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4.18 AVERAGE
4.18 AVERAGE
One time The Crow had a beautiful wife ...so innocent. So childlike...she loved Cat in the Hat (and that's about it)...and sex... all the time... *cue sad scene where he draws the Cat in the Hat in blood*
So he and his wife were killed, but he could magically come back to get revenge so he can die and be with her again...why couldn't the wife magically come back? so he has an excuse to kill people and feel sad. Then say a random badass quip like 'I am the extra chromosome'
So this is just the usual comic book power fantasy...but he's gothic. Because there used to be a time where comic shops were seen as a counterculture hangout thanks to the Sandman, so gotta get that goth $$$ before Hot Topic comes around.
Some good art near the end of the volume though
So he and his wife were killed, but he could magically come back to get revenge so he can die and be with her again...why couldn't the wife magically come back? so he has an excuse to kill people and feel sad. Then say a random badass quip like 'I am the extra chromosome'
So this is just the usual comic book power fantasy...but he's gothic. Because there used to be a time where comic shops were seen as a counterculture hangout thanks to the Sandman, so gotta get that goth $$$ before Hot Topic comes around.
Some good art near the end of the volume though
All he wants is pain. Pain and hate. Yes, hate. But never fear. Fear is for the enemy. Fear and bullets.
I’m not sure what possessed me to pick up this graphic novel as it wasn’t even on my tbr, but I’m so glad I did.
In the story, readers follow Eric Draven's life after death - resurrected so he can wreak vengeance upon the thugs that brutally raped and murdered his fiancée.
Honestly, I’ve never read a graphic novel quite like this before. The Crow is ugly and messy in the best way possible. Each page carries such a poignant look into grief while the mythology of the Crow acts as a backdrop to the story. I loved the art style and the poems and lyrics interspersed in-between. The author's agony is splashed all over the pages. This was a masterpiece. So raw. So real. So dark. So violent. So brutal. And so haunting... Ultimately, Eric’s journey of retribution does nothing to lessen his anger, hurt and pain. It’s a bleak and harrowing story but nevertheless, one that must be told.
(RIP Brandon Lee)
This story does contain a lot of dark themes so please take heed to the TW:
Spoiler
rape, drug abuse, gore, self-harm, violenceRating: 4/5
challenging
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
When I first started reading The Crow, I wasn't taking it all that seriously. But by the end, I was so captivated by the story that when I finished, I immediately turned to the first page and read the whole thing front to back; I had never done that before.
This book came to me in a funny way. One night, my friends and I were watching a (mostly comical and not always true) biopic of the life of Bruce Lee, a person I knew nothing about. At the end of the biopic, Bruce Lee dies in such a bizarre way and at such a young age, that I started to research his life. I come to find out that his son, Brandon Lee, died in a similarly bizarre way at an even younger age: he was shot by accident and killed on set while filming the movie adaptation of The Crow. Knowing this, I decided to check it out, and I’m so glad I did.
I don’t know what I expected from the Crow when I started to read it, but I didn’t expect it to be very good. I had nothing to base those expectations on, except for the cover and the fact that I had never heard of the book or the movie. I started to read it casually, and it was so dark and gritty that I almost found it humorous. But as I continued to read, I found myself becoming impressed by the author’s way with words. The dialogue was poetic and well-formed. By the end I so was engrossed by the characters and their backstory, loss, and motives that I felt like I had missed a lot when I had been reading the first part so casually. The book is also scattered with symbolism and metaphors, so the second read through was actually quite lucrative.
The Crow is a sad book that details the tragedy of a newly engaged young couple. In the Afterword of the book, it stated that the inspiration for The Crow came from a personal tragedy that happened in author/illustrator James O’Barr’s life. I learned that his wife was killed by a drunk driver when they were still fairly young. He stated that he wrote The Crow as a sort of catharsis, but that it backfired in many ways. He said that he only became more self-destructive as he continued to write and illustrate the book, that he put pure anger on each page. Knowing this backstory makes the book that much more meaningful for him and for the readers.
This book has so much backstory and is filled with and surrounded by so much loss and tragedy that it’s hard not to become invested in its pages. It also helps that it happens to be a literary masterpiece, at least in my opinion. Be warned though, this book is not for everyone. It’s dark, depressing, and some panels are pretty hard to look at.
This book came to me in a funny way. One night, my friends and I were watching a (mostly comical and not always true) biopic of the life of Bruce Lee, a person I knew nothing about. At the end of the biopic, Bruce Lee dies in such a bizarre way and at such a young age, that I started to research his life. I come to find out that his son, Brandon Lee, died in a similarly bizarre way at an even younger age: he was shot by accident and killed on set while filming the movie adaptation of The Crow. Knowing this, I decided to check it out, and I’m so glad I did.
I don’t know what I expected from the Crow when I started to read it, but I didn’t expect it to be very good. I had nothing to base those expectations on, except for the cover and the fact that I had never heard of the book or the movie. I started to read it casually, and it was so dark and gritty that I almost found it humorous. But as I continued to read, I found myself becoming impressed by the author’s way with words. The dialogue was poetic and well-formed. By the end I so was engrossed by the characters and their backstory, loss, and motives that I felt like I had missed a lot when I had been reading the first part so casually. The book is also scattered with symbolism and metaphors, so the second read through was actually quite lucrative.
The Crow is a sad book that details the tragedy of a newly engaged young couple. In the Afterword of the book, it stated that the inspiration for The Crow came from a personal tragedy that happened in author/illustrator James O’Barr’s life. I learned that his wife was killed by a drunk driver when they were still fairly young. He stated that he wrote The Crow as a sort of catharsis, but that it backfired in many ways. He said that he only became more self-destructive as he continued to write and illustrate the book, that he put pure anger on each page. Knowing this backstory makes the book that much more meaningful for him and for the readers.
This book has so much backstory and is filled with and surrounded by so much loss and tragedy that it’s hard not to become invested in its pages. It also helps that it happens to be a literary masterpiece, at least in my opinion. Be warned though, this book is not for everyone. It’s dark, depressing, and some panels are pretty hard to look at.
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I went in with high expectations but found the art hard to follow at times and the text a bit rambling.
Short review
A couple of months ago, I saw the film version of The Crow with the late Brandon Lee, and the movie was violent (and I'm not a fan of violent movies). However, the story of Eric and what he lost pulled me in, and the film was quite good.
The Crow by James O'Barr is different than its film predecessor, since the female characters are not as developed as they were in the film (also, the film added a lot of scenes and information and new characters...like T-bird's sister or I don't know who she was mad). Anyway, the film was bloody and poetic, and the graphic novel is violent but it's more symbolic and poetic. There's a dark beauty to this story, and I did not know about James O'Barr's personal tragedy where he drew inspiration to write this. All I can say is that I'll cherish this graphic novel because of its themes of forgiveness of the self and true, transcendental love.
A couple of months ago, I saw the film version of The Crow with the late Brandon Lee, and the movie was violent (and I'm not a fan of violent movies). However, the story of Eric and what he lost pulled me in, and the film was quite good.
The Crow by James O'Barr is different than its film predecessor, since the female characters are not as developed as they were in the film (also, the film added a lot of scenes and information and new characters...like T-bird's sister or I don't know who she was mad). Anyway, the film was bloody and poetic, and the graphic novel is violent but it's more symbolic and poetic. There's a dark beauty to this story, and I did not know about James O'Barr's personal tragedy where he drew inspiration to write this. All I can say is that I'll cherish this graphic novel because of its themes of forgiveness of the self and true, transcendental love.