What is it with Gaiman?

[Art]

Sounds like it.

[LARF]

go for it!

(NOT WORK SAFE)

Link: http://www.peacockblue.com/fantasystories_toc.html" target="_blank">erotic fairytales

[Devons Daddy]

he is one of the greatest comic book writers of this generation. somehow he fell through the clutches 2000ad, which seems to have employed the rest of the greats whom hail from the UK.

i have a complete collection of the sandman. i have to say. its OUTSTANDING, i was at a talk and book signing of his this year. he was very good.

there are  moments in the sandman, which take your breath away. the dolls house with the serail killers convention, one guy in a black hat with little ears, telling another how he works in a place where they hush up what he does,
i had just returned from Disney land when i read it. it sent a chill down my spine.
GAIMAN, brillant writer, enjoyable public speaker, go to the nearest library and try him.

hes ace.

[Cordite]

Tori Amos' introduction to Neil Gaiman's wankfest, Death: the High Cost of Living, makes me want to puke.   It contains lines like this:

"We're in the middle of nowhere in the desert and my being wants to go crawl under a cactus and wish it away.  Instead, I dyed my hair and she visited me and I started to accept the mess I'm in.   I know that mess spelt backwards is ssem and I felt much better armed with that information."

And gems like this: "When you're on your knees you're closer to the ground."  
 
And this: "Then Death couldn't come and say Peachy to me any more."
 

It is an apposite introduction, however, as it quite accurately represents everything I hate about approximately 35% of Neil Gaiman's writing.

Some good stuff though, of course, and his novel, American Gods, is a great read.

[JOE SOAP]

His Miracleman stories were the most boring & pretentious stuff I've ever read. All words and no action.

This is probably what Norman Mailer meant about comics for intellectuals, more words than pictures. No thanks.

[Jim_Campbell]

"This is probably what Norman Mailer meant about comics for intellectuals, more words than pictures. No thanks."

In all honesty, my rage against the Gaiman phenomenon was probably precisely that: more against the hype than the work itself.

The work itself was occasionally inspired, but more often than not, as I said, a bit dull and blindingly obviously robbed from other sources if your reading list included anything more than comics.

Sandman was full of nudge-nudge-wink-wink references to stuff outside the comic medium to prove how clever Neil was.

Two examples, from the insufferably tedious Season of Mists, that were pretty much what stopped me reading the book:

(From memory, but the gist is accurate!)

Lucifer: "Better to reign in Hell than to serve in Heaven."

Minion: "Whatever you say, master."

Lucifer: "I didn't say that. Milton did. And he was blind"

Oh, fuck off, Neil. I can spot a quote from Milton without you pointing it out, and I don't need a handy biographical detail just to prove how fucking clever you are thankyouverymuch.

Or:

Breschau: "I am Breschau of Livonia ... blah, blah, blah"

Lucifer (I think): "I doubt one living mortal in 100,000 could point to where Livonia used to be on the map ..."

Yeah, but you can, Neil, eh? What a clever fucking chap you are!

Sorry ... but Sandman was an enormous pile of tedious ego-wank lauded as capital-L Literature largely by people who didn't know what literature was.

And the 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' issue winning a Hugo for best short story? For fuck's sake, half of it is directly taken from one of Shakespeare's finest plays!

Roughly comtemporary with this was Grant Morrison producing some of his finest work, without the up-his-own-smart-arsery and with a sense of fun, some genuine excitement and a modicum of real wit.

Honestly, go get some TPBs of Animal Man (the Coyote Gospel in the first one is fantastic), or Doom Patrol. The Kid Eternity mini illustrated by Duncan Fegredo is great, and one of the rare examples of Morrison being given a decent artist during this period. See also, Kill Your Boyfriend.

I'm fighting with Grant Morrison block! Who you fighting with?

Cheers

Jim

[Rob Spalding]

I got Kid Eternity recentl, and after 2 reads of it, I'm still flummoxed.  Can't work out the timings on a lot of events.  Is he doing stuff during the car crash, after, before and then the car crashes?

At least I could make sense of Sandman, which I plan to read again.

Also, American Gods is a rollicking good read, with a couple of too slow chapters in the middle.

[House of Usher]

"the insufferably tedious Season of Mists" - Hunh? That was the best Sandman story-arc!

Breschau: "I am Breschau of Livonia ... blah, blah, blah" Lucifer (I think): "I doubt one living mortal in 100,000 could point to where Livonia used to be on the map ..."

It's quite a funny line though, if we're being charitable - Breschau thinking he's something special, when who he was is lost in the annals of history. Isn't that the point, rather than Neil Gaiman showing off?

"lauded as capital-L Literature largely by people who didn't know what literature was."

That was my biggest problem with Sandman. I still enjoyed it loads though, when it wasn't exceedingly boring.

[Jared Katooie]

Why not get Lucifer instead.

Vol. 1 was good. Vol. 2 looks like it might be good too. It's all good!

Gotta second the recommendation for Morissons Animal Man. Great stuff. I didn't buy it cause, y'know, I didn't have any money but I did read it. And it's good...

[Radbacker]

well I wasn't able to get through the first Sandman GN when I got hold of it recently it just seemed to put me to sleep(which I suppose is what The Sandman does so its a success that way), wouldn't mind trying to get hold of American Gods s I like the idea behind it.
Another Vote for Animal Man by Morrison although it does turn a bit ummmm Wanky in the last part or so.

CU Radbacker

[Art]

Yeah, but you can, Neil, eh? What a clever fucking chap you are!

Hmm, missing the point by several miles are we?

[Satanist]

I gotta say Doom Patrol was astoundingly good. I read Morrisons whole run about once every couple of years.

erm

Gaiman, he's a bit pretentious eh?

[Jim_Campbell]

"Hmm, missing the point by several miles are we?"

Stick it up your arse, you condescending twat.

Yes, in isolation one can read that exchange as HoU described upthread, but for me it was just one more in a long line of examples of Gaiman's look-at-me-aren't-I-clever posturing.

And it really, really got up my nose.

Cheers

Jim

[I, Cosh]

I definitely read the Breschau thing as Lucifer trying to point out that no matter how nasty he thought he was, people had forgotten about his whole country as well as him what with Hitler and Pol Pot and all.

But what do I know, I was the 1 in 100,000 who could point to Livonia on a map.

[Floyd-the-k]

Cordite, you should enter that Tori Amos quote to Private Eye's 'Pseud's Corner'