An Ordinary League in a More Ordinary Century

There's been a lot of press coverage about some of the plot content of League of Extraordinary Gentleman - Century: 2009. You can Google it if you want to get spoilers; I won't provide those here.

I really wasn't sure that I wanted to continue reading this book - 1969 was, for me, a total mess. Granted, it was the middle of a trilogy, but there was a lack of cohesion to the story, and the references seemed relatively obligatory, giving the book a slightly off-kilter feel. But I did want to see how Moore and O'Neill would handle a "modern day" League, and 2009 answers those questions.

However, sad to say, despite what you read elsewhere, Century: 2009 is a crashing disappointment, seeming more like the writings of an author with an axe to grind than the ending of a solid tale.

Yes, I understand what Alan Moore was trying to accomplish, focusing on how commercialism and spectacle has overtaken storytelling, and how our modern culture may be all the lesser for it. Volumes One and Two were able to accomplish this by creating an entire world based on fictions, and what helped was the lack of familiarity mixed in with archetypes. Even Black Dossier served as more of a guide than a story, and its ability to mix genres helped make it engaging.

But Century: 2009 is a total disappointment - much like 1969, there's a sense of obviousness about the references. There's a near-absurdity about the fact that when the Big Bad is revealed - and the Big Bad's subsequent actions - it seems less about Moore making a grand statement and more about being the literary equivalent of the old man yelling, "Hey, you kids, get off of my lawn."

Moore's defenders will chime and say that he's making an important point about the need for strong fiction, for the power of stories....and given that this is coming out in the context of Before Watchmen, it might seem understandable that Moore has strong feelings. But in all honesty, this felt less like a story and more like a Family Guy-style parody of Alan Moore.

(And I would like to apologize to the Family Guy fans reading this review. Although I'm not a fan of the show, at least it's honest in its efforts to have an effect, and uses pop culture references as a kind of shorthand. Century: 2009 uses references as a way to say, "We know more than you do.")

All in all, Century started promisingly in 1910, and degenerated into a total and complete mess. This book isn't even worth acquiring through illicit means.

My advice - pick up the trades of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Volume One, Volume Two, and The Black Dossier. All three are great stories in their own right, and will lead you to exploring tons of great literature.

All Century: 2009 will do is leave a poor taste in your mouth.

You're No One in This Town: The Ballad of Alan and Declan

With the recent announcement of the Before Watchmen prequel series, Alan Moore has had plenty to say about the project....including that if people purchase the prequel series from DC, they should quit reading his other works immediately.

Of course, this is a gross simplification - after all, Moore is attempting to make a serious stand for creator's rights, and in all honesty, he did make a bad deal. (Yes, it is tempting to scold him for being "naive" back then, but who's to blame - Moore, for his naivete, or DC/Warner for exploiting that?). But there's something a little bit more pernicious at work, and quite honestly, it reminded me of a similar situation which, if the memory isn't cheating, happened about the same time....

(Actually, the memory was cheating - according to Google, the following happened in November/December 2011).

When Universal Music was about to release a mega-volume live/DVD set of his Sensational Spinning Songbook, Elvis Costello took the radical view that people shouldn't buy it, but purchase a Louis Armstrong boxed set instead.

Via wilbyington on Flickr

Why am I mentioning these two gentlemen, you may ask? I do so because behind their seemingly fight-the-power stance, there's an incredible amount of hypocrisy and - dare I say it - ego behind it.

Costello has been committing the more egregious errors of the two - after all, his back catalogue has been rereleased on CD multiple times for multiple companies (starting with the vanilla Columbia releases, followed by Rykodisc, then Rhino Records, and now Universal). Although his stunt seems cute, it does beg the question - does a man who continually rehashes his past catalogue, often adding "bonus tracks" (sometimes different across releases), really want people to acquire his work "by any other means"? Or is it more of a case of shrewdly creating a negotiating point for a later transaction.

With Moore, his heart seems in the right place, but his manner suggests that although he may believe he is fighting for overall creator rights, he is acting out of a sense of personal hurt. Given his frosty relationship with many of his co-collaborators, his more erratic recent work (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Century - 1968 seemed less like a story and more a game of spot-the-reference), and his assumption that adaptation into other medium somehow changes the very nature of his books make his arguments less valid.

(And my position, for the record - Before Watchmen may be a good business decision for DC, it is an incredibly poor creative move. No one cares about these characters before Moore's novel - there's no need to discuss a sane Rorschach, or a slim Nite-Owl. Exploring the world of the Minutemen may be interesting, but this is more of a desperation move on DC's part than anything else).

Ultimately, in either case, the person who truly lacks the benefit is the fan - the person stuck in the middle, often having to choose between enjoying an artist's work despite the artist's wishes or avoiding something that may prove to be an exemplary experience.

Costello once wrote that "You're nobody 'til everybody in this town/Thinks you're a bastard". And both Costello and Moore seem to be moving in that direction.

Does Alan Moore Know the Score?

I've been wanting to blog about League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier for awhile now...but in all honesty, I've not had a chance to do so, but since League of Extraordinary Gentlemen - Volume 3: Century - 1910 just came out (what a mouthful!), I thought it might be cool to look at both works at the same time, just to be able to draw same parallels, but to see how both books "work" in the current LOEG universe.

Of the two, Black Dossier is, quite easily, my favorite, because it doesn't quite stick the formula. Many have "complained" about the assorted text pieces, mixed media, and other diversions...but I see it in quite another way - it's Alan Moore having some fun. Of course, his idea of "fun" is a Cthulu/Jeeves & Wooster crossover, but that's what makes it a really unique read. However, Black Dossier does more than that - it really creates an entire world out of whole cloth, taking the whole of British (and some American) pop culture and creating a unique tapestry out of it. The story is relatively simple - Mina Harker and Allan Quartermaine steal a valuable book and attempt to get away - but the pleasure is in the details, with references ranging from...well, television and movie buffs will probably get these a lot more, but Black Dossier is more of a background piece. It gives a history of the league, shows us somewhat where they've been...and possible directions for the League...

...and Century: 1910 is...well, it seems almost like Moore-by-numbers. I understand Moore's love of The Threepenny Opera, but he used it to better effect (in my opinion) in Watchmen. Here, I liked the whole idea of an occult-created "moonchild", and there were some clever insertions, but on the whole, for some reason, this volume felt a little forced in writing. It may just be that, because Moore is using a slightly different cast, it doesn't seem to have "jelled" - and maybe Black Dossier "spoiled" the series somewhat, but there wasn't much to this first volume. Although Moore may intend for each volume to be a stand-alone edition, Century: 1910 feels more like set-up than a full story.

There's also something else that bothers me - and I must admit, it's come after reading this particular blog article. But the whole issue of a female character being 'developed' through sexual assault is slightly...well, it's off-putting. Moore's not the only person who does it - and quite frankly, I can't say he does it so frequently as to be a major trope of his writing, but it seems slightly lazy and ineffective. I won't say rape is off-limits in fiction...but it should mean something, not just as a way to get from plot point A to plot point B.

Given the length of time between volumes (the next Century won't be out until next year), I don't know if I can honestly recommend Century, but the Black Dossier? One of the best comics I've read.

And I'll stand behind that statement.

Your Ides of March Present

Alan Moore - Simpsons
Originally uploaded by Gordon D

You know, everyone's railing on tomorrow being Palm Sunday, and Monday being St. Patrick's Day...but nobody really celebrates the Ides of March anymore.

So, in that spirit, I'm presenting the blogosphere with a gift - a series of interviews with Alan Moore originally presented on BBC's Comics Britannia series. (I've featured at least another BBC entry on the blog). They're actually pretty cool - and rather than embed them, I'll provide direct links. That way, you can watch at your leisure...and learn a little something about it as well.

Plus, as a bonus, Alan Moore sings! (Kind of).

V For Vendetta

Watchmen (with Rorschach scary voice!)

League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

Lost Girls

Alan Moore Sings! - Bonus Video

Reason to Be Cheerful # 4808

If Wil Wheaton says this will happen, it must be true.

(There just better be Daleks. Or Cybermen. Or really smart female secret agents who know kung fu).