Monday, April 6, 2009

Neil Gaiman's Eternals TPB

I know they are Neil Gaiman's Eternals because it says so in huge letters on the front of my TPB. I had heard lots of complaints about how slow this series was, but I didn't really find that. I think it read fine in the trade, and the slower issues never really seemed too bad because I could keep on trucking to the next chapter. This was never a full on action story anyway, this was a mystery or drama following just a handful of the Eternals. I was surprised to see Makkari used as the POV character, I would have expected Ikaris. Ikaris did end up with an important role, as he was by far the most super-heroic Eternal in the book. I was happy my favorite Eternal Ajak showed up, even if he didn't do too much. Sersi was kind of a fun character but I'm not sure I ever understood why her memories never came back when the other folks' did. I also found the Zuras/Sprite confrontation to be very moving. Gaiman and JRJR did a fantastic job handling that chilling sequence. I do dig how Iron Man is the MVP of the Marvel U now. He shows up in a few awesome scenes here, looking pretty damn effective, but of course coming off like an ass. I guess that is the ongoing take on the hero these days. I did like Gaiman writing a few Avengers like the Wasp and Yellowjacket too. Too bad that was Skrullojacket or it would be even cooler. Gaiman does a nice job of giving us a fairly complete story while setting up the Eternals in a very neat place in the Marvel U. We've got a handful that can show up in other stories, tons of potential for them to appear throughout the line, and even a good powerful new plotting villain in Druig. The Dreaming Celestial in Golden Gate park is a wonderful addition to the universe, and the scene of the tourists looking at him was perfect. In a wondrous world like the Marvel U, today's miracle is tomorrow's tourist attraction. Good thing we can count on the Eternals to Maintain. Preserve. Protect.

JRJR did some fantastic work here. His Eternal re-designs were the perfect blend of modern and Kirby. His Deviants looked monstrous and creepy, and his Celestials were a home run. I would love to see him drawing more stuff like this in the future.

Good

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