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christiansavin 's review for:
The Lost Carnival: A Dick Grayson Graphic Novel
by Michael Moreci
It's weird that this graphic novel was written as a Dick Grayson story, especially one that was meant to "redefine" his origins. It felt more like an unrelated story about a watered down version of the Night Circus and a character that happened to have the same name and appearance as him. The plot and the setting had some major inconsistencies as well, including (spoilers ahead):
• the characters' reaction to magic/superpowers, some dismissed it as nonsense (despite this being supposed to be a story set in the DCU), others were just accepting it, both instances occuring whenever it's convenient for the plot
• the mechanics behind the very existence of the carnival itself; the whole thing relies entirely on Luciana's magic power, but how does that work exactly? she specified that she first needed to gather enough magic to materialize the carnival, but doesn't say anything about gathering magic after that, so how was she able to recover her power after she had almost exhausted herself several times? how is she able to sustain the whole thing if she's prone to exhausting herself that easily?
• also, what about Caliban? if everything is linked to her, why was he able to use his own magic independently from Luciana? why wasn't he helping her support the carnival if that's the case?
• if Luciana's magic wasn't enough to bring everyone back, why was Caliban able to summon the dark creatures? how's he even controlling them if they're drawn by magic? why would he even summon them if they're the people that Luciana couldn't bring back? why would the creature that was able to regain his original form run away from the carnival if he too was dependent on Luciana's magic? why would Luciana send him back to the other dimension if his presence was clearly not threatening the carnival in any visible way? with all of this in mind, their treatment as supporting antagonists was unnecessarily cruel
• the main conflict is plain stupid; Lodz was clearly capable of using magic on his own without stealing Luciana's; it would've been alright if he wanted more power, but he didn't, he somehow needed to steal her magic to become a fully fledged magician - all while already using his own magic (and I'm not just talking about what he was able to do after he partially stole or would-have-stolen? her magic in the other dimension, he already trapped his niece long before that)
Also, Dick's whiny existential crisis and the teenage drama between him and Luciana felt forced and unconvincing. Overall, this book was a big disappointment.
• the characters' reaction to magic/superpowers, some dismissed it as nonsense (despite this being supposed to be a story set in the DCU), others were just accepting it, both instances occuring whenever it's convenient for the plot
• the mechanics behind the very existence of the carnival itself; the whole thing relies entirely on Luciana's magic power, but how does that work exactly? she specified that she first needed to gather enough magic to materialize the carnival, but doesn't say anything about gathering magic after that, so how was she able to recover her power after she had almost exhausted herself several times? how is she able to sustain the whole thing if she's prone to exhausting herself that easily?
• also, what about Caliban? if everything is linked to her, why was he able to use his own magic independently from Luciana? why wasn't he helping her support the carnival if that's the case?
• if Luciana's magic wasn't enough to bring everyone back, why was Caliban able to summon the dark creatures? how's he even controlling them if they're drawn by magic? why would he even summon them if they're the people that Luciana couldn't bring back? why would the creature that was able to regain his original form run away from the carnival if he too was dependent on Luciana's magic? why would Luciana send him back to the other dimension if his presence was clearly not threatening the carnival in any visible way? with all of this in mind, their treatment as supporting antagonists was unnecessarily cruel
• the main conflict is plain stupid; Lodz was clearly capable of using magic on his own without stealing Luciana's; it would've been alright if he wanted more power, but he didn't, he somehow needed to steal her magic to become a fully fledged magician - all while already using his own magic (and I'm not just talking about what he was able to do after he partially stole or would-have-stolen? her magic in the other dimension, he already trapped his niece long before that)
Also, Dick's whiny existential crisis and the teenage drama between him and Luciana felt forced and unconvincing. Overall, this book was a big disappointment.