Scan barcode
shane_tiernan's review against another edition
2.0
I love Alan Moore but have to say this is probably the book of his that I least enjoyed. I can handle silly as long as it's funny - this was mostly silly and only occasionally funny (to me). The main villain was interesting and cool. The solution to the problem was interesting if a bit of a stretch. The art was okay.
So if you're an Alan Moore completist, read it. If you're looking to sample Alan Moore look elsewhere (I would suggest Top 10 or the Watchmen).
So if you're an Alan Moore completist, read it. If you're looking to sample Alan Moore look elsewhere (I would suggest Top 10 or the Watchmen).
mschlat's review against another edition
5.0
Okay, my favorite Alan Moore reads are the astonishing [b:From Hell|23529|From Hell|Alan Moore|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1509277098l/23529._SX50_.jpg|191464] with Eddie Campbell and the genre-redefining [b:Watchmen|472331|Watchmen|Alan Moore|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1442239711l/472331._SY75_.jpg|4358649] with Dave Gibbons. But both are not what you would call light reading. When I want the complexity of Moore but a happier experience, I look to Moore's Supreme series, the wondrous Top 10 series, and this spinoff from Top 10.
Top 10 basically answered the question "What if Hill Street Blues was set in a superhero universe?". Smax answers the question "What if one of those cops goes back to their home, which just happens to be in a fantasy universe?" And Moore takes full advantage of the setting to both honor the conventions of the genre and humorously poke holes in it. One of my favorite set pieces is when our protagonist realizes he has to go on a quest and has to satisfy the local bureaucracy that his party satisfies all the necessary "diversity quotas". (Line of dialogue: "How... many... DWARVES?") Even with that humor, Moore makes the story sufficiently frightening, with an outstanding monster and several visits from several fantasy versions of Death.
But what sets the whole work up is Zander Cannon's pencils. Not only does Cannon excel at the Will Elderesque use of Easter eggs, but his cartoony style works for both the humor of the characters and the utter strangeness of the dragon at the center of the conflict. It's a fabulously drawn book, and I'm saddened to think it's the only Moore work with Cannon pencilling.
Highly recommended if you like Alan Moore or want a graphic novel that explores the fantasy genre. If you haven't read Top 10, you may be missing a bit of context, but I think you can catch the gist readily enough.
Top 10 basically answered the question "What if Hill Street Blues was set in a superhero universe?". Smax answers the question "What if one of those cops goes back to their home, which just happens to be in a fantasy universe?" And Moore takes full advantage of the setting to both honor the conventions of the genre and humorously poke holes in it. One of my favorite set pieces is when our protagonist realizes he has to go on a quest and has to satisfy the local bureaucracy that his party satisfies all the necessary "diversity quotas". (Line of dialogue: "How... many... DWARVES?") Even with that humor, Moore makes the story sufficiently frightening, with an outstanding monster and several visits from several fantasy versions of Death.
But what sets the whole work up is Zander Cannon's pencils. Not only does Cannon excel at the Will Elderesque use of Easter eggs, but his cartoony style works for both the humor of the characters and the utter strangeness of the dragon at the center of the conflict. It's a fabulously drawn book, and I'm saddened to think it's the only Moore work with Cannon pencilling.
Highly recommended if you like Alan Moore or want a graphic novel that explores the fantasy genre. If you haven't read Top 10, you may be missing a bit of context, but I think you can catch the gist readily enough.
jammasterjamie's review against another edition
5.0
The fantastic sci-fi world of Alan Moore's Top Ten turns it's eye on the fantasy genre with expected hilarious and trope-smashing results. If you loved Top Ten, then you have simply got to read Smax.
ostrava's review against another edition
5.0
This was awesome! Has all of the right pieces that made Top 10 such a marvel, and without some of its more obvious flaws. I also prefer the more simplistic art here, it reminds me of the Sandman finale, but without being as crappy or inconsistent. The plot is nothing special, you've seen most of it a million times already, but it doesn't matter, because Smax is a wonderful character and Moore's humor is at its best!
If you're ever wondering how a wholesome non-serious Alan Moore would write, Smax is the closest you will get! Too bad we won't get more of this, of good quality that is :(...
If you're ever wondering how a wholesome non-serious Alan Moore would write, Smax is the closest you will get! Too bad we won't get more of this, of good quality that is :(...
norrin2's review against another edition
3.0
Alan Moore is great. Top 10, the series this book spun off from was great. Smax is not great. Part of the problem is the art. Zander Cannon was the inker on Top 10, and he made Gene Ha's art shine, but his simpler cartoony style does not fit with the characters we know from Top 10. The background jokes that were such a delight to search for in Ha's work are upfront in your face here. And worst of all, the fearsome dragon that scares Jaffs -- who isn't scared of anything else -- looks like a big pussycat.
And part of the problem is Moore's writing. I think this is supposed to be a satire on fantasy novels, but if that's so, then why all the rape and incest? I guess we're supposed to think it's happy ending when the hero slays the big pussycat and then marries his sister(?!)
And part of the problem is Moore's writing. I think this is supposed to be a satire on fantasy novels, but if that's so, then why all the rape and incest? I guess we're supposed to think it's happy ending when the hero slays the big pussycat and then marries his sister(?!)
northern_mint's review against another edition
3.0
*TRIGGER WARNING* The story and review mention sexual assault.
Now for my review and hot take: comedies stories should not include scenes of sexual assault. This would be my biggest complaint about this story. It's tonally jarring to have two back-to-back dark gritty sexual assault and domestic violence scenes in the middle of what is otherwise a very light-hearted high-fantasy adventure parody.
I have another major issue with this comic; it has a lot on sex with a major focus on incest. It doesn't serve any purpose other than to make it clear Alan Moore doesn't want children to read this children's comic.
So aside from all of that, I think the comic works quite well. The overall story is pretty simple, but fun. The villain design is great. The jokes are a bit spotty, but there are a few gems.
So my final take is this is a 4-star comic that is mired by a bunch of dumb stuff because Moore can't help but troll his audiences.
Now for my review and hot take: comedies stories should not include scenes of sexual assault. This would be my biggest complaint about this story. It's tonally jarring to have two back-to-back dark gritty sexual assault and domestic violence scenes in the middle of what is otherwise a very light-hearted high-fantasy adventure parody.
I have another major issue with this comic; it has a lot on sex with a major focus on incest. It doesn't serve any purpose other than to make it clear Alan Moore doesn't want children to read this children's comic.
So aside from all of that, I think the comic works quite well. The overall story is pretty simple, but fun. The villain design is great. The jokes are a bit spotty, but there are a few gems.
So my final take is this is a 4-star comic that is mired by a bunch of dumb stuff because Moore can't help but troll his audiences.
rebus's review
3.0
I somehow missed the rise of the 5 issue mini-series--I find it as welcome as the shorter series on TV today, finding 3 or 6 episodes so much superior to the old 10 or 12 episode--but leave it to Moore to manage to delight me with a genre piece from a genre I despise: fantasy.
It's not anywhere near his most masterful work, but it's a far cry better than almost all comics and comix from the period from 1995 and after.
It's not anywhere near his most masterful work, but it's a far cry better than almost all comics and comix from the period from 1995 and after.
neven's review
4.0
A very fun Top 10 spinoff that works well on its own. We leave the super/action-hero world of Neopolis for Smax's home world of fairy tale and fantasy, seen in the Top 10 universe as hillbilly, backwater country.
londonmabel's review
3.0
It was just alright. The world stuff was as fun as the previous Top Ten books, and the adventure that Smax and Robin go on is well done and moving. But Smax' back story didn't fit with the feel of the Top Ten stories, much darker, so it threw me out of the reading experience.