Vimanarama

Vimanarama 

By Grant Morrison & Philip Bond (Vertigo)
ISBN 1-84576-207-X

Grant Morrison’s latest modern fantasy – superbly aided and abetted by the brilliant Philip Bond – is set in and around an “open all hours” corner shop in Bradford. Ali is fretting because his arranged bride is due to arrive any moment. His future happiness is tied to a girl he has never met. He really hasn’t got time to worry about the hole that has opened up under the shop, or his brother Omar’s injuries from falling down it, or even that the baby has wandered into it and found a lost outpost of Atlantis.

He’s pretty impressed by the very capable Sophia, though. His intended wife had made her own way to the shop, and also went looking for the toddler. She was with Ali when the techno-demons who had been slumbering there escaped, intent on undoing creation, and she helped him awaken the godly Ultrahadeen. And she’s beautiful.

The problem is that the leader of these lordly heroes loves Sophia too, which might impinge on the whole saving humanity thing, as well as interfering with his now eagerly anticipated marriage. The god-like Ben Rama is really tall, really beautiful, and, let’s not forget, a god.

How the world is saved and Ali gets what he deserves proves to a gloriously exuberant romp, bright, colourful and very funny. I haven’t heard a cool media term to pigeon-hole this sort of cross culture comic with, and I’m not going to use any form of “Bollywood” derivative. You should just read this and make one up yourself. Or, if not that, you should just read this.

© 2005 Grant Morrison & Philip Bond. All Rights Reserved.