Customer Reviews

Rex Mundi Volume 1: The Guardian Of The Temple (v. 1)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Rex Mundi is one of the best comic book series going today. A rich thriller in the mode of the Da Vinci code, yet set against a backdrop of an alternate history during 1930's Europe where the Catholic Church dominates the affairs in a battle with Muslim heretics for control of the world. It is within the shadowy world of secret sects, government plots, and religious conspiracies that Doctor Julien Sauniere (Sauniere was also the murdered curator in the Da Vinci code as well as an early 20th century French priest) is visited late one night by Father Marin, an old friend. He seeks Sauniere's help because an ancient scroll has been stolen from the Church's vaults...a scroll linked to the Merovingians, a royal bloodline of France, written in the 13th century. No one knows that the scroll has been stolen, except for a young prostitute befriended by the priest. The priest suspect sorcery was used to steal the scroll from the locked vault.

Soon after, both the priest and the prostitute are murdered and Sauniere finds himself under the gaze of the powerful catholic "police" the robbed and masked inquisition who want Sauniere to stop nosing around. Meanwhile, political intrigue is afoot as the sinister Duke of Lorraine is seeking to consolidate his power base to launch a modern day crusade at the advancing tide of Islam, and once again reclaim the Holy Land. Sauniere's former flame Dr. Tournon is now personal doctor to the Duke who sends her to see Sauniere to find out just what he knows about the recent theft of the scroll.

This thriller takes place through the bright streets and the dank catacombs of Paris. While some make look at it as a mere offspring of Dan Brown's mega-bestseller, writer Arvid Nelson has taken the story beyond mere religious thriller by mixing in the alternate history and making it a political thriller as well. There are several sides pulling at Sauniere including the church, Duke Lorraine, and a mysterious assassin in white. Nelson has effectively created a Da Vinci Code with a broader brush and loftier goals.

As rich as the story is, the art of Eric J. is ever richer...stunning even. Eric's work has a unique, cinematic quality to it. The angle of his panels are laid out with the keen eye of a movie director and you almost feel like you are watching a film rather than reading a graphic novel. You can almost feel the damp clamminess as Sauniere traverses Paris' underbelly. Equally notable is the colorist Jeromy Cox. Color is something you tend to overlook until you see something truly exceptional, and Cox is exceptional. Is blending of colors and textures is as important to the book as Nelson's story or Eric J's art. It perfectly complements the setting.

Rex Mundi is a true achievement in comics. If you haven't been reading this outstanding series, now is your chance to read it from the beginning. My highest recommendation!

Reviewed by Tim Janson

The story itself was fine, and it closely resembles Da Vinci Code, which they explain in the introduction.

The product itself fell apart after one reading. the pages are falling everywhere and the spine is entirely detached.... in about a week of having it. This was supposed to be new....So I'm not quite sure what happened.

I really enjoyed the art and the story, but the pages fell out as I turned them and whole sections levitated themselves from the spine. Re-gluing was only partially successful.

Arvid Nelson, Rex Mundi: The Guardian of the Temple (Image, 2004)

I made the mistake of getting the first book in this series while the library doesn't yet have the second. Oops.

Rex Mundi takes place in an alternate deux-la-guerres Europe, where magic flows freely with the oppression suffered by so many at the time. Julien Sauniere, a doctor suspected of suspicious activities by the Inquisition, gets entangled in the search for a stolen ancient scroll. This introductory volume gives us a few gruesome murder to put him on the trail, but it only the first step in his search. My only real complaint is that I wish they'd collected a few more issues before putting out this first installment in graphic novel form, but hey, what can you do? Hopefully I'll have the second in my hot little hands soon enough and will be able to continue with the story. *** ½

A friend of mine with a great comic store in SF (Hello, Whatever!) recommended Rex Mundi to me after we chatted about my love of older comics like Doc Savage and the earlier Batman stories. he certainly pegged me correctly, as Rex Mundi Vol 1 hooked me instantly. Writer Arvid Nelson concocted a search for the Holy Grail unlike one you've heard before, and artist Eric J created a rich and beautifully drawn alternate world.

In this world, France is the dominant power in Europe. In the USA, the Civil War ended in a draw, even if slave ships are not allowed in European Waters. Most importantly, Catholicism has an iron clad grip on how things are determines, and magic/sorcery has its own guild. The Inquisition is the highest law in the land, and their ruthless efficiency makes any sort of investigations difficult. In this world operates one Dr Julius Sauniere, a physician who seems to have taken the role of doctor to the downtrodden. When an old friend and priest tells Dr Sauniere that a mythical scroll that no-one short of the Pope knows about may have been stolen, and that a wicked form of sorcery may have been the culprit, the good Dr is drawn into the mystery.

Before you can say Indiana Jones, the Dr is being launched into a series of murders, political intrigue, and the very dangerous attention of the Inquisitor Guild. Dr Sauniere plays like a cross between Jones and The DaVinci Code (which, incidentally, was published after the first volume of Rex Mundi), with the added twist of the world operating in the 1930's but often reading like modern times. The story is similar to most of these kinds of religious mysteries, but the artwork is sublime. There's a lot of detail in every drawing, especially the historic features of Paris. I am now eager to start moving through the rest of the series.

One caveat that was very disappointing: the book's cover slipped from the spine on the first read. Poor quality manufacturing.

What a great comic! Unfortunately Darkhorse, the publisher, moved the printing of the book to China and my copy literally fell apart on the first reading. I was quite disappointed to have my reading enjoyment spoilt by such shoddy packaging. Contents: 5 Stars, hardware: 0 Stars.

If you took a giant black cauldron, heated up some water to a hard boil, threw in Vincent Price, Rod Serling, and Dan Brown, and added a dash of Alfred Hitchcock, you might only be scratching the surface of Rex Mundi. Made up of two volumes, Rex Mundi created by Arvid Nelson, Eric Johnson, and Jeremy Cox, follows the story of Dr. Julien Sauniere and the theft of a mysterious scroll from his friend, Father Gerard Marin. I know this is going to sound like a big leap here, but the theft of the scroll is but the first in a series of events that sends Sauniere on a quest for...The Holy Grail.

No, I'm not kidding, and yes, any mention of The Holy Grail immediately conjures up images of British knights frolicking through the countryside on imaginary horses; but Rex Mundi is far more than it seems, and every issue presents a gut-wrenching twist and turn that leaves you speechless. If I could sum up Rex Mundi into three words, they would be: details, DETAILS, DEETTTAAIILLLSSS. Everything from the art, to the color, to the ink, to the story, to the dialogue, is there anything I left out? Rex Mundi is BEAUTIFUL, and each element of the books serve to compliment the others.

The artistic details that make up each characters facial features, or physical gestures and mannerisms, outwardly depict a sense of emotional depth -- and emotional depth there is! Rex Mundi features an over-the-top plot, but manages to build its plot on top of very realistic dialogue, and very realistic characters. Perhaps the ghoulish looking monks are not "realistic" but their close-minded and blind commitment to the fundamentalism of their faith is something far too familiar in this day and age. Rex Mundi ties anchors to your feet and sinks you deeply into its setting by giving the reader an eye of what's going on, as if you are a participant in the events that unfold. There are even fictional newspaper inserts that make way for even more visceral experience.

The artistic direction of EricJ is truly unique -- each page presents something you would be hard-pressed to have seen before, especially when it comes to Rex Mundi`s color-depth. It could not function as a black-and-white comic; the dark red blood, the deep blacks, and the pale whites -- each provides a necessary element to the environment and personality of the series.

Rex Mundi, though sometimes overreaching, serves as far more than a fictionalized historical comic. It also serves as an apt social commentary on religious fundamentalism, political controversy, sexism, and modern-day anti-Semitism. Though the volumes differ greatly in artistic style, each volume contains its own aesthetic appeal. I prefer the Image Comics volume (volume one) because I found the Dark Horse volume to be a little bit...cartoonish? Either way, Rex Mundi is a must-have comic, and it will keep you enthralled from start to finish. I reccommend purchasing each issue if you can find them; though the collected volumes are great, I preferred reading each issue in an episodic fashion.
Check it out!

I ordered this book and one other Rex Mundi book of the set (for my niece's B-day present) and they both arrived in not "like new", but "new" condition. Extremely happy with this site. AS is my niece.

Pure Genius. I couldn't put it down. If you enjoy history & mysticism, this is certainly for you.

After each issue there are newspaper articles from the world of Rex Mundi that really immerse you in the story. Incredible.

The art is spectacular.

I can't rave enough about this.

Imagine if the Da Vinci was actually good. Then you get this. Set in an alternate world, where the Catholics still dominate, and the Inquisition are masked secret police, a doctor stumbles upon a conspiracy.

Magic, a scroll, murder, and more. The writing and art are all very good.