By Neil Gaiman & John Bolton (D H Comics)
ISBN: 1-84023-411-3
This pretty but slight romantic horror story features a modern spin on the Commedia dell’arte scenarios performed by the travelling players of Italy’s 15th century. If you’re interested in the details, the history of the art form – which can be traced back to ancient Greece, if not further – are readily researchable on the internet and in many, many books, but for our purposes the cast (archetypes for different characters, drives and philosophies) perform dramas of the most primal and human sort and resonance for the delectation of paying crowds, each in a highly proscribed and defined form. If you get this book there is a very useful Dummies guide by Gaiman at the back.
Possibly the most well known character today is Harlequin the clown (although Punch would come a close second if we still had Punch and Judy men) and this character opens our proceedings by telling we readers directly (in the accepted manner) that he is in love…
Missy is thoroughly modern lass, and her pursuit by the tricky, ruthless supernatural Harlequin makes for a clever exercise but is oddly lacking in passion for such a torrid subject. As ever John Bolton’s photo-realistic art is beautiful and technically brilliant, but it too seems devoid of any emotionalism. Is that perhaps the point? Am I missing something really obvious here?
I’m always happy to see any comic material that breaks out of the mould and these are two of the industry’s most high-profile creators. I’m just a little worried that this one isn’t as clever as it thinks, and after all, nobody likes a smart-ass or a show-off…
Harlequin Valentine™ © 2001 Neil Gaiman. Illustrations © 2001 John Bolton. All Rights Reserved.