Morrison, Grant: Joe the Barbarian
Joe the Barbarian: The Deluxe Edition (2011)
Written by: Grant Morrison
Illustrated by: Sean Murphy
Genre: Graphic Novel
Pages: 224 pages
Why I Read It: As is the case with most comics, my husband picked this up, read it, and put it on my TBR pile. My undignified response: "Why do I have to read it?" At the time, my comic TBR pile was out of control thanks to the DC New 52's, and I didn't want to add a graphic novel on top of it. My husband said, "Because it's really good." And I thought: I'll be the judge of that! So I looked it up, and realized it did seem interesting, and left it there. It wasn't until last weekend when I finally caught up on the comic TBR that I could sit down and read it, and boy, am I glad I did.
The premise: ganked from BN.com: One of the hottest writers in the industry, Grant Morrison, brings this Home Alone meets The Lord of the Rings story to life.
Joe is an imaginative eleven year-old boy. He can’t fit in at school. He’s the victim of bullies. His dad died overseas in the Iraq war. He also suffers from Type 1 diabetes. One fateful day, his condition causes him to believe he has entered a vivid fantasy world in which he is the lost savior - a fantastic land based on the layout and contents of his home. His desperate attempts to make it out of his bedroom transform into an incredible, epic adventure through a bizarre landscape of submarine pirate dwarves, evil Hell Hounds, Lightning Lords and besieged castles. But is his quest really just an insulin-deprived delirium - from which he can die if he doesn’t take his meds - or something much bigger?
Spoilers, yay or nay?: Nay. At least, I'm not going to reveal the crux of the story, whether or not the story is a fantasy piece or a utterly detailed hallucination brought on by the fact he needs sugar due to his medical condition. I refuse to spoil the ending for you, especially since it's so poignant. So read on without fear.
The Story: This was fantastic. It took me a while to catch on to the fact that Joe, our hero, was diabetic, so I didn't understand why it was so important that his backpack was full of candy (instead, I was like, "gee, what to keep a kid healthy, Mom!") and why it was so important when the candy was lost to bullies. But as the story progressed, I soon understood why, and the more I read, the more I feared for Joe's safely. And the story that unfolded turned into something so wonderful and unexpected. There are fantasy elements, and steampunk elements besides, and the narrative very, very cleverly navigates between Joe's "real" world and his "fantasy" world, and in both, he has utterly vital missions. One's for his own survival, while the other is the survival of the land itself. And even that latter intersects with the real world, as Joe's father was killed in action and he and his mother are in danger of losing their home. This story really made me care what was happening and had me fearing for the characters the whole time, especially for Jack, Joe's pet rat in the real world but his savior, companion, and champion in the fantasy world. And the ending was unexpected and wonderful. There were moments where I teared up while reading, and that's a powerful thing.
The Art: One of the things I appreciated most about the art was the way it transitioned between the Joe's home and the fantasy world. Like the narrative, the art slides from one to the other, and often, I didn't have any trouble with that. Sometimes I did, because I kept expecting to see certain things pop up in the "real" world, which made me unsure of my placement in the story. That's a minor quibble though. The cameos of DC and Vertigo characters in the army made me laugh. The fantasy-steampunk landscapes are beautiful, and the very last panel is one I'm going to remember for a long time.
My Rating: Couldn't Put It Down
I loved this. I'm so glad my husband stuck this in my TBR pile, even though I bitched and moaned about it at first. But as you've probably already guessed, this book hooked me emotionally and intellectually -- emotionally, because I was genuinely concerned about the fate of the characters, and intellectually because while I was pretty convinced it was an insulin-deprived fantasy world, I was never sure, and enjoyed seeing how the "real" world affected the fantasy world. It's a fantastic graphic novel, and one I highly recommend, even if graphic novels are not your normal mode of reading.
Cover Commentary: This is nothing special for me, in that it wouldn't catch my eye in the store. That said, if you pay attention, you can see what I mean about the merging between the real world (his room on the right) and the fantasy world (the landscape on the left). Of course, the toys link them, and that's more important than you'd think.
Next Up: Idolon by Mark Budz
Joe the Barbarian: The Deluxe Edition (2011)
Written by: Grant Morrison
Illustrated by: Sean Murphy
Genre: Graphic Novel
Pages: 224 pages
Why I Read It: As is the case with most comics, my husband picked this up, read it, and put it on my TBR pile. My undignified response: "Why do I have to read it?" At the time, my comic TBR pile was out of control thanks to the DC New 52's, and I didn't want to add a graphic novel on top of it. My husband said, "Because it's really good." And I thought: I'll be the judge of that! So I looked it up, and realized it did seem interesting, and left it there. It wasn't until last weekend when I finally caught up on the comic TBR that I could sit down and read it, and boy, am I glad I did.
The premise: ganked from BN.com: One of the hottest writers in the industry, Grant Morrison, brings this Home Alone meets The Lord of the Rings story to life.
Joe is an imaginative eleven year-old boy. He can’t fit in at school. He’s the victim of bullies. His dad died overseas in the Iraq war. He also suffers from Type 1 diabetes. One fateful day, his condition causes him to believe he has entered a vivid fantasy world in which he is the lost savior - a fantastic land based on the layout and contents of his home. His desperate attempts to make it out of his bedroom transform into an incredible, epic adventure through a bizarre landscape of submarine pirate dwarves, evil Hell Hounds, Lightning Lords and besieged castles. But is his quest really just an insulin-deprived delirium - from which he can die if he doesn’t take his meds - or something much bigger?
Spoilers, yay or nay?: Nay. At least, I'm not going to reveal the crux of the story, whether or not the story is a fantasy piece or a utterly detailed hallucination brought on by the fact he needs sugar due to his medical condition. I refuse to spoil the ending for you, especially since it's so poignant. So read on without fear.
The Story: This was fantastic. It took me a while to catch on to the fact that Joe, our hero, was diabetic, so I didn't understand why it was so important that his backpack was full of candy (instead, I was like, "gee, what to keep a kid healthy, Mom!") and why it was so important when the candy was lost to bullies. But as the story progressed, I soon understood why, and the more I read, the more I feared for Joe's safely. And the story that unfolded turned into something so wonderful and unexpected. There are fantasy elements, and steampunk elements besides, and the narrative very, very cleverly navigates between Joe's "real" world and his "fantasy" world, and in both, he has utterly vital missions. One's for his own survival, while the other is the survival of the land itself. And even that latter intersects with the real world, as Joe's father was killed in action and he and his mother are in danger of losing their home. This story really made me care what was happening and had me fearing for the characters the whole time, especially for Jack, Joe's pet rat in the real world but his savior, companion, and champion in the fantasy world. And the ending was unexpected and wonderful. There were moments where I teared up while reading, and that's a powerful thing.
The Art: One of the things I appreciated most about the art was the way it transitioned between the Joe's home and the fantasy world. Like the narrative, the art slides from one to the other, and often, I didn't have any trouble with that. Sometimes I did, because I kept expecting to see certain things pop up in the "real" world, which made me unsure of my placement in the story. That's a minor quibble though. The cameos of DC and Vertigo characters in the army made me laugh. The fantasy-steampunk landscapes are beautiful, and the very last panel is one I'm going to remember for a long time.
My Rating: Couldn't Put It Down
I loved this. I'm so glad my husband stuck this in my TBR pile, even though I bitched and moaned about it at first. But as you've probably already guessed, this book hooked me emotionally and intellectually -- emotionally, because I was genuinely concerned about the fate of the characters, and intellectually because while I was pretty convinced it was an insulin-deprived fantasy world, I was never sure, and enjoyed seeing how the "real" world affected the fantasy world. It's a fantastic graphic novel, and one I highly recommend, even if graphic novels are not your normal mode of reading.
Cover Commentary: This is nothing special for me, in that it wouldn't catch my eye in the store. That said, if you pay attention, you can see what I mean about the merging between the real world (his room on the right) and the fantasy world (the landscape on the left). Of course, the toys link them, and that's more important than you'd think.
Next Up: Idolon by Mark Budz