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My Amazon Book Reviews: Neil Gaiman & Alice Cooper: "The Last Temptation"

Temptation Kicks In
3 Out Of 5 Stars

Steven always seems to be a part of Alice Cooper's batch of alter-egos, and when the album "The Last Temptation" came out, Steven made it into the comic books. I actually had the first volume of the three books to come out when I bought the CD back in 1994. It was part of Marvel Comics' short lived Rock Star Comics, started when KISS hit it big with their series of books. On the other hand, Steven already had stories via Alice's albums "Welcome To My Nightmare," Goes To Hell" and a cameo on "Hey Stoopid." Given that the CD "The Last Temptation" may well be the best of his Epic label trilogy, the graphic novel seemed like an obvious move.

Neil Gaiman participated in shaping the concept of the album and book with Alice, and if you've heard the album, the resemblance to "Something Wicked This Way Comes" and "Faust" are obvious. The book, though, pushes Alice's bubblegum Grand Guignol into serious territory, with Cooper doppelganger "The Showman" luring Steven into a haunted theater where nightmares will keep you safe, if you're willing to trade The Showman fort something he wants. It's more creepy than scary, as the temptations include hot women, revenge on the bullies, and your parents becoming ghostly apparitions with Alice Eyes.

The art is nicely reproduced (nice job by Dark Horse Books) and I like the hardcover design. It's a lot of the parts it borrows from (they even drop a copy of "Something Wicked" on a book table without irony) and the odd drop of album lyrics. For Alice fans, it's definitely worth having, maybe 50/50 for graphic novel buffs.

     

My Amazon Book Reviews: Arvid Nelson "Rex Mundi Volume 1: The Gaurdian Of The Temple"

Who's the king of the whole wide world?
4 Out Of 5 Stars 

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.