Here is volume two in the definitive three-volume graphic novel collection of the acclaimed cult classic and 2005 Eisner Award nominated series. Radiant City was built to be the dream city, a vast and beautiful metropolis, designed to fulfill the grandest aesthetic and architectural ideals. It now smolders in dilapidation, its citizens afflicted with all forms of madness, bizarre addictions and a surfeit of perversions. Stranded in the city is the mysterious Mister X. His past shrouded in mystery, he struggles to unlock the city's secrets even as he labors to protect his own.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
WHAT-- THE-- #V(* ??? (The Confusing Conclusion!),
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This review is from: Mister X (Volume 2) (Paperback)
I had to wait between 8 and 10 months after reading VOL.1 before VOL.2 came out, despite VOL.2 being advertised in the back of VOL.1. But it was worth the wait... I think! Having just re-read both volumes back-to-back, I must say, that's a MUCH better way to experience Dean Motter's mysterious "epic". There's a number of references in these later episode to things that went on before, but due to Seth's obscure art & storytelling and Dean Motter's EVEN MORE obscure writing (which gets more dense and impenetrable as it goes), it's hard to tell who's who, where we've seen them before, and what's going on-- and why. With all the great covers, posters & other art by Paul Rivoche sitting around, I wondered WHY someone picked this utterly BIZARRE Dave McKean thing for the cover of VOL.2. By the end of the book, I stopped wondering. It a twisted way, it was a perfect fit.Jeffrey Morgan, who wrote MISTER X Vol.2 (the 1989 comic-book series which followed the 14 original issues by Motter) wrote the intro to this book, an "intellectual" treatise that would fit in AMERICAN FILM INSTITUTE magazine. (Take that as you will!) Following this is "Heartsprings & Watchstops", a bizarre, surreal stand-alone episode by Neil Gaiman & Dave Mckean from the 1st issue of A-1 magazine, which came out after Motter's departure from MISTER X. Reportedly, there's a whole slew of these short episodes by different creators, and I'm not quite sure why this one (like the Bill Sienkiewicz episode last time) is included here. But that mystery's nothing compared to the bulk of the book. VOL.2 breaks down for the most part into 2 main sections. "THE SECRET" is a 3-parter (issues #7-9) which focuses on filthy-rich Whitney Welles & his family. He hires "X" as a private eye, but really seems to be setting him up for a fall. Halfway thru we discover he's mistaken "X" for his long-missing brother since the 1st issue of the comic, and only realizes his error when his REAL brother (who everyone assumed was dead) turns up. One more red herring in the growing mystery of "X"'s identity. But the madness really escalates in "NIGHTCLUBS & DAYDREAMS", the 5-parter (issues #10-14) that serves as Motter's finale on the series. This arc focuses on a pair of competing nightclubs and music acts they've booked, but that's just a backdrop for the book's main mystery. More and more complications pile up, and it'd be confusing as all get-out under normal circumstances. Unfortunately, as Motter describes in a text piece, his personal life was spiralling out of control at the time, resulting in each successive chapter being harder for anyone to understand. Seth's art follows right along, until HIS last episode (#13) which was done without Motter's "design". (Without explanation, I wonder if Motter, as writer,was laying out the pages of the book? Without him doing this on #13, Seth was on his own.) Motter then describes how the script for #14-- THE FINALE!!!-- was sub-par, and the art even more so. Tragic. However, readers of THIS book are in for a treat, as Motter took it upon himself, 17 YEARS after his departure, to RE-DO the 14th episode entirely on his own. As a result, the last chapter has a MUCH denser script, we're filled in on a TON of information as it progresses, and the growing confusion, complications and rampant insanity of the proceedings, at the very least, are comprehensible-- and in my view, a LOT prettier to look at! There was at least ONE revelation that made my jaw drop, and among the mysteries revealed was the fact that at least ONE death in VOL.1 never happened, except in one of the character's deluded hallucination. (SAY WHAT??!!) The ending is not entirely satisfatory... but, like episode 17 of THE PRISONER tv series, it makes you think-- it makes you wonder-- and it makes you wanna go back and RE-READ the whole thing again from the start. If only Motter-- or Paul Rivoche-- had illustrated the WHOLE THING from start to finish... Ah well! In a city of dreams, I guess I can dream, can't I?
0 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mister X,
By
This review is from: Mister X (Volume 2) (Paperback)
Mr. X is a fun futuristic comic. Not as cliche as Superman or X-men, and has some good ideas.
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