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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
This is an odd one for me. Usually I adore Gaiman's graphic novels because the stories are so nuanced and layered and awesome, but I have to admit that with Black Orchid the art trumps the story. While the story is good, it didn't quite blow me away quite like I was hoping - the problem is that The Sandman has set the bar extremely high and I find myself disappointed when inevitably drawing comparisons. The art, however, is some of McKean's best and I was utterly absorbed by the imagery, almost to the point where I could have done without the text bubbles and followed the story pictorially instead. So, a well-deserved 5 stars to McKean for this one!
dark
mysterious
sad
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This one came recommended to me by a coworker, after we were discussing Neil Gaiman and his works. I was surprised to find that not only had I never read it, but I had also never even heard of it! Neil once again worked his magic of taking a character from an obscure part of DC's past and breath in a bit of new life into it. Yes we get to see some of the characters that we've grown up with over the years (Batman and Lex Luthor to name a couple), but we they never take over the story to make it there own. Instead we get a re-origin story for a character we knew nothing about, and at least in my case we haven't seen since this was published more then 2 decades ago and was soon overshadowed by a certain Morpheus and his journey.
I've been meaning to read this for a long time. I've never read a comic by Neil Gaiman before but I wanted to. And Dave McKean, who's the illustrator, has done a marvellous job with several of Gaiman's novels so when I saw the cover of Black Orchid I knew I had to have it.
I don't know many details about DC's superheroes but I know Batman and Arkham and Poison Ivy so I was doing fine with the cameos in this comic. Susan / Black Orchid seems to have been fighting crime until her untimely death. However, death was only the beginning.
As the title suggests, this story has something to do with flowers and since it's in the same universe as Batman, it's also about superheroes. Sort of (I don't want to give away too much).
Apart from that, and this impressed me a lot, "mundane" topics such as domestic violence were also addressed and incorporated seamlessly into a superhero story.
The beginning was very weird and confusing but I realized soon that that was on purpose since it's exactly how the Black Orchid felt herself. Moreover, it also reminded me a bit of Memento. While the plot unfolds, more and more is revealed. There is, however, no actual action in this; no big-ass explosions and lots of fighting by our heroine. Instead, this is a bit of a quiet story. Still with its message and quite unique as far as I can tell and definitely very imaginative but the lack of action might be one reason for the low ratings.
However, the true gem here is the art anyway! Art with a capital "A"!
What Dave McKean created here is nothing short of beautiful and mesmerizing. Especially the panels about the greenhouse, the Bayou and later the Rain Forest were stunning and gorgeous,
but his depiction of Arkham and people were wonderful too. The colours were vivid and alternated with bleak panels for a more dramatic effect.
So although this was definitely not what I had expected, I enjoyed it quite a lot and am glad I picked it up.
I don't know many details about DC's superheroes but I know Batman and Arkham and Poison Ivy so I was doing fine with the cameos in this comic. Susan / Black Orchid seems to have been fighting crime until her untimely death. However, death was only the beginning.
As the title suggests, this story has something to do with flowers and since it's in the same universe as Batman, it's also about superheroes. Sort of (I don't want to give away too much).
Apart from that, and this impressed me a lot, "mundane" topics such as domestic violence were also addressed and incorporated seamlessly into a superhero story.
The beginning was very weird and confusing but I realized soon that that was on purpose since it's exactly how the Black Orchid felt herself. Moreover, it also reminded me a bit of Memento. While the plot unfolds, more and more is revealed. There is, however, no actual action in this; no big-ass explosions and lots of fighting by our heroine. Instead, this is a bit of a quiet story. Still with its message and quite unique as far as I can tell and definitely very imaginative but the lack of action might be one reason for the low ratings.
However, the true gem here is the art anyway! Art with a capital "A"!
What Dave McKean created here is nothing short of beautiful and mesmerizing. Especially the panels about the greenhouse, the Bayou and later the Rain Forest were stunning and gorgeous,
but his depiction of Arkham and people were wonderful too. The colours were vivid and alternated with bleak panels for a more dramatic effect.
So although this was definitely not what I had expected, I enjoyed it quite a lot and am glad I picked it up.
This one blew me away. Gorgeous art and a, now thirty-some years later, very timely story to go along with it. Check it out. AN auspicious debut for a writer whose works I have had mixed, very mixed, reactions. McKean is a capital A Artist. Every frame is impeccable. One of the top five or so story to art comics out there, along with Frank Miller's Dark Knight Returns and Alex Ross's Kingdom Come, imho.
5 stars = amazing
I am not an avid comics fan, hence rarely do comic books really fulfil my satiety for amazing stories paired with stunning visuals. As a result, I'd give this 4 stars, but 5 are absolutely necessary due to the fact Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean made a story that upended the traditional narrative within comics in 1991. Also, the artwork is sublime, as is always the case with McKean. [b:MirrorMask|760984|MirrorMask|Neil Gaiman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1432407674s/760984.jpg|1318615] (film) anybody?
Story-wise, Gaiman's What I Tasted of Desire of [b:The Sandman: Endless Nights|47720|The Sandman Endless Nights|Neil Gaiman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327948224s/47720.jpg|460092] still remains my absolute favourite, yet Black Orchid has a catchy detective unfolding and a compelling relationship with violence - this is even more refreshing when yet again one takes into consideration this was published in 1991. Violence is not the resolution here and every character plays a role here.
Recommended!
I am not an avid comics fan, hence rarely do comic books really fulfil my satiety for amazing stories paired with stunning visuals. As a result, I'd give this 4 stars, but 5 are absolutely necessary due to the fact Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean made a story that upended the traditional narrative within comics in 1991. Also, the artwork is sublime, as is always the case with McKean. [b:MirrorMask|760984|MirrorMask|Neil Gaiman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1432407674s/760984.jpg|1318615] (film) anybody?
Story-wise, Gaiman's What I Tasted of Desire of [b:The Sandman: Endless Nights|47720|The Sandman Endless Nights|Neil Gaiman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327948224s/47720.jpg|460092] still remains my absolute favourite, yet Black Orchid has a catchy detective unfolding and a compelling relationship with violence - this is even more refreshing when yet again one takes into consideration this was published in 1991. Violence is not the resolution here and every character plays a role here.
Recommended!
Neil Gaiman es conocido por un estilo muy propio que sigue a rajatabla la ley del "muestra, no cuentes". Sin embargo, hay ocasiones en las que eso puede dar lugar a inconvenientes con el entendimiento de sus historias. Este ha sido mi problema con Black Orchid, donde el argumento es perfectamente funcional, pero la forma de narrarlo deja con ciertas dudas no solo narrativas, sino también de estilo.
La premisa es sencilla: una mujer híbrida de planta y humana intenta recordar un pasado perteneciente a su predecesora, la difunta heroína Orquídea Negra, mientras la organización de Lex Luthor trata de acabar con ella. La forma de narrar la historia hace parecer a esta trama tan simple algo más, un aspecto en el que Gaiman siempre sobresale. Por ello, a pesar de lo común del argumento, hay ciertos elementos que mantienen enganchado al lector. Habría agradecido una mayor profundidad de personajes, pero no se puede pedir mucho más en tan pocas páginas.
Algo similar sucede con el apartado gráfico; de base, es espectacular, si bien no me gustan algunas decisiones de diseño, donde el dibujo confunde antes que ayuda a entender una historia ya de por sí contada de manera enrevesada. Más allá de esto, el trabajo de McKean es impecable gracias a su manejo del trazo, las expresiones faciales y el tono expresionista.
Como pequeña anotación, me gusta que se jueguen con algunos personajes de DC (de los que, sin duda, debería haber sabido algo más antes de entrar en este tomo), pero sus apariciones son más bien anecdóticas. Es posible que salgan de los cómics de Alan Moore y similares, de modo que sus historias previas me son desconocidas.
Así pues, esta novela gráfica ha sido una mezcla de luces y sombras. Sigo viendo el potencial de Gaiman incluso en este tipo de obras más flojas, y aunque tanto la historia como la forma de contarla me hayan dejado un tanto frío, el interés que suscita el existencialismo de la(s) protagonista(s) y el paneling de McKean me satisfacen lo suficiente como para seguir con sus respectivos trabajos.
Puntuación final: 6.5/10.
La premisa es sencilla: una mujer híbrida de planta y humana intenta recordar un pasado perteneciente a su predecesora, la difunta heroína Orquídea Negra, mientras la organización de Lex Luthor trata de acabar con ella. La forma de narrar la historia hace parecer a esta trama tan simple algo más, un aspecto en el que Gaiman siempre sobresale. Por ello, a pesar de lo común del argumento, hay ciertos elementos que mantienen enganchado al lector. Habría agradecido una mayor profundidad de personajes, pero no se puede pedir mucho más en tan pocas páginas.
Algo similar sucede con el apartado gráfico; de base, es espectacular, si bien no me gustan algunas decisiones de diseño, donde el dibujo confunde antes que ayuda a entender una historia ya de por sí contada de manera enrevesada. Más allá de esto, el trabajo de McKean es impecable gracias a su manejo del trazo, las expresiones faciales y el tono expresionista.
Como pequeña anotación, me gusta que se jueguen con algunos personajes de DC (de los que, sin duda, debería haber sabido algo más antes de entrar en este tomo), pero sus apariciones son más bien anecdóticas. Es posible que salgan de los cómics de Alan Moore y similares, de modo que sus historias previas me son desconocidas.
Así pues, esta novela gráfica ha sido una mezcla de luces y sombras. Sigo viendo el potencial de Gaiman incluso en este tipo de obras más flojas, y aunque tanto la historia como la forma de contarla me hayan dejado un tanto frío, el interés que suscita el existencialismo de la(s) protagonista(s) y el paneling de McKean me satisfacen lo suficiente como para seguir con sus respectivos trabajos.
Puntuación final: 6.5/10.
For story alone, I give it two stars. Jumbled (still not really sure what the plot was) and preachy (the environment!) and reliant upon knowledge of other Vertigo characters (especially Batman stuff. But it has some of the most BEAUTIFUL artwork I've ever seen--lovely black and white panels for the city and stunning color pictures when the flower people are involved.
3/5
3/5
