FLIGHT

Finished reading this fairly recently. I was blown away.

A masterfully told story about a guy named Asterios Polyp. Mazzucchelli is one of my favorite comic story tellers. The things he's done in this book have broadened my appreciation for comics as an art form even further. What an amazing story drawn perfectly. Really thought out page layouts and graphics. I don't want to spoil it for anyone.

Check it out if you can, worth every penny.

http://www.amazon.com/Asterios-Polyp-David-Mazzucchelli/dp/0307377326

BTW, David Mazzucchelli did Batman Year One with Frank Miller. Another masterpiece.

A great write up by someone here that includes more images:
http://highlowcomics.blogspot.com/2009/07/two-and-three-asterios-polyp.html

I don't know, I was pretty disappointed.

I am a HUGE fan of Mazzucchelli's 90s work (Rubber Blanket, City of Glass, assorted Drawn & Quarterly stories) and pre-ordered Asterois Polyp months ago — but, for all that, I just couldn't get that into the book.

Much of the book felt like a technical exercise and the artwork was really stiff and forced. I know some of that was intentional as Mazzucchelli was trying to relate the way he drew Asterios's world to the way the character saw it, but I didn't think it wasn't much fun to look at.

I don't want to give anything away, but I did start to get drawn into the romance between the main characters as the end approached. However, the way the actual ending was handled... Well, it made me feel like I'd wasted my time.

I dunno, I'll have to re-read it again some point down the road, I guess. Right now the best thing I can say about it is that the acclaim the book is getting might hopefully spur Mazzucchelli to get to work on his next project. As much as I didn't like Asterios Polyp, I still look forward to what Mazzucchelli might create next. I just hope it doesn't take another 10 years to see it.

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