Rating: 
Summary: A nice blend of anti-heroes
Review: This is a great story set in the late 1800's. Campion Bond recruits 5 people to perform a special mission. Allan Quatermain, Captain Nemo, Dr Jekyl/Mr. Hyde, Mina (formerly Harker) Murray, and the invisible man. The five are sent to capture the cavorite, an anti-gravity device that allows flight to vehicles. But they soon learn they have been betrayed and now have to save London.
The characters go perfectly together. Mr. hyde is just a savage ape, the invisible man is insane, Captain Nemo hates everyone, Mina is annoying as hell, and Quartermain is addicted to opium.
This book is perfect except the conclusion seems too short. But none the less you should read it.
Rating:
Summary: dark, delightful graphic novel
Review: I used to read comic books a lot when I was younger and recently, having heard good things about graphic novels, decided to check out some of the highly rated ones. I was certainly not disappointed by this extraordinary tale with its fantastical characters and settings.In this story, the mysterious Mr. M has commissioned Wilhelmina Harker Murray (from Bram Stoker's Dracula) to gather a league of adventurers who will perform extraordinary tasks when the need arises. The first part of the story is devoted to the formidable Miss Murray's finding and assembling her group: Allan Quatermain, H. Rider Haggard's hero; Captain Nemo from Jules Verne's tale; Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll (and his counterpart Mr. Edward Hyde); and Hawley Griffin, from H.G. Wells' The Invisible Man. Along the way they are assisted by Auguste Dupin, literature's first detective, and threatened by Fu Manchu. There are lots of other literary references and these are fun, but you can easily enjoy this fine graphic novel without catching them. Throughout the book, in editorial notes, author blurbs, etc, the conceit is maintained that this tale was written and published in the 19th century. Also included is a heavily-illustrated prose tale, 'Allan and the Sundered Veil'. Caveat: If you are a parent buying for children, you might want to find something else -- there is a lot of graphic violence and coercive [explicits].
Rating:
Summary: For Queen & Country!
Review: Before you see the upcoming "summer blockbuster",filmed version......might I suggest a perusal of the roots of this confounding conundrum? First let me say,I'm not one of those frothing at the jowls Alan Moore fans. I did enjoy "The Watchmen",but haven't actively sought out his works. So,I am a bit "selective",that being said.... "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen",turned me into a frothing at the jowls Alan Moore fan!! ( Drat you,SIR!! ) To describe this volume is not an easy task! It's Victorian England....with a few moderne touchs....imagine the era as being H.G.Wells & Jules Verne's realitys,taken for actual reality,with historically acurate paraphrasings tossed into the soup for good measure. Now mix in as many obscure literary references as possible...and you've got quite a jolly deducedely brilliant tale indeed! ( with some very nice artistic scriblings by Kevin O'Neill.....who may or may not be boxing legend "Kid O'Neill" ) Now,imagine Victorian England in the grip of an evil superfiend,intent on controlling an amazing power source,and using any means to obtain it,and thus CONTROL THE WORLD! That's when Mr.Campion Bond and his boss "M",working for the British government,gather a group of covert operatives to save the world! Mina Harker ( now divorced from Vampire obsessor Jonathan Harker ),must locate famed explorer Alan Quartermain....secretly aided by Captain Nemo....then these three seek out Dr.Henry Jekyll ( and the now gigantic and out of control Mr.Hyde ),and the transparent Mr.Hawley Griffin,( conveniently hiding in an all girls dormitory!),to form the super-squad of the 1800's! Sherlock Holmes is dead! Fu Manchu is advancing his troops! And the mastermind behind it all,will STOP AT NOTHING! London may soon lie in ruins,will no-one stop this MADNESS?! It's a wonderful mish-mash of literary heroes and anti-heroes,as well as nod's o'plenty to Ian Fleming,Wells,Verne,Conan-Doyle,Carroll,and more! ( Who else,would incorporate such obscure characters as Miss Rosa Cootes? Or place Pollyanna in her care? ). Examine all panels carefully for clues! And....if you were smart enough to collect this series as originally printed.....this volume has a few extras....such as the paint by numbers picture of Dorian Grey,the "Help Alan Quartemain find the Taduki" Game,a cover art gallery,and the collected back story from the original run.( As well as a cheery greeting from Scotty Smiles!! ). Sadly the original Victorian era adverts are gone,but that's a small loss. Climb aboard the LOEG omnibus now,or live in fear of being a "johnny come lately"!
Rating:
Summary: Extraordinary!
Review: Mr. Moore clearly had fun doing this book. It is chockful of literary references (i.e. Rue Morgue, the Artful Dodger, Fu Manchu, etc.). The characters are multi-faceted not just plain good and evil. Captain Nemo is excellent. I only have praises for this book.
Rating:
Summary: A terrific tale that leaves one begging for more.
Review: In 1998, Alan Moore - celebrated author of WATCHMEN and FROM HELL, among other modern comic classics - created his own imprint: America's Best Comics. ABC featured five titles, all authored entirely by Moore. This experiment yielded terrific work like TOP 10, PROMETHEA and the near-perfect homage to the adventure writings of yesteryear, THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN. This collection (Volume One) brings together the first six issues of TLOEG, a complete story arc that stands perfectly well on its own, but leaves the reader wanting much, much more. The central conceit behind Moore's story is that the great heroes and villains of late-19th century adventure fiction all coexist in the same universe. The league of extraordinary gentlemen to which the title refers consists of such diverse figures as Dr. Jekyll, Hawley Griffin (also known as the tragic protagonist of HG Wells's THE INVISIBLE MAN, Captain Nemo from 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA, and H. Rider Haggard's Allan Quatermain. Brought together under the leadership of the iron-willed Mina Murray by Campion Bond and the mysterious "M," this motley bunch of misfits, madmen and over-the-hill heroes will face the direst threats against the safety of the British Empire. TLOEG is thick with literary references. The heroes are all drawn from classic adventure literature, as mentioned, as are the villains and even some of the incidental characters. The detective-protagonist of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Murders in the Rue Morgue" makes an appearance, while the narrative drops hints of Jules Verne's AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY DAYS, and more. Moore's work rewards the reader for being well read, but doesn't demand it. As a result, TLOEG can be enjoyed on many levels. As with all of Alan Moore's comic creations, TLOEG defies easy categorization. Pseudoscience butts up against the supernatural and pulpy action, never giving completely away to any of them. The gestalt works incredibly well. Once one accepts the basic premise, the plot races along with nary a hitch. Artist Kevin O'Neill's illustration is as dense and textured as Moore's scripts, meaning that TLOEG is a delight for the eyes as well as the mind. And lest one think that TLOEG is all gimmickry, Moore is as proficient at handling the various "borrowed" characters as he is in twisting the storyline. Even readers unfamiliar with the more obscure protagonists will be able to connect with them, thanks to Moore's assured writing. The volume concludes with a cliffhanger and a prequel of sorts, featuring Allan Quatermain in a twenty-two-page short story (profusely illustrated, of course) called "Allan and the Sundered Veil." This short story, like the included six issues of TLOEG, features another collection of literary figures in support of the intrepid Quatermain. Also like the graphic portion of the volume, it leaves the reader with broad hints about what adventures lie ahead, but only hints. The rest of the heroes' exploits will have to wait until Volume Two.
Rating:
Summary: A host of literary and cultural references
Review: After reading the introduction, to the first Hellboy graphic novel, by Alan Moore, I was well prepared for this tremendous piece. This is fiction, but woven throughout are allusions to English literature and culture. Knowing these allusions clearly adds to the experience of the book. Some of the key characters of many Victorian adventure stories are gathered together to protect England from her enemies. This first volume covers the gathering of its members and the first mission. To get all the allusions, pay close attention to everything on the page. References, names, and even background images in the pages have information for you to help set the tone. This graphic novel includes a short story with Allan Quartermain in the end. Although a good story, really good if you know your Lovecraft and remember John Carter of Mars, I believe it was originally done in serial. Whenever you have a serial, there is some repetition to get everyone up to speed, kind of a "Last week on ...." Since everything is together here, the repetition can be a little distracting. It is an interesting story though. I would highly recommend reading this. I have been away from the comics scene, and this was a fabulous re-introduction into the genre.
Rating:
Summary: Entertaining take on literature- Alan Moore at work!
Review: I picked up this book just because it was Alan Moore's latest, his works including From Hell, Watchman among others. Shortly after I picked it up, I heard it was getting Hollywood treatment, with Sean Connery its main star- another reason to pick it up. If Watchman and From Hell had more serious tone into it, with heavy subject matters of likes of schizophrenia, murder, deconstruction of super heroes, this one is more close to swash buckling adventures- no hard theme, no hard language, just pure fun. But it is witty and imaginery, for it incorporates many literary figures ranging from Sherlock Holmes to 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea to The Invisible Man to Dracula, all created during late 19th century-early 20th century. I recommend this to virutally anyone who wants to read something for fun, and read some of the books I mentioned above. Worth your time and money.
Rating:
Summary: Moore=Genius of comics
Review: Alan Moore (Watchmen,V for Vendetta,From Hell) has given us another work of great importance. LGX is about a group of rouge book characters (Dr. Jeykll, Allan Quatermain etc.) who are called ny a mysterious backer to uncover a secret operation run by an opium dealer in the east end of London. It is a delightful read for newcomers to Moore and is pure fun. Also recommended are the comics above and The Swamp Thing series.
Rating:
Summary: extraordinary!
Review: This takes a seat right next to Watchmen as my second favorite graphic narrative by Alan Moore. This is the seminal English Major comic book. The writing is flawless, the characterization is superb, and the art by Mr. O'Neill is awesome. Some may find it to be a bit on the unconventional side, but after finishing Dickens's Dombey And Son, complete with original art, the work by O'Neill in this volume is very cool. I'm completely convinced that they will mess this movie up really bad. This book is just too good to translate well. From the previews that I've seen, Tom Sawyer joins the League, and they have some sort of souped-up car. Neither of these are in the book. The League travels around by Nemo's sea-ship or Hot-Air Balloon. I wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone interested in a turn-of-the-century crime fighting team. The volume comes complete with period ads and lingo (issue #2 may be a little bawdy for women and children). My English Professor is borrowing my copy right now. I'm sure she'll like it, too! Cheers! And to dust off an old Moore-ism, England Prevails!
Rating:
Summary: A great, great graphic novel
Review: Terrific character work, fast-paced action, and an overwhelming sense of intelligence and love are what make this story about the 1890's premier adventure-hero team one of the best graphic novels around. Hand this to someone who says comics are just for kids.
And let's hope the movie is half as good.
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