Customer Reviews

Promethea (Book 1)

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

After reading both "From Hell," where Alan Moore detailed in endnotes where he was getting his historical facts and speculations regarding Jack the Ripper, and the original story of "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," where he created a team of comic book superheroes out of some of the most famous literary creations of the late 19th century, it is easy to read Moore's prologue in Book 1 of "Promethea" and buy it hook, line, and sinker. Entitled "The Promethea Puzzle: An Adventure in Folklore," Moore explains how the character of Promethea has appeared in works from the epic sentimental fantasy "A Faerie Romance" by the New England poet Charlton Sennet to the comic books written by Steven Shelley. Next thing you know you are off doing a Google search to find out more about these "real" people and finding out that what you should have been thinking in reference to Moore's work is "The Watchmen" with its memorable group of faux super heroes.

Book 1 of "Promethea" collects the first six issues from America's Best Comics with the script by Moore, pencils by J. H. Williams III, inks by Mick Gray, and lettering by Todd Klein. The story begins with a prologue set in Alexandria, 411 A.D., in which a strange old man with mystical powers saves his daughter from a group of killer monks. We then jump ahead to a New York existing in the year 1999 that has cabs hovering without wheels, police in flying saucers, and a successful comic book about the "Weeping Gorilla." Here we meat Sohpie Bangs, who is writing a term paper and visits Barbara Shelley, the widow of the last guy to write the Promethea comic book. However, Sophie gets a big time brush off and the following advice from Barabara: "You don't wanna go looking for folklore. And you especially don't want folklore to come looking for you."

There is something of misdirection to this advice, not only because it is too late for Sophie, who is gong to become the new "host" for Promethea, but also because ultimately Moore is not really writing about folklore here but about the female super hero. In modern times that pretty much takes us back to the creation of Wonder Woman, but Promethea harkens back to ancient Greece and elements of Artemis, Athena, and Atalanta. However, in a similar way Moore is also dealing with the archetypal nature of comic books, which is where the folklore part really comes into play in his concept of the Immateria, a realm where stories are real. If you can believe in the power of Story, then it can transport you to the Immateria, as young Sophie finds out.

The first three stories deal with Sophie getting indoctrinated into the ways of Promethea, although there are always more questions than answers. Meanwhile the city's resident superheroes, the Five Sweel Guys, are dealing with their arch-enemy the Painted Doll. But in issue #4, "A Faerie Romance," Moore adds a great conceit to the mix, as the various incarnations of Promethea sit around in the Immateria discussing the newcomer. The idea of the archetype becomes reinforced, not by going back to the beginning, but rather by showing how each generation has had a Promethea it could call its own. This is where the series slips into the next gear and exhibits the most promise.

There is a Promethean movement, which is "dedicated to advancing human life through self-expression, augmented by authentic freedom, experimentality and individualism." Now, I am not really sure if looking at these comic books as valuing the liberated and realized person while opposing repression, orthodoxy, and collectivism is the way to go, but the important thing is that you need a foundation for approaching Moore's work. Fortunately Moore is always worth reading and you can get by the scholarly mysticism by just taking the story at face value. After all, Moore is just making this up as he goes along.

Alan Moore's America's Best Comics has spawned several wonderful titles (along with the middling Tomorrow Stories), but Promethea stands out. The art is outstanding, the color perfect, the lettering spot-on for the different speech types employed, and the writing entertaining while also waxing philosophical. Sympathetically drawn characters tie up the whole package in a beautiful ribbon.

Moore dares to tackle the very nature of creativity and comes away with much more than the Wonder Woman clone some were expecting. While exploring the world of fantasy, he examines through the changing face of comics (the tribute to Little Nemo is marvelous), sexuality, religion and pure wish fulfilment. Comics are still growing up, maybe, but this may be some of the most mature work from the man who brought us The Watchmen.

The plot: Promethea is an idea - the goddess myth that changes depending on who sees her and how. "If she didn't exist we would have to make her." Yes this plot is tenuous and mystic and intends to be deep. We follow the story of college student Sophie, who is doing a term paper on the Promethea character, who reemerges in literature, pulp fiction and comics. Strangely many of the people involved in creating the art that shows Promethea also claimed to have met her. Sophie soon finds an idea that can enter our world (or at least her world - a very technologically advanced 1999 in which cars fly through a world of neon billboards).

The plot and story here were surprisingly coherent. First of course Sophie meets Promethea and begins to understand how an idea can enter the realworld and become physically real. Interspersed are back stories on how Promethea originally came to be and on the artists she has touched in past manifestations.

The graphics: The artistic style is the normal comic booky style done very well. However the layouts are spectacular. Often there is a border surrounding the frames on a spread - and in that border part of the scene is taking place. Almost any spread of two pages hangs together as one coherent whole. Anyone interested in graphic design and comics should check this one out.

Overall Promethea was a good comic book. The graphics were spectacular. Even though the plot is a bit artsy and pretentious, by about half way through I was hooked. There is enough action and "good parts" to keep things flowing well.

The layouts are beautiful, the Weeping Gorilla idea is great and darkly funny, and Promethea is even somewhat interesting except that the long prose foreword is repeated graphically in the first issue or two. My biggest problem is that 12 bucks and 6 comics later not much has really happened - it's like reading the first 3 chapters of a 400 page novel. So if you're looking for any kind of closure - it's not here. I picture myself reading _Promethea Book 12_ two or three years from now saying, "She *finally* understands her destiny and her powers."

I would recommend waiting for a compiled version or at least waiting for book 3 to come out so you can feel like you read and finished a book rather than just sampled it.

Wow, this is a wild ride. If you are a long time reader of comic books like myself, this book is a dream come true. Veteran comics writer Alan Moore is at the top of his game with Promethea, weaving romantic, modern and post modern styles into a classic "reluctant heroine" storyline and along the way paying homage to a multitude of fiction writers (and artists). An entertaining read with great artwork as well. For those of you that have always dreamed that you too could be a superhero...read this book, and believe it again.

Forgive me for not going into more detail, as I don't want to accidentaly include spoilers.

Alan Moore is, and deserves to be, a highly regarded author of what we should still call comic books (other names seem largely a reflex action hide embarrassment - which makes me annoyed to see them referred to as "the graphic story medium" in this book). He has in more recent years created a line of comics under the imprint "America's Best Comics", of which Promethea is one of those titles. This volume reprints the first five issues of that comic.

'Promethea' is an attempt to render the female super hero in an archetypical form. This book has a strong mystical or spiritual theme, with the female lead cast in a pluralistic role: she is both Sophie Bangs, student, and Promethea, imagination personified. Our Promethea is not the first, there is a whole line of Prometheas stretching back to ancient Egypt, and we get to know some of the earlier ones in this book.

What's good: as Promethea, Sophie doesn't know all the answers although, it seems, Promethea does (sounds confusing? Sophie is Promethea, but Promethea isn't Sophie). Indeed, Sophie finds herself thrust in to a broad canvas full of elements that she doesn't know about or understand. The book allows for Sophie and Promethea to be intellectual, rather than just wiping the enemies off the face of the Earth (and the Immateria) with her caduceus - even where she does that, it is thought through.

What's not so good: I gave it 5 stars, so not much. My main complaint is that it finishes at an inopportune moment. Sophie is learning about the four weapons she has, and learns about two and then it stops. The comic book has continued, so the rest will be in volume 2, but it still a bit inconsiderate.

Lots of thumbs up, and also check out Alan Moore's male archetype in 'Tom Strong'.

Sorry, just had to say that to the review below. SUPERHEROES and pseudo-mysticism. You're dismissing the fact that many, many comics have nothing to do with spandex.

Promethea is an incredible story. No, it's not for everyone, yet it's one of the deepest, most complex stories that Moore has ever created.

The most recent issue was AMAZING. It's all about to wrap up, and like all of Moore's larger works, everything has a point. He's been building to this incredible finale.

The artwork is just gorgeous as hell, too. One of the most ambitious talents in the industry. I'm so surprised at how well he changes his style to mimic other styles depending on what's happening in the script. His covers are the best, too.

I can't possibly give this series enough praise. Quite simply it is an easy to read primer on modern Hermetic magick in the form of top rate sequential art. Whenever I meet someone not familiar with ceremonial magick, the occult or the Kabbalah I recommend Promethea. This isn't just a pretty book that portrays magick's philosophy with great insight and a surprising level of subtlety, it really uses the medium itself to its own advantage. The scene with the pair of Promethea's walking around the moebius strip in volume 2 (I'm almost sure it's there) was awesome enough but the scene with them on the sphere in the sephiroth Tihareth (also in volume 2) blew my mind. It portrays a conversation that isn't just circular, it makes sense no matter where in the circle you decide to start reading and it makes sense whether you decide to read it clockwise or counter clockwise (I know it's hard to understand but when you see it you will see why I had so much difficulty explaining it). These as well as dozens of other examples of storytelling mastery all support the aspect of magick being explored in the specific instance by enhancing the mood or suggesting something that would be almost impossible to portray in a classical literary format. In addition to this, it almost hits that level of genius that suggests the creation of a modern myth is a real possibility.

For those who gave this a bad review I should point out that it wasn't Allan's purpose to write a simple super hero book but to portray a part of his life that he finds extremely interesting and worth portraying in a format that is much too often derided for it's lack of substance. This book shows that the medium of sequential art is much more flexible than most give it credit for and can be used to bring the more abstract aspects of philosophy to life in a way that isn't possible otherwise. basically what I'm saying is that telling people this book isn't good because it wasn't what you expected is like saying the Fillet Mignon you ate was bad because you thought you were ordering meat loaf.

In short, if you are looking for a book that is little more than a fun no brainer, why are you looking at an Allen Moore book in the first place? By the way this isn't a no brainer. If on the other hand you are looking for a unique work of sequential art that combines deep philosophical insight with a pop art expression and not just a small bit of occult history added to the mix you would be hard pressed to find a better example.

There is nothing like this series in all of comics. I half seriously want to track down all the original issues in this series, pull out the staples and bind it in leather in a medieval style just to give it the respect it is due (no I'm not kidding, it is really that good).

First, I own every GN/collection from Moore. When he's on, he's the best story-teller, period. And this book held so much promise--an interesting idea, unique setting combining science and the fantistical, and intriguing support characters. All told, I'm forced to characterize it as a slippery slope, however, because the series just gets more and more abstract and unappealing.

An "action" comic this is not. Moore is a phenomenal writer--one of only a few that superbly combines heroics/action and complex myth-building. In this case, though, too much emphasis is on myth-building and not enough on storyline. The series ulitmately morphs into an surreal expose on tantric sex (Promoethia and a magical old man), the Tarrot, black magic, and the afterlife. It just gets too surreal (it's like reading Ursula LeGuin when you are accustomed to Tolkien). There are some interesting ideas, but all told, it just goes on and on, and on. This book is 4 stars--I'd buy it again--but then quit while I'm ahead. Unfortunately, I bought all 5 at the same time. First time I've ever felt I made a mistake on a Moore collection.

Alan Moore teams up with J.H. Williams III and Mick Gray to create this graphic novel series. The story is set in a modern-day, yet futuristic, New York, where a coed gets more than she bargains for when she researches a literary heroine. While Moore stays on his A game for this one, Williams' colorful, psychedelic art makes every page stand on its own. It seems that once again, Moore combines a weird premise with an alluring style and fantastic illustrations. Volume I features a two-page written excerpt of the history of the Promethea phenomenon.

This comic is unrated: Graphic Violence, Adult Language, Adult Situations