The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. 2

Rating:
Summary: Moore showing once again what a great writer he is.
Review: What a great read! Here is Moore once again showing what a rare talent he has for conjuring a tale that grabs you by the throat and doesn't let you go until the final page has been read!

In LOEG2 Moore fleshes-out the main characters that were introduced in LOEG1, which leads to quite a few surprises as the originality of Moore is once again high, leaving you wanting more. In terms of storytelling, LOEG2 reaches the quality that only few comics ever reach. Making it into one of those rare comics, or "graphic novel" as the term is these days, which you end up re-reading repeatedly, only to discover new depths in the story that previously passed you by. In terms of drawing, LOEG2 is just like its predecessor: average. In fact, the average-ness of the drawings put me off initially from buying LOEG1, but I am very glad that I decided to make the purchase regardless, relying on Moore supplying a story well worth the cents. He has! So, do not let the drawing put you off!

In short, a truly fascinating read that you really don't want to miss!! Five stars and well worth it!!


Rating:
Summary: The League of Extraordinary Gentlmen vs. Invaders from Mars
Review: Actually, 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, just released on DVD, 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?).

Rating:
Summary: Extraordinary Brilliance
Review: Alan Moore has done even better than in Volume I. The story line has gotten darker as befits the collecting together of these assorted Victorian heroes and anti-heroes. This time throw in Dr. Moreau and an Orson Wellesian invasian of Martians into the pot, stir, and add the brilliance of Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill and you get Volume II. The dark sides of the "Gentlemen" are emerging as we see what the Invisible Man and Mr. Hyde are capable of. Besides the wonderful righting, the illustrations both capture an imagined Victorian era and mix it with the horrors we could only imagine today. In keeping with the theme of the book, there is an imaginary travelogue at the end of the graphic novel which wonderfully captures such writings of the time. We can only hope that a Volume III is in the works.

Rating:
Summary: Meh
Review: I was a little disappointed by the story. I think the
novelty of the assembly of all the classic Victorian
characters has worn off.

Rating:
Summary: Not great literature, but a good story
Review: In this fascinating book, author Alan Moore returns once more to his League of Extraordinary Gentlemen - a group of strange, yet capable men and women (well, woman, really) in Her Majesty, Queen Victoria's Secret Service. But now, the League faces its greatest threat - the War of the Worlds! Driven from Mars by John Carter and Lt. Gullivar, these foul creatures begin their conquest of Earth (as originally documented by H.G. Wells). The British government has a few tricks up its sleeves, but before this is all over mankind will face its gravest peril and treachery will split the League itself!

This is another fun and interesting book. I enjoyed seeing so many of my Victorian and Edwardian favorites exhumed and thrust into new adventures - John Carter of Mars, Major (later Colonel) Blimp, and Dr. Moreau. As for the story itself, I thought that it was OK. This is definitely not a story of heroes, but instead deconstructs the old heroes as raw materials for a postmodern story instead.

Let me clarify - the War of the Worlds itself was handled excellently, with lots of desperate action and adventure. However, the characters themselves don't seem to come together as nicely as in the first book. Unlike the first book, there are two sex scenes (well, three I suppose), but they are all rather disappointing. It's a dark story of war and death and treachery and surviving. Overall, I enjoyed it. Was it great literature? Heck no. But, it was a fun read and I do recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Even Better than Volume 1!
Review: Its advisable to pick up the first volume before getting this one, which in my oppinion is superior (and that's saying a lot)
The main story is basially about an Alien invasion, which the League has to stop. Unlike the first volume there are major shake-ups and ramifications and even one betrayal. The story is witty, sexy, action-packed and intelligient. Alan Moore proves once again that he is a master of the artform.
If you are not already familiar with it, the League of Extraordinary Gentlmen is Moore's attempt to put together characters from various classic novels as if they lived in the same world or "universe". This concept is amazingly simple and its a surprise that no one had thought of it before. It had aparently been brewing in Moore's mind for a long time since he mentioned it as an absurd concept in his introduction to the collection of his very first Swamp Thing stories. He was commenting on the comic book convention of shared universes which incorproate vastly different characters in teh same world. Interesting that years later he actually accomplished it with characters from these literary masaterpieces.
The discription abobe states that the book contains a short story in the back, which is not exactly true. Its more of a mock travel almanac written several decades after the events of the main story. The almanac contains a discription of the world in which the League operates, incorporating elements of classical lititurature, pop culture, myth and fantasy. In addition to the main characters based on the novels The Invisible Man, Dracula, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, 2,000 Leagues Under the Sea and the Allan Quartermain books, this volume also touches on elements from Gullivar's Travels, The Island of Dr Moreau, Conan the Barbarian, the Elric novels, the Beatles' Yellow Submarine, Gabrel Garcia Marquez's 100 Years of Solitude, the Creature from the Black Lagoon, Robinson Cruso and many others which I can't recall right now or didn't understand the references to.
He also provides an interesting and tragic back story to Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, which I thought was really clever.
This book, and its previous volume, will be good to go back to in a few years when I've read a few more of the classic sources. Its not essential to have read them, but it does help you to appreciate it more. And then I may go back to it a few years after that because it will take years to cover all the ground that is touched on in these two volumes. It shows just how well-read a person Alan Moore is also.




Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully entertaining take on the Wells story
Review: This book, a sequel to Alan Moore's initial series recounting the rise of the League, is a feast for both the eyes and the mind. In it, Moore pits his group of famous fictional figures (some heroic, others anything but) against H. G. Wells' Martian invaders. While the second volume lacks some of the freshness and character development of the original, it is nonetheless a great read, balancing an extraordinary faithfulness to his source material (especially Wells' book) with Moore's imaginative concepts and intriguing characterizations - and with an ending that offers a brilliant twist on the original story.

In offering this tale Moore is ably complimented by Kevin O'Neill, whose artwork offers a lush visualization of Moore's alternate Victorian Britain. Like the first volume, the panels are loaded with visual references to the fantastic literature of the previous centuries, suggesting that the extraordinariness of this world is not limited to the central characters. Deciphering the references - which has sparked much discussion on the Web - is part of the enjoyment of reading this book, and it left me amazed at the breadth of both Moore's and O'Neill's range of reading. It is only one of the many ways in which the reader is rewarded when delving into this fantastic work.

Rating:
Summary: Extraordinarily Convoluted
Review: Unfortunately, like the disastrous film that came out at the same time last year, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Vol. II does not stand up to its stellar first comic arc. This series begins on the Martian red desert surface, where an invasion is launched on Earth. All dialogue in that issue is printed in an indecipherable Martian language. Oddly, subsequent issues, all set on Earth, never allude directly back to the events set on Mars or the Martian language and one is left wondering whether this seemingly superfluous chapter is either a lofty concept that went too far or merely a stuffy in-joke. Following issues find the League in a rapid state of self-destruction, often and somewhat controversially (for Ohio anyway) by disgustingly gritty sexual means. There is one particularly nasty scene that involves an unexpected murder by sodomy that makes one wonder what the hell Moore was thinking. Added to that, we have Dr. Moreau and his lecherous teddy bear men. If one can get past the truly horrid bits, there is an admirable concept to be found in Moore's refusal to allow these characters a peaceful coexistence. In the same sense, Moore denies himself the chance to easily make the League a viable franchise; perhaps he had an idea that the film would not turn out for the best. Being partly comprised of villainous rogues, one could argue that their uneasy alliance was doomed to begin with. Likewise, Moore conducts each character's fall with thoughtfulness. Captain Nemo's departure and disgust at being betrayed by the secretive British Empire remains a prescient and subtle statement on modern unilateral politics. Overall, however, it is not enough to simply reference these characters and then tie their decline into a standard H.G. Wells Martian invasion plot. The story comes out as being convoluted and the first series certainly left us expecting more.

Rating:
Summary: The End of the Fellowship.
Review: When I read THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN VOL 1, I was completely intranced and couldn't wait until the second volume came out so that I could find out what happened to the heroic group as they faced invaders from Mars. After finally getting my hands on a copy of the book and having a chance to read it, I was a bit disappointed. The second volume of the League finds the group facing an army of invaders from Mars. I thought that one of the more interesting parts of this particular volume is how Moore ties together Edward Arnold's LIEUTENANT GULLIVAR JONES, Egar Rice Burrough's John Carter, and H.G. Wells WAR OF THE WORLDS into one coherent prologue to the main story.

Anyway, hostile Martians start invading the Earth and the League is sent in to "inspect" the problem. But, the problem gets out of hand and starts vaporizing people and things go nuts. Someone in the League thinks more fondly of the invaders than any Earthlings and decides to turn traitor. Quatermain and Murray are dispatched to find a mysterious doctor who has the one weapon capable of defeating the Martians and along the way the two seal their romance. Griffin plays a major role, but doesn't get much development and the great Captain Nemo doesn't fair any better. The only major character who really sees any development is Mr. Hyde. By now, Hyde has pretty much taken complete control and Dr. Jecyll is gone for good, though something of his essence makes Hyde a better character than he was before. In fact, Hyde is the only hero. In the first Volume, heroics were shared by everyone in the group and though they had there differences, the league was a united front. This time around, things start to fall apart and the appearance of the extraterrestrials seems too much to bear. This second volume is more violent and bawdy than the first so the reader should be warned.

Besides the story, the book also includes many of the faux ads that were prominent in the 1st edition, some "games", and "The New Traveler's Alamanac". The alamanac is especially interesting because it gives clues of what happens to the League after the events of the invasion and possible ideas of what might occur in Volume Three (if it ever comes about).

Overall, though Volume Two wasn't as exciting as the first, I still found it entertaining and highly educational. It's more popular than classical this time around, but it's still pretty good literature.