Alan Moore's Promethea

[Adrian Bamforth]

One of the things I like about Alan Moore's writing is there's often that moment of realisation when something finally clicks into place, perhaps even a while after you've read the comic.

Now, perhaps I'm very slow on the uptake here but havibng failed to find anything about the writers who previously worked on an incarnation of the character (Charlton Sennet, Margaret Taylor Case, Marto Neptura et al) I've suddenly realised that I think he simply made it all up.

Perhaps there's a hint in the way he also mentions the Weeping Gorilla in the introduction to Promethea 1 - I think since the story begins with Sophie's college paper the introduction by Moore is like, an emulation of Sophie's essay.

So am i the last person to realise this or is it forgivable? Anyone alse had any of those revelatory Moore moments recently?

ADE

[Oddboy]

*click*

You're right! I thought it was strange mentioning Weeping Gorilla, but I guessed it was pinched from an actual old 'newspaper funny' or something.

[Trout]

Er, sorry, but I always assumed that was the case.

Each appears to be inspired by real, actual work - such as Little Nemo-style comic strips - or at least the type of work being produced within a period, but I always doubted he'd use real writers.

- Trout

[Richmond Clements]

I know where you're coming from here.

Have you ever read anything by the Irish writer Flann O'Brien?
He repeatedly mentions , and quotes at length from, the works of a philosopher called DeSelby, and it was years before I realised he didn't exist!

[Oddboy]

Best way to get through essays - make up facts & statistics & credit them to made up researchers that you know your teachers won't be arsed to look up.

[Byron Virgo]

It's an old trick though, isn't it - creating backstory for your characters to make them seem more real. The cartonist Seth does the same thing in the gn It's A Good Life If You Don't Weaken, when he's going round trying to trace the work and life of this forgotten 40's newspaper strip artist Kalo, only it later turns out that he didn't exist. It's all a fiction.

[Adrian Bamforth]

By the way I started thinking about this topic when reading a Little Margie strip in a new ABC collection and noticing the absence of credit given to Margaret Taylor Case. The strip here is written by Steve Moore and it's a revelation to find it's beautifully done, worthy of the great hippy himself - which is odd since I can't say I've ever read a single Tales Of Telguuth that hasn't been complete and utter pants.

ADE

[DavidXBrunt]

Yeah, that is brilliant isn't it. Truly fantastic pastiche of the style, much better than Gaiman's go in that issue of Sandman.

[paulvonscott]

It's all nicely done and I can see how it's possible to just read it as being genuine.  It was the 'if she didn't exist, we'd have to invent her' line that swayed my early on.

Ordered book 2 from the library, looking forward to reading some more.

[Marbles]

"Ordered book 2 from the library"

Thats what i like to hear...

[paulvonscott]

Aye, costs me 70p though!

Don't worry, if I like it, I'll steal it.

[Marbles]

good man. you could always scan it ? ;o)