Scan barcode
alyssaarch's review
informative
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
roxanamalinachirila's review
4.0
I won't lie: this isn't an account of the life and death of the Emperor Heliogabolous, although it does make him sound like a rather queer and randomly murderous fellow, to be sure.
What it is, however, is a musing on a mad emperor, on Oscar Wilde, on death and eccentricity and how we think about people when and after they die. It's quaint, crudely drawn, occasionally amusing and a bit self-ironic. You can feel the random stream-of-consciousness which makes it sound like the narrator's talking to you and doodling on a napkin while at it. Which is really something for a comic done in 24 hours and stuck somewhere in the back of the author's drawers.
4 stars because it's random and 24 hours. If it were a real published book, the stars would be less impressive. :)
What it is, however, is a musing on a mad emperor, on Oscar Wilde, on death and eccentricity and how we think about people when and after they die. It's quaint, crudely drawn, occasionally amusing and a bit self-ironic. You can feel the random stream-of-consciousness which makes it sound like the narrator's talking to you and doodling on a napkin while at it. Which is really something for a comic done in 24 hours and stuck somewhere in the back of the author's drawers.
4 stars because it's random and 24 hours. If it were a real published book, the stars would be less impressive. :)
nwhyte's review
4.0
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3494356.html
I think it's the only case I have seen of Neil Gaiman illustrating his own work. It's a reflection on the third-century teenage Roman emperor, whose brief reign was characterised by religious and sexual controversy; Gaiman draws parallels with the ambiguous sexuality of Oscar Wilde, and imagines the short reign's excesses in sconomic but evocative detail. A memorable short piece.
I think it's the only case I have seen of Neil Gaiman illustrating his own work. It's a reflection on the third-century teenage Roman emperor, whose brief reign was characterised by religious and sexual controversy; Gaiman draws parallels with the ambiguous sexuality of Oscar Wilde, and imagines the short reign's excesses in sconomic but evocative detail. A memorable short piece.
More...