Take a photo of a barcode or cover
davidareyzaga 's review for:
Black Orchid
by Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean
If you're a fan of Neil Gaiman, read this comic book. If you're a fan of DC comics... sure, give it a go if you have time. If you're a fan of Dave McKean's art style, then yeah, buy yourself a copy and try not to drool over it.
Let's begin.
I remember reading a short story by Neil Gaiman when I was very young and I have observed through the years his importance in the literary community without actually experiencing it for myself. What drove me to pick up this comic book is that included characters from DC comics, mostly from the Batman mythos. After reading it, while I'm sure Neil Gaiman is an excellent writer (I saw the movie adaptation of Coraline and I loved the story) it didn't have that special ingredient that makes me say "I have to read everything by this author," but I sure won't rule out reading something else by him when the right time comes.
But I think my reaction is understandable. Black Orchid is not an original character by Gaiman, this is just his vision of that character and this entry is great but it doesn't do enough to make you want to read other comics involving that character either. Unlike Batman comics that deviate from the main storyline (Noël, Gotham by Gaslight, etc.), I wasn't inspired to learn more about Black Orchid or her adventures. I don't know if that's Neil Gaiman's fault, or if the character just isn't compelling enough. After all, she has some similarities to Poison Ivy, which makes an appearance in this comic, and there doesn't seem to be much humanity left in her given that she is a plant with a bunch of copies.
*minor spoilers from this point forward*
This takes me to another criticism about the story. This comic has been praised for how Neil Gaiman decided to abandon comic book tropes and start right off by telling readers this is COMPLETELY different just because we are going to see the main character die in the first page, like this comic book's bad guy is actually good at his job. Sounds great, right? Yeah, it does, until you find out it doesn't have much of an effect, and I'll never appreciate things for their shock-value but for their lasting consequences, so I don't think this is a praiseworthy decision. It's a great start, but it doesn't have lasting consequences. I would have preferred to read a story after Black Orchid's death and how it affects other characters than to see her come back to life, figure out her back story—which is one of abuse with an overabundance of clichés—, and then reach an unsatisfying conclusion. One bonus is a series of glorified cameos from the likes of Batman, Lex Author, Poison Ivy, Swamp Thing, Harvey Dent, among others.
You see why this doesn't inspire me to read other stories by Neil Gaiman or Black Orchid comics? I found his style to be pseudo-intelectual, that is, pretending to be above the genre without actually achieving anything of significance and relying way too much on its art. In fact, the only reason why I plan to keep this comic book and maybe show it to some of my friends is because the art is so damn beautiful.
Dave McKean gave us the nightmarish art-style of Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, and we should thank him for it. That was an amazing deviation of the typical Batman style that actually encourages people to read more comic books (and it inspired the classic game Arkham Asylum, which spawned one of the most amazing video game series, at least for any Batman fan), but that was a great collaborative effort between Dave McKean and Grant Morrison, the writer. For Black Orchid, McKean uses a photorealistic take on the characters while using watercolors and a style that actually carries meaning. The use of color, or lack thereof, says something about each of the characters and this world, so it is not only beautiful to look at, but it really gets to you. In fact, I'd say that it does all the heavy lifting because if this had been in someone else's hands, this comic book could have probably ended up being a throwaway for me.
Now, I know a lot of people have loved this story and put the praise on Neil Gaiman just as much as on Dave McKean and, granted, they needed each other to succeed in doing this comic book. However, I have to say that this felt like an uninspired entry that focuses more on condemning comic books without actually taking the genre to new grounds so that others may follow suit. I mean, have you seen similar comic books regarding Black Orchid's narration style? Let me put it this way, what Christopher Nolan did with Batman in movies, a lot of filmmakers tried to imitate, some with less success than others. I haven't seen a lot of comic book writers being particularly inspired by Neil Gaiman's Black Orchid, and I'm glad that's the case, because there are plenty of great writers who come up with truly unique ideas in the medium, so it's not a case of everyone doing the same, but you can tell from afar that whatever Neil Gaiman tried to do, didn't set the trend. It was shocking when it came out, but it didn't have long-lasting consequences. Life imitates art.
Let's begin.
I remember reading a short story by Neil Gaiman when I was very young and I have observed through the years his importance in the literary community without actually experiencing it for myself. What drove me to pick up this comic book is that included characters from DC comics, mostly from the Batman mythos. After reading it, while I'm sure Neil Gaiman is an excellent writer (I saw the movie adaptation of Coraline and I loved the story) it didn't have that special ingredient that makes me say "I have to read everything by this author," but I sure won't rule out reading something else by him when the right time comes.
But I think my reaction is understandable. Black Orchid is not an original character by Gaiman, this is just his vision of that character and this entry is great but it doesn't do enough to make you want to read other comics involving that character either. Unlike Batman comics that deviate from the main storyline (Noël, Gotham by Gaslight, etc.), I wasn't inspired to learn more about Black Orchid or her adventures. I don't know if that's Neil Gaiman's fault, or if the character just isn't compelling enough. After all, she has some similarities to Poison Ivy, which makes an appearance in this comic, and there doesn't seem to be much humanity left in her given that she is a plant with a bunch of copies.
*minor spoilers from this point forward*
This takes me to another criticism about the story. This comic has been praised for how Neil Gaiman decided to abandon comic book tropes and start right off by telling readers this is COMPLETELY different just because we are going to see the main character die in the first page, like this comic book's bad guy is actually good at his job. Sounds great, right? Yeah, it does, until you find out it doesn't have much of an effect, and I'll never appreciate things for their shock-value but for their lasting consequences, so I don't think this is a praiseworthy decision. It's a great start, but it doesn't have lasting consequences. I would have preferred to read a story after Black Orchid's death and how it affects other characters than to see her come back to life, figure out her back story—which is one of abuse with an overabundance of clichés—, and then reach an unsatisfying conclusion. One bonus is a series of glorified cameos from the likes of Batman, Lex Author, Poison Ivy, Swamp Thing, Harvey Dent, among others.
You see why this doesn't inspire me to read other stories by Neil Gaiman or Black Orchid comics? I found his style to be pseudo-intelectual, that is, pretending to be above the genre without actually achieving anything of significance and relying way too much on its art. In fact, the only reason why I plan to keep this comic book and maybe show it to some of my friends is because the art is so damn beautiful.
Dave McKean gave us the nightmarish art-style of Arkham Asylum: A Serious House on Serious Earth, and we should thank him for it. That was an amazing deviation of the typical Batman style that actually encourages people to read more comic books (and it inspired the classic game Arkham Asylum, which spawned one of the most amazing video game series, at least for any Batman fan), but that was a great collaborative effort between Dave McKean and Grant Morrison, the writer. For Black Orchid, McKean uses a photorealistic take on the characters while using watercolors and a style that actually carries meaning. The use of color, or lack thereof, says something about each of the characters and this world, so it is not only beautiful to look at, but it really gets to you. In fact, I'd say that it does all the heavy lifting because if this had been in someone else's hands, this comic book could have probably ended up being a throwaway for me.
Now, I know a lot of people have loved this story and put the praise on Neil Gaiman just as much as on Dave McKean and, granted, they needed each other to succeed in doing this comic book. However, I have to say that this felt like an uninspired entry that focuses more on condemning comic books without actually taking the genre to new grounds so that others may follow suit. I mean, have you seen similar comic books regarding Black Orchid's narration style? Let me put it this way, what Christopher Nolan did with Batman in movies, a lot of filmmakers tried to imitate, some with less success than others. I haven't seen a lot of comic book writers being particularly inspired by Neil Gaiman's Black Orchid, and I'm glad that's the case, because there are plenty of great writers who come up with truly unique ideas in the medium, so it's not a case of everyone doing the same, but you can tell from afar that whatever Neil Gaiman tried to do, didn't set the trend. It was shocking when it came out, but it didn't have long-lasting consequences. Life imitates art.