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Underground > Comic Books >

League of Extraordinary Gentlemen #5

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22:29 / 06.06.03

Uh, yeah. I was testing you. HEh heh.

Anyway. Back to LoEG.

23:43 / 06.06.03

Anyone know when #6 appears?

13:17 / 10.06.03

#6 is due out on July 9th, the same week that the movie debuts here in the States.

Incidentally, my book on the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is on sale now:

http://www.monkeybrainbooks.com/Heroes_and_Monsters.html

14:40 / 10.06.03

Hi Jess! Don't know if you noticed, but I praised your book a few messages above. I wasn't going to buy it first, having hungrily devoured your annotations online and thinking 'I read them already, why would I buy them?', but then I was tempted with a) the interviews with Moore and O'Neill, b) having all the notes in a nice completed volume for future reference and c) the clearly enlightening education I would receive in Victorian culture and fiction if I purchased and read the book.

Oh, and the cover and production quality of the book were great, too. So congrats! I hope you make a lot of money off it!

Moore's introduction is just terrific. The repeated references to you as some sort of mutant brain hooked up to a liquid information tank were hysterical, and it was also very cool to read about how your notes led to Moore and O'Neill digging even further into the obscure references as they created the second half of Vol. I and all of Vol. II since they knew they now had an audience who was 'getting it' and would make all things clear to their readers & fans. How terrific to know you actually influenced Alan Moore's writing and creation of one of the best series to come out in years!! Congrats again. Pleasure to see you here on Barbelith again.

17:28 / 10.06.03

No, I know! The only thing that can stop Tripods are BBC producers who let them peter out after a promising start. Either that or it'll be a floppy fringed French exchange student...

19:00 / 12.06.03

Well, I just finished reading WotW and the unnamed narrator doesn't attribute the deaths of the martians to "the common cold". What it actually is is that there are no bacteria at all on Mars and that the viruses which effect the decomposition of the dead are the ones responsible for rotting down the Martians from within.

Bit nastier than the common cold, neh?

Anywho, if the WotW narrator has been decieved (and remember he's only telling us what "the official story" said after the fact, all he really knows is that he found a bunch of dead Martians huddled in Hyde Park after being torn apart by packs of dogs) then it seems as if anything's up for grabs really. Could be intelligent viruses, or intelligent dogs... who knows?

Oh, and I found the scenes with Moreau's mutants heartbreaking, particularly the bit where the tiger's trying to get a drink of water and Rupert gets all mad and starts cuffing him. Actually got a bit of a lump in the old throat there.

Sad. But true.

20:26 / 23.06.03

from Rich Johnston's comics gossip column "Lying in the Gutters" at www.comicbookresources.com:

>> During an interview with the Sunday Herald newspaper, Alan Moore mentioned to the journalist that all of "League" 2 had now been written and that volume 3 will give more details of Mina's history with Dracula. Since ABC is shutting down, yet "League" is planned to continue, Moore has told DC that at the first sign of trouble, he'll take the book elsewhere - and would have no difficulty finding a new publisher.

>> This might be why the soft-core sex scene between Quartermain and Murray went through so easily without a Mature Readers label. Looks like there'll be no more pulped issues or refused stories if DC want to hang on to this one.

You GO, Alan!! What with the Bill Jemas-telling-Grant-Morrison-what-to-write story, it's nice to see a comic creator with the power to say "take my story as is or I'm walkin'!"

And the thought of Moore writing more about Mina & Dracula makes me totally drool.....

20:50 / 23.06.03

By the way, King Kong is already in the League world -- Skull Island is mentioned in the end material/almanac for one of the previous issues (as being off the coast of Africa, I think).

He's definitely not a Moreau beastie in that entry.

I finally got this issue last Friday. I didn't grow up with Rupert, but could kinda tell he was somebody, sort of. I think the tattered costumes made that sequence for me - like they were feral, but trying to be civilized.

17:34 / 29.06.03

Couple of things occured to me, this after reading the "Alan and the Sundered Veil" backup feature in Vol. I (which i've only read for the first time just recently).

Potential spoilers follow (but Moore himself tipped his hand to these)

1. Hyde doesn't make it out of Volume II. There's a reference to a bestial figure fighting Martian tripods on a bridge. Then again, this could be one of Moreau's monstrosities, and not Hyde, but who knows.

2. Volume 3 treads more Lovecraftian territory with the soul of Ms. Murray as the prize. I'm looking forward to this.

As to the violence and horror of Mr. Hyde this issue, i think that it was handled expertly. It isn't supposed to be pretty or fun. And i think it's a brilliant play on bloodthirsty revenge plots in general. Yeah, we wanted to see Griffin get his in the end, but not to see him Get His In The End, if you know what i mean.

I didn't grow up with some of the anthropomorphic animal characters that folks in the UK/commonwealth did, so they weren't as much as a slap in the face to me. I can understand how they might be seen that way, or as overreaching.

Personally, i don't think that it's going to be a super-germ that does the Martians in. That said, i don't know what will. Looking forward to the next issue.

The Absolute edition is quite wonderful, by the way. Oversized reproduction and the scripts? Well worth it, in my book.

-Matt

yawn - thing's buddy

18:25 / 29.06.03

hunterwolf - yeah, woo, alan! go for it etc.

but Morrison couldn't exactly take Marvel Boy 2 to another publisher could he now chap?

18:37 / 18.07.03

Two different sources give two different time frames but nevertheless....*three-eyed alien 'ooooooo' from Toy Story*

League of Extraordinary Gentlemen vol. 3 is a go. Set in 1910, the next storyline will feature Mina Harker heavily, while the remainder of the original team will go to the wayside. The new volume will go back in time to an earlier League, and may, according to artist Kevin O’Neil, travel forward to the 1950’s. O’Neil said the new series will be “sexier” and more daring, citing that Lana? is full of “wonderful, bizarre ideas.”

Hesitant to say any schedule, O’Neil said that League 3 will begin after both he and Moore take a short break.

And then there's this one from Comics Continuum: Artist Kevin O'Neill confirmed that he will re-team with Alan Moore for a third volume and even provided an illustration that is shown here.

According to O'Neill, the third volume will jump to the year 1920 and will feature new League members, although Mina will still be around.

And teasing art too.

21:41 / 18.07.03

D R OOOOOOOO L...

I take it that fellow is , ahem... Alan Quarterman the Second

21:50 / 18.07.03

Yep. I'm just wondering who the mysterious folks in the mirror are.

*can't wait to see Moore's James Moriarty/Dean Moriarty fun*

The Natural Way

10:10 / 30.07.03

Maxwell, having recently read the Almanac stuff and the Sundered Veil stuff, it seems pretty obvious that Hyde's rucking the Tripods, and that he'll meet his maker in Hyde Park (named in his honour).

And you got there before I did with the whole Lovecraft thing. I haven't read any spoilers like yoooo lot, but everything points in that direction:

- MI5, we are told, are becoming increasingly ineterested in other dimensions.

- Marrissa's peeps believe that once they've caught its scent, the Great Old Ones'll pursue their quarry for the rest of its days (hello, Allan!). I LOVE that idea: "the gate is soft" and all that.... As thought the hapless victim, once they've glimpsed the other world, becomes a portal to it.

- Allan and Mina bump into some fun Lloigor buddies in the Witch House with good old Randolph.... They're getting CLOSER!

Can't help wondering who or what the Molluscs worship....

Jeez! I'm kicking myself - I didn't realise John-on-Mars was the same chap Al met in the Taduki trance.... Stupid!

One more thing: used to read the Ultimates for cinema action. Balls! O Neill pulls it off far better. So much cooler!

The Photographer in Blowup

12:05 / 30.07.03

Lovecraft's Elder Gods are next for The League?

Oh God, make it so...

Will Moore make a connection between Chtullu and The House On The Borderland?

12:36 / 30.07.03

This is going to be awesome. Cannot wait for #6, and then series 3.

Was discussing future Leagues with Knight's Move, and we came up with (for a 1910-20) group something along the lines of Raffles, Bulldog Drummond, Richard Hannay, Biggles, and maybe a very young Simon Templar. There's so much fun you can have with this...

09:30 / 01.08.03

Um, at the risk of saying something which has already been pointed out, wasn’t the first reference to Allan the second (in the almanac-thingy) connected with some hunt for the Fountain of Youth ? I was thinking that it was just the rejuvenated version of him… “Big Allan, Little Allan”, as it were.

The Natural Way

11:59 / 01.08.03

That definitely HAS been pointed out, but I can't be bothered to hunt it down and tell you exactly where. Pretty obvious, really.

I still don't understand the virus doubters. For a start, it's WOTW friendly, and, well, an intelligent virus colony organism is so much more interesting than a giant manpig. I mean, really, do you expect Alan to resort to something as unimaginative as that?

Honestly. I don't know.....

finger n' thump

20:15 / 09.08.03

yes, but if so I'd like Moore to apply a twist, as without one we already know the outcome.

00:28 / 10.08.03

OK, so ish 6 should by all rights be out by now. However, we have a duty to second-guess Moreau's creation. Given that so far ALL of his creations are from Kids' comics/books, can we try hard to work out who it is?
I'd reckon most of those that Grant used in Zenith are out, but how about Lord Snooty or (gasp! got it!) Biffo the Bear, or Big Eggo? Let rip, people...

09:13 / 10.08.03

but if so I'd like Moore to apply a twist

Well, the idea that it's designed by Doctor Moreau is a pretty big twist in itself.

The fact that the virus hypothesis is WOTW friendly is by far the biggest argument in its favour. Alan Moore started the League, at least in part, because he was inspired by 19th century fantasy fiction. I don't expect him to fuck with his inspiration any more than he needs to - I do expect him to add other dimensions, however.

09:13 / 10.08.03

moore tends to stay very close to his source texts. why invent when you can tweak - remember the death of sherlock holmes in vol1 issue 6? its portrayed as it happened in the story - even down to kev o'neil recreating the original illustrations.

The Natural Way

12:54 / 10.08.03

Exactly: (not so) subtle tweaking all the way.

There is another argument in our favour, actually: a big monster would detract from Hyde's moment as the big monster. The *muscle* next ish will be our favourite hulkalike. We only need one big, hairy ape-guy battling the tripods.

The Natural Way

15:40 / 10.08.03

And I really like the idea that Moreau is the first scientist to experiment with germ warfare. The victorians were terrified of fighter planes. This is far worse, and good, secret govt shit.

The Natural Way

15:42 / 10.08.03

Anyway, thump, it's not the outcome that's important - it's the journey.

finger n' thump

21:10 / 10.08.03

true.
I agree that moore will use flu.
and what a journey, pig.
that last issue (5) lasted for ages, although dialogue was sparse. Moore does something strange these days with rhythm.
you really step into another world with the league.
i have just read 'for the man who has everything.'
moore is peerless. fact.
gibbons is perhaps the finest sci-fi atist in comics; his futures, so convincing.......
O'Neil?
Britain's foremost illustrator.

anyway

think clean thoughts, chum.

19:38 / 19.08.03

Well they've announced when League Vol. 2 collected will be coming out (Nov. 19th) but I wanna know when the last issue is due to hit stands.

19:44 / 19.08.03

I think I heard something like the 4th week in August? It can't be this week, can it?

20:01 / 19.08.03

#6 is now not due out until September 17th, 2003

21:01 / 19.08.03

yeah but i'm now re-reading LoEG vol 1 again and enjoying the experience all over again (as opposed to during the first volume's original run where i read the first few issues disproportionately to the rest.)

Bastard Shit Man

22:37 / 31.08.03

From John Carey's review, in The Sunday Times, 31/8/03, of "The Life and Works of Alfred Bestall: Illustrator of Rupert Bear" by Caroline G Bott:

"When friends asked [Bestall] if he regretted not having children, he said he felt he had thousands.

"Rupert was one of them. He is clearly a human boy, with human hands and feet and a bear's head, rather like Pooh and Christopher Robin catastrophically joined. In real life he would be a monster. His anatomy caused Bestall some heart-searching. Children wrote in requesting stories in which Rupert would go swimming. But this would have meant deciding whether his body was furry or not, and Bestall shrank from the implications. So Rupert never sheds his red jumper and check trousers, though he discards his scarf for two months each summer."

20:03 / 03.09.03

Aww.

For some reason, I found that remarkably touching.

Must be this damn flu. Yes, the flu is what it is...

00:57 / 04.09.03

um, that rupert the bear thing is really creepy. he couldn't work out if his bear-person was all furry, or was bodynaked like a clipped poodle? though both options have an "appeal", my hatred of poodles makes me lean toward the former.

m.

06:16 / 04.09.03

Hmm.

You know, I read it again, and it IS a wee bit creepy.

Damn flu. I'll probably find it touching again in five minutes.

13:32 / 04.09.03

God, WHEN oh when will this come out already??? I know, I know, Sept. 17, but that seems like an eternity after all the months we've waited. I'm sure it'll still be great when it comes out, though.

Speaking of long-delayed final issues, there's an article on www.comicbookresources.com about the final MINISTRY OF SPACE by Warren Ellis and Chris Weston - I truly laughed out loud when I saw the article and art - I'd totally forgotten about that book!!

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