Teo Degas' Books & Decks

This book has been in my must read for a while, mostly because of the high ratings, as I had never read anything by Gaiman. Unfortunately, after this one, I won't be buying anything else by Gaiman.

 The best thing about this graphic novel is the concept behind it, the time-travel alternative historical setting, and the fact that a bunch of known and loved super-heroes are put there. However, I struggled (even forced myself) to finish the book, because I got bored quite often, and annoyed at the pretentiousness of the whole story, the uninspired writing, and lack of tempo. I expected the ending to make up for the previous shortcomings, but alas, it was totally anti-climatic. The story has little action and is mostly a bunch of characters plotting for 200 pages; if you like plotting stories, this is your book! Some of the historical settings are clichéd and full of trite depictions of nations, as well. Most importantly, I could not empathise or sympathise with any of the self-absorbed stilted characters, totally anti-heroes, except for the sweet girl Virginia and for Roojzan, just because he's hot :)). In fact, I would had exterminated the whole bunch if I had super-hero powers myself. Let's be fair. The story was not bad at all, it is just that it was not good either.

 The artwork was good, though: rich atmospheric colours and chiaroscuros, wonderful landscapes and great face close-ups; I especially loved the images used at the start of each chapter, which are among my favourite in the book. The lettering was classic overall, with a few different fonts used when Thor or the the Germans speak.

That was my experience with this book. If yours is different and you really enjoyed it, good for you!