In “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Century: 2009,” writer Alan Moore may be revealing what certain societal watchdog groups have espoused all along – Harry Potter is the Antichrist. Moore’s long-running series brings together characters from literature and pop culture and the newest volume, out now, brings the story to present day and serves up a few sacred cows, namely J.K. Rowling’s famous boy-wizard.

In the last LOEG volume, we saw — spoiler alert — the League disband in 1969 and leader Mina Murray stuffed away in a loony bin. In “2009,” the world’s slipped further into turmoil and, with no League to defend it, become prime real estate for the prophesized Antichrist to set up shop. Moore, along with artist Kevin O’Neill, has filled his infamous series with boatloads of references to other works of fiction in many media, but this new installment marks a unique time when he’ll have to be extra-careful to avoid copyright and trademark infringements. Don’t expect any mentions of “Harry” or “Potter.”

What you may expect is some topical references, most especially a certain war that opens up “2009,” set in the fictional Mid-East country of “Q’umar.” Moore has claimed that he doesn’t really keep up with modern pop culture, so it will be of great interest to see how this new book continues his fine and often acid-tongued skewering of cultural icons. Past chapters have mostly centered on Victorian and Edwardian references; the previous “1969” revealed how our eternal League heroes fit in with more psychedelic times.

The “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen” comics have grown increasingly dense since their 1998 inception, even to those readers who’ve followed right along with each new volume. It’s difficult to wholeheartedly recommend them to newbies, but if a prospective reader enjoys a good read that doesn’t involve superheroes, then this may be for them. If anything, they might even follow lines of sight back to their original literary and cultural foundations.

Tags: "Century: 2009", Alan Moore, Comics Rack, Jim Beard, Kevin O'Neill, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 28th, 2012 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Arts and Life, Comics, Comics Rack.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

You might have thought it impossible for writer Alan Moore to cram any more literary and pop culture references into his infamous “League of Extraordinary Gentlemen” comic series; his newest volume, “Century: 1969,” will prove you wrong. Literally crawling with late 1960s nods, cameos, walk-ons and full-blown appearances, the comic “takes you down” on an acid trip of debauchery, devilment and deep, deep British slang.

“Who would have ever guessed that a comic which started off as a simple and novel idea would slowly blossom into a fascinating character study of the effects of time and history on an immortal mind, as well as a rip-snorting commentary of the previous century through the eyes of its pop culture?” asked Monarch Card and Comics’ Ed Katschke. “‘Century’ focuses on three different time periods — 1910, 1969 and 2009. The second chapter of this mammoth undertaking continues the story started in the first chapter, but from nearly 60 years later. Mina Murray, Alan Quartermain, and the always mysterious Orlando have entered the swinging ’60s and are hot on the tail of an evil magician who just may be working toward the birth of a new antichrist and the end of the world. Their adventure takes us through the — literally — high times of ’60s Britain, complete with all of the obvious and buried pop culture references which make this such a fun read, but beneath the surface we are seeing the gradual disintegration of the Victorian society which made imperialistic Britain one of the largest and most powerful nations in the world.

“Moore’s cultural observations don’t stop with background references, but also lie in the terrible toll that immortality has begun to take on Mina Murray, who is at once gripped by a desire to stay true to the woman she was, but terribly afraid of becoming irrelevant in the face of changing times. Her struggle to balance her mortal existence with her immortal one is fascinating and made more so by her desperate struggle to save the world while dealing with it.”

Katschke’s also quick to observe that “League” isn’t for all readers; the book’s a virtual lexicon of nudity, sex, gutter language and subversive ideas — but it wouldn’t be the brainchild of Alan Moore without that. The writer’s no-holds-barred approach to the medium delivers a product unlike anything else on the stands, and “Century: 1969” is absolutely no exception.

Tags: 1960s, Alan Moore, Alan Quartermain, Century: 1969, Comics, Comics Rack, Jim Beard, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Mina Murray, Monarch Cards and Comics, Orlando

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 4th, 2011 at 2:54 pm and is filed under Comics, Star.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.