Unofficial Companion to the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
By Jess Nevins (Titan Books)
ISBN 1-84576-316-5
Although not a great fan of ‘companions’, or even annotated copies, I will concede that not every comics reader has a brain the size of a planet nor so little social intercourse that they have nothing better to do than accumulate arcane facts and trivia, and further admit that the sheer hard work poured into Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill’s wonderful steampunk masterpiece deserves to be remarked upon, if only to show all those annoying media rat-scrotes just what “added value†can mean.
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen concerns the heroic intervention of some of popular literature’s most outstanding characters in an adventure that threatens the British Empire (at the turn of the 20th century) and thus, the World, and is layered with references and motifs that extends throughout that literature and culture, and into our own. If a reader doesn’t pick up on a piece of shtick it makes no difference, but when we do it makes for many all-around “gosh-wow!†moments.
Why Jess Nevins appointed himself the task of sharing all this knowledge is unknown to me, but obviously many people share his desires and drives. The book is exhaustive and meticulous, and the text has been further annotated by Moore and O’Neill. If you need more depth or want to impress your partner, this is one way of doing it.
Just remember to read the original graphic novel. This isn’t like English Lit at school: Watching the film instead of reading the book is pointless and probably rather unpleasant.
© 2003 Jess Nevins. All Rights Reserved.
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen â„¢ & © 2006 Alan Moore & Kevin O’Neill.