Reviews

Church and State I by Dave Sim

hereticburger's review

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dark
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

nickdouglas's review against another edition

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3.0

Weakest of the books so far. Plot doesn't go anywhere interesting, Cerebus is a jackass with a boring non-plan.

bent's review

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4.0

I liked Church and State, but I didn't think it was as strong as High Society. Big chunks of the book screamed filler - Cerebus has a cold comes to mind particularly. But still, there was a lot of good stuff in both volumes.

sentient_meat's review

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5.0

Cerebus gets elected to Pontiff! Wonderful!

riverwise's review

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5.0

(see my review of volume II for thoughts. Spoiler: I think it's brilliant)

thebobsphere's review

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4.0

After the AMAZING High Society, the third Cerebus volume is a worthy follow up.

After being punished and banished, Cerebus goes drinking and finds himself married to the dreaded Red Sonja. Subsequently he tries to divorce her but runs into problems.

A bit heavy handed but funny. Worth a read.

gillysingh's review

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5.0

The artwork on this volume is far superior to that of volume one and of High Society. As a whole, you get the sense that Dave Sim is settling into his stride and the faster pacing of the issues included in this volume make it a much easier read although, as Sim points out in his introduction, it does not find itself at a neat ending leading into Church and State II.

Whereas High Society provided withering political satire, Church and State begins the task of tackling much wider questions relating to a person's place in history and the society around them. The main conflict that I feel coming out is that between Cerebus' sense of being able to do anything he wishes whilst also being trapped by the pressures of those around him as well as the complexities of his own feelings of trying to find himself. Cerebus is no hero and even to use the term anti-hero feels like an oversimplification. He is a more complex character than a surface reading would allow for and we get a startling glimpse of that whenever Cerebus interacts with Jaka or Suentus Po and the Illusionist movement. Any of the issues, throughout the run so far, which have dealt with those things have been stand out issues.

Church and State I leaves you wanting more and, for that reason alone, encourages you to seek satisfaction in further reading.

d0kk's review

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5.0

Absolutely some of the _best_ narrative comic art I've ever read. Surpassed only by Church & State II
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