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40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rat-a-tat-tat!, June 30, 2002
Sometimes, when you want to tell your sweetheart how you feel, the only thing to do is tear that muscle that pumps your blood right out of your chest and afix it to your beloved's door with a hat pin. Rat-a-tat-tat! This way, you can determine if he, she or it is worthy of your devotion by studying how your cardiac offering is met. Some would-be lovers will spurn it. Some will shriek. If, like our Harlequin, you are besotted with a tow-headed beauty, lithe of limb, with "mermaid lips" and the most unflappable flaps that ever refused to commence with the flapping, your heart will likely wind up in a plastic baggy, safe and warm in Beauty's pocket, that is until - well, you're just going to have to read the book for that bit. I first read this tale in prose form some five years ago, I think. I loved it then and I love it now. John Bolton's painted illustrations are perfect for the thing, pretty, sweet and dizzying like blue cotton candy and looking the wrong way on a carousel. Plus it's hardback. I like hardbacks. They make me feel skinny, smart and rich.
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17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sweet, strange and a tiny bit gruesome., January 19, 2003
What a strange story! Neil Gaiman is my favorite author, and as much as I love his longer novels (Coraline, American Gods, Neverwhere), he always proves himself best in short tales. And there is no greater treat than a lovingly illustrated, fantastically told graphic novel (adultspeak for: comic book). Harlequin Valentine is the perfect valentine's gift for that friend who prefers Morrisey to Celine Dion. It's a dark, bizarre twist on the commedia dell'Arte character Harlequin, as he follows his modern-day Columbine. In short, the art is lovely, the story entertainingly bizarre, and Gaiman has once again created a beautiful story with one foot planted firmly in the annals of cultural history and the other in the wry, tongue-in-cheek modern world.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Charming, quirky, and way too short, March 13, 2002
This book is an odd mix of romance, tragedy, mythology, and humor... with a sprinkling of the grotesque. Typical Neil Gaiman, in other words. This short graphic novel follows Harlequin, the old clown of the italian commedia del'arte as he pursues his "Missy", the woman to whom he has given his heart for a Valentine gift. Missy, meanwhile, remains oblivious to his pursuit. The book also contains a brief discussion of the historical Harlequinade, Mr. Punch, and pantomime in general. The story is bizarrely romantic, the twist ending moderately interesting, the language poetic, and the art by John Bolton nothing short of stunning (some panels look almost like photographs of real people, somehow done in pastel). The only issue I had with this book was that it seemed too short: we only see tantalizing glimpses of even the main characters. Undoubtedly Gaiman intended it this way, but I still would not have minded a bit more. All in all a good read, and well worth the pricetag.
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