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Corto Maltese: Under The Sign of Capricorn – spoiler light (3 preview pages incl

Started by Bat King, 23 December, 2014, 09:26:24 AM

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Hawkmumbler

Man....I'm WAY behind on the Corto releases. Still have The Ethiopian and beyond to read...

Apestrife

Having just finished reading:
Under the sign of the capricorn
Beyond the windy isles
Celtic tales
The Ethiopian
In Siberia
Fable of Venice
Golden house of Samarkand
Tango

--I must say. Damn good stuff. What I enjoy the most about Corto is how two sided he is. Always smooth, but always getting himself in trouble. Likes to tell people how little he cares, only to risk his life for someone first chance he gets. I also enjoy how the places he visits feels like actual places. The feeling I get is similar to that of reading Don Rosa's duck tales as a kid. Making me want to travel and meet people, listen to their stories.

The secret rose is out next month. Can't wait to pick it up :)

Timothy

The Secret Rose is out there. I must admit I was dubious. Dream stories, with the obvious exception of The Sandman, often leave me cold. Having read it though I am happy to say that I was completely wrong. It is thoroughly charming and some of the characters are hilarious. Although the tone is lighter than some other Corto books there is still a lot to digest, but it is handled so beautifully that it never seems like a chore. Not a typical Corto by any means, but still a cracking read.

Colin YNWA

Wow is that out alerady - does that just leave Early Years and then  bacl to Ballard?

Apestrife

Quote from: Timothy on 03 March, 2019, 02:58:09 PM
The Secret Rose is out there. I must admit I was dubious. Dream stories, with the obvious exception of The Sandman, often leave me cold. Having read it though I am happy to say that I was completely wrong. It is thoroughly charming and some of the characters are hilarious. Although the tone is lighter than some other Corto books there is still a lot to digest, but it is handled so beautifully that it never seems like a chore. Not a typical Corto by any means, but still a cracking read.

Read it tonight. Enjoyed it alot. I can somewhat agree to the thing you say about dream stories, as well that The secret rose was really good. Fitting as well having Corto enter such realm as it, after seeing two moons, meeting a double ganger and so on in the adventures before it.

I think the "court scene" more or less summed up why I like the character as much as I do. His dream also left me with a desire to dream as interesting as him  :lol:

Quote from: Colin YNWA on 03 March, 2019, 04:19:15 PM
Wow is that out alerady - does that just leave Early Years and then  bacl to Ballard?

Made for a nice surprise at my LCS. I think it's Early years, Ballad and MU. 

CalHab

I just read The Man From the Great North and really enjoyed it. Is there a best place to start or a particular highlight with Corto Maltese or with any of Pratt's other work?

Colin YNWA

Quote from: CalHab on 15 May, 2019, 09:44:24 AM
I just read The Man From the Great North and really enjoyed it. Is there a best place to start or a particular highlight with Corto Maltese or with any of Pratt's other work?

Glad to hear you enjoyed The Man from the Great North its working its way up my read list. As for best Corto safe to say any will do its all excellent. If I was going to pick one Celtic Tales for a superb series of short stories, Siberia if you'd prefer a long form.

JayzusB.Christ

Christ almighty, I know nothing, Jon Snow.  This is the first time I've ever heard that Corto Maltese was anything other than an island in the DCU.
"Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest"

I, Cosh

Quote from: Colin YNWA on 15 May, 2019, 08:14:31 PMAs for best Corto safe to say any will do its all excellent. If I was going to pick one Celtic Tales for a superb series of short stories, Siberia if you'd prefer a long form.
I'd say you get the best out of it if you start from the start. The stories are episodic and largely self-contained, but there are recurring characters and themes which are developed as it goes on.

Only problem with that is that the current - beautiful - IDW reprints started with the second volume! Colin's recommendation of Celtic Tales is also solid as it was the first one where I really felt the mix of realism and metaphor worked together.
We never really die.

CalHab

Thanks for the recommendations. I'll maybe pick up Celtic Tales to start.

I'd definitely recommend The Man From the Great North. For such a short story there is an incredible amount going on and depth to it. I think I need to read it a few more times before I can get some kind of a grip on it.

Timothy

Old news, but I re-read In Siberia last night and it continues to be wonderful. Possibly my favourite of the longer stories.


Colin YNWA

This is all such good news. When the last edition of Ballard of the Salt Sea came out 7 years (or so) ago and got slated I couldn't have imagined we'd have a complete set of neigh perfect English language editions in only 8 years. I was happy just to finally have got hold of some of this classic stuff. Its a big tribute to IDW that they've pulled this off.

Apestrife

Picked up The early years today. Read it on the train home. A bit like Fable of Venice and Tango it's short on page, but it delivers when it comes to story.

It was supposed to be a much longer story (which Hugo didn't finish due to something something issues with the publisher), but I think it serves well as a little intro the character as well as how Corto met Rasputin.

Besides the main story there are a couple of unfinished pages of what would happen next, as well as a bit of reading reading Corto, and also some colour pages.

Now one just needs to wait till next year for Ballad of the salt sea and then MU  :)

Hawkmumbler

I'm waaaaay behind, in fact most of my volumes are still in storage after the move. Can't wait to get them out of the attic when I move into my own place in October and start a reread before picking up the succeeding volumes!