith
It's probably this for me: I thought that
Habibi was the more ambitious work, but it doesn't achieve those ambitions as much as it wants to. Still, one of my favourite graphic novels of the last few years.
I've tried and failed to get into
Habibi twice now, although I plan to actually power through at some point soon. I bought the damn thing, I might as well make it past the 200 page mark.
I love Craig Thompson because he's willing to do big, sprawling, messy graphic novels that aren't just collections of monthly comic issues. Of course, the flipside of this is his graphic novels are big, sprawling, and messy.
Blankets is definitely the superior of the two books, if for no other reason than it has a far more compelling and personal thread that runs through it.
Habibi just feels a little more far-reaching and thin, and the culturally/theologically loaded nature of the story doesn't always mesh well with Thompson's attempts at humor.
Bottom line:
Blankets falls much closer to who Craig Thompson is, and it shows.
the_grip on 21/3/2013 at 19:51
Another follow-up on Elephantmen: I'm giving it a whirl, and so far it is entertaining. Nothing groundshaking at this point, but entertaining nonetheless. Blankets is also on my short list to get to soon, and I've started Transmet as well.
