Dungeon: Zenith - Vol. 1: Duck Heart [Paperback]

Joann Sfar (Author), Lewis Trondheim (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Dungeon: Zenith | Publication Date: August 1, 2004

Welcome to Dungeon, the looniest world of horror and heroic fantasy you’ll ever be transported into! This series, a best-seller in many countries, starts with the apogee of Dungeon, a mighty castle filled with monsters, trolls and goblins kept by a wily bird, the Dungeon Keeper, and the object of desire of many an uncouth and disgusting form of life (and afterlife) and Herbert the Timorous Duck is assigned to defend it! Thank goodness, the Dungeon Keeper has assigned Marvin the Dragon, a blood-thirsty, uh, vegetarian warrior, to his side.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

For the first time, Sfar and Trondheim's extensive series of French comics parodying the sword and sorcery genre has been collected into an American volume. The series' unlikely hero is Herbert, a talking duck who works as a dungeon keeper's flunky. In the first story, Herbert, unable to fetch a barbarian to battle the dungeon keeper's adversaries, impersonates a warrior and embarks on the mission himself. Herbert is a traditional comedy figure, a boastful, cowardly impostor. Accompanying him is Marvin, a competent fighter and vegetarian dragon. Though these stories are inventive, they appear to have lost something in translation, as they are rarely truly witty or funny. For example, at one point Herbert and Marvin pose as interior decorators to gain admission to the villains' lair. But the creators seem satisfied merely with establishing the premise rather than building on its comedic potential. In the second story, Herbert undergoes training as a warrior from Marvin's former master, who proves to be cruel and manipulative. In a startling sequence, the master's prize pupil corrupts a tribe of hunters with a lust for wealth and power, whereupon they enslave a community of peaceful shepherds. This serious, ambitious indictment of war and inequality is impressive. The artwork is beautiful (both Trondheim and Sfar are award-winning artists), but the preference for long shots distances readers from the characters.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Gr. 9-12. This first volume of the Dungeon graphic novel series follows the misadventures of Herbert the Duck. As a result of some unfortunate accidents, Herbert, usually a lowly messenger in the great Dungeon, is called upon to defend it from all manner of beasties. In his endeavors to become a warrior, he is helped by his friend Marvin the vegetarian dragon and by the Dungeon Keeper. Although there's a solid dose of cartoon-style violence and gore, teens will appreciate Herbert's pseudo-slacker attitude, which turns him into an accidental hero time and time again. They'll also like the tongue-in-cheek storytelling, rife with screwball humor that is so bad it's hilarious. The art is offbeat and fun, too, with detailed backgrounds that are often as over the top as the action. A great change of pace from mainstream comics. Tina Coleman
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Paperback: 96 pages
• Publisher: NBM Publishing (August 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1561634018
• ISBN-13: 978-1561634019
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,146,680 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars awtosomal, May 28, 2007

By 

I. M. Umoh "- Ivin" (Somewhere big) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dungeon: Zenith - Vol. 1: Duck Heart (Paperback)

Boy I sure hope this book is way more popular in France, where it was originally published, than here in the states. I would never have heard of it if I hadn't chance encountered an online blog raving about how good it is. And indeed, what a gem to have missed.

The first page opens with a great expository introduction to the world of Dungeon and I was hooked from there unto the end. Characterization, gags, artwork, and story are all top notch. I was sad when I plowed through it in one sitting. I just couldn't stop, it always kept me wondering what would happen next to the characters and every turn was more clever and unexpected than the last. Thankfully there are more Dungeon books and I am going to order all of them. I suggest you do the same. It's not everyday you run into a graphic novel that is this bloody good.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun & charming Sword and Sorcery, August 5, 2010

By 

Sean Poppe (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dungeon: Zenith - Vol. 1: Duck Heart (Paperback)

I personally love and cannot pass up a good fantasy yarn, and the talking animals in these books are just to delightful. The artwork is charming; simple, stylized, and full of character and just the right amount of detail. Trodheim is definitely on my list of notable industry contributers.The writing is quick and sharp, and helps move along the simple stories in a little world, as well.

Lovers of independent comics, fantasy, or simple laugh will not be disappointed.

4.0 out of 5 stars Amusing, July 14, 2010

By 

reenum (Kansas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dungeon: Zenith - Vol. 1: Duck Heart (Paperback)

I liked the various spoofs they did of the D&D set, as well as the medieval pauper rescuing a princess trope.