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Title: Dreaming: Through the Gates of Horn & Ivory by Caitlin R. Kiernan, Peter Hogan, Jeff Nicholson, Peter Doherty, Neil Gaiman ISBN: 1-56389-493-9 Publisher: General Pub. Date: 22 February, 1999 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.83 (6 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: I didn't expect it to be this good . . .
Comment: but it is. It's really, really good. No, not as good as Neil Gaiman, but you couldn't have expected that. It's excellent, though. It's also a huge improvement on the first "Dreaming" anthology, Beyond The Shores of Night. Caitlin Kiernan (who wrote two story arcs in this collection made up of 3 issues each) is a worthy successor to the Sandman universe--which is not an easy thing to be--and Peter Hogan (who wrote two short stories) is close.
I shall now discuss each story. The first is "Day's Work, Night's Rest" by someone whose name I don't remember. I didn't really like this one. It started out trying to be serious (as far as I can tell), but ended up with a sort of black comedy that didn't work. And the art was really ugly. Next!
"Ice" by Peter Hogan. Ah, much better. This is the one where the story of Cluracan and his nemesis is resolved. We also get to see Nuala working as a barmaid in New York; she gets a visit from Lucien. I very much enjoyed Hogan's characterization of the Cluracan, and the art is superior.
Next is a 3-part story arc by Caitlin R. Kiernan, called "Souvenirs". It's about the Corinthian, a character I have always found fascinating. And this story is fantastic. I honestly think it ranks up with some parts of Sandman; perhaps "Collectors", only more disturbing. (Yes, more disturbing than "Collectors". This story is not for the faint of heart.) Caitlin Kiernan has a lovely and unique style. She invents words ("cricketwhisper") and makes extensive use of the word "and" to join together phrases and thoughts you wouldn't normally join together, creating startling, unconventional-sounding prose which somehow captures the mood perfectly.
Then there's another Kiernan story arc: An Unkindness of One. I didn't like this one as much, but it was still pretty cool. It's about Matthew becoming a man again temporarily, as Lucien becomes a raven again temporarily. I didn't get some of what was going on, but I think I'd have enjoyed it a lot more if I kept up with "Swamp Thing". Kiernan's prose still shines. Something to note: The f-word is probably used ten times as much in this one book than it was during the entire run of Sandman. :)
Lastly, another Peter Hogan story: My Year As A Man. This concerns Dream's raven Aristeas of Marmora (remember, "the one who came back after he was a man again"). As you may have figured out from the title, Aristeas spends a year as a man, then goes back to being a raven. It's a moderately good story, but Peter Hogan really won me over by putting Thessaly in it--quite a bit younger, and now calling herself Hypata, but still Thessaly. I was thrilled to see her again.
This collection far surpassed my expectations--particularly "Souvenirs". If you were devastated when you had no more Sandman to read, definitely check this out!
Rating: 5
Summary: A superb comic!
Comment: Since Caitlin Kiernan took over The Dreaming it's been almost as good as The Sandman, as this collection will demonstrate. She's definitely one of the best writers at Vertigo today.
Rating: 4
Summary: Neil Gaiman it's not...
Comment: Well, I suppose that if every comic writer were going to be criticized for not being Neil Gaiman I'd have a very long night ahead of me indeed. But still, the fact that these are almost all characters that he created make the comparisons more obvious. While Ms. Kiernan does a workable job with the storylines and characters left hanging at the end of "The Wake," she just doesn't have the flair that Gaiman did. The biggest annoyance for me was that where Gaiman would hint at a million literary, mythological and pop culture references to be discovered like treasures on the third or fourth reading in his comics, with Kiernan the ones that aren't immediately obvious (which are most of them) are nearly always explained within the story. But for anyone who may have found Gaiman's writing too dense or obscure, they may prefer her method. I personally don't. Still, it was nice to have something left of the Dreaming, even if it's more like the Dreaming Lite.
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Title: Endless Nights (The Sandman, Book 11) by Neil Gaiman ISBN: 1401200893 Publisher: General Pub. Date: 17 September, 2003 List Price(USD): $24.95 |
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Title: Sandman Presents, The: Taller Tales by Bill Willingham ISBN: 1401201008 Publisher: General Pub. Date: 01 November, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: The Sandman Presents : The Furies by Mike Carey, John Bolton ISBN: 1401200931 Publisher: General Pub. Date: 01 December, 2003 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: Lucifer: Devil in the Gateway, Book 1 by Mike Carey ISBN: 1563897334 Publisher: General Pub. Date: 01 June, 2001 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Lucifer: The Divine Comedy - Book 4 by Mike Carey, Peter Gross, Ryan Kelly, Dean Ormston ISBN: 1401200095 Publisher: General Pub. Date: 01 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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