![]() ![]() It is startling in its suddenness and its other-worldliness (at least for superhero comics). ![]() You know from the beginning, as stated in the introduction by Rolling Stone writer Mikal Gilmore, that something is different: the villain captures the heroine and, instead of revealing his plans to her, he kills her. Gaiman’s treatment of the superhero genre is similar to Alan Moore’s (“Swamp Thing,” “Watchman”)–much grittier, much more introspective than the usual porcelain doll pip-ups engaging in the endless slugfest. It was a whim purchase, based solely on my good impression of Gaiman from Good Omens (co-written with Terry Pratchett) and his comic series, “Sandman.” Black Orchid is a comic, and unlike “Sandman,” it is set in the superhero-populated DC Universe (Batman, Swamp Thing, and the current inhabitants of the Arkham Asylum feature prominently in the story). I picked this up for three dollars at a remainder fair in Denver while I was there for Anaconism, and read it on the plane coming home. Black Orchid, Neil Gaiman and Dave McKean, DC Comics Vertigo, 1991, ISBN 0-93, $19.95 ![]()
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