Kevin O'Neill: The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (vols. 1 and 2)

There's what might be called "mash-up culture" and then there's The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, which exists in a class all its own.

These bios are gold.

I actually sat down to read Providence - thanks to my friend Trey's ongoing Lovecraft explorations over at his blog, figured it was time for me to get cracking on that one. But, despite having reread the whole thing within the past few years, when I opened the Alan Moore folder on my external hard drive, I ended up rereading League again. 

 

It's definitely a work that rewards multiple reads. It's not my intent to analyze or overview the series (or the multitude of references therein, near-exhaustively annotated here) though some of that will undoubtedly happen. Its nearest neighbor - in some ways - is Philip Jose Farmer's World Newton - a work which also shares some of League's curious sexual preoccupations - but even with that it's apples and oranges. Anyway, as the header up there announces, we're here tonight on Scenic Route business. Let's have a look at the visual design of the series, co-conceived by Alan Moore and meticulously executed by Kevin O'Neill.

O'Neill first came to prominence (or at least got on my radar) in the late 80s with Marshal Law, a caustic critique of both superhero comics and certain perceptions of US foreign policy. I'd probably have loved the series had I come across it at the time. It wasn't, unfortunately, much to my taste by the time I got round to it. 

It'd be interesting to do a compare/contrast with Chaykin's American Flagg. A project for another day. Probably a whole 'nother blogger.

But O'Neill's cartoonishly nightmarish style and his facility with objects and settings both everyday and fantastical - and of multiple eras and in a variety of styles - made him the perfect collaborator for what Moore had in mind for League. Moore had already explored pastiche to great effect (1963) as well as the late Victorian era (From Hell). Now he and O'Neill were going to combine them. Let's have a look at where it all began in the first volume of League, which began being published in 1999.

(Some of these screencaps - if "by Alan Moore and Kevin O'Neill" didn't clue you in already - are NSFW.)

We'll look at a little of the backstory and worldbuilding when we get to The Black Dossier and Century, but I love the tantalizing glimpses we get in the first two volumes.

I also love the way the Invisible Man's movements are represented throughout the series.

The amorality of both the Invisible Man and Hyde - and how they contrast - is very much a part of the story.

As is (or will) Hyde's keeping his ability to see Griffin a secret.

"Tremble, dear reader, at the horrid spectacle of Johnny Chinaman armed with the mighty weapons of our new Electric Age..."

The second series began in 2002 and amplified everything going on in the first considerably. I remember standing at Newbury Comics at Providence Place, RI and leafing through the first issue. This was in a not-buying-comics phase, but I always kept up with what Moore was doing. I was blown away and ended up buying each issue - a rarity at the time - mainly to try and figure out what the hell was going on. Was that John Carter? Are they doing War of the Worlds now?

Has anyone read C.S. Lewis' Out of the Silent Planet? It's been on my list forever.

I particularly like the two foxes rending one of Dr. Moreau's unfortunates on the right, here, all calmly observed by those on the other side of the track.

If you are familiar with the series, I tried to choose screencaps which evoke aspects of the plot without spoiling them. It won't always be thus, kiddies. But just to get things started.

Each volume of League comes with substantial supplemental material. This is no surprise for any Moore work - the last 6-10 pages are always filled with dense prose and other wonders. I thought perhaps he (or they, I should say - I don't know the extent of his and O'Neill's collaboration in terms of plot but let's assume there is some) was just providing some contemporaneous-sounding ads and media, but as early as the first volume, a considerable backstory, spanning the centuries and several other dimensions, was being fleshed out. 

Unfortunately - as most of it is prose - it is precisely the sort of thing I'm downplaying in this series to concentrate on the scenery. I'll likely be showcasing some of it a bit more, though, in the posts to come, as without it, some of what we see makes little sense. This was (I imagine) a problem for those fans who skipped over these sections. Skip any part of a Moore read at your own peril, gentle reader!

"Allan has mislaid his Tabuki..."

Setting the stage for the Lovecraft story to come (the first of the Nemo trilogy, which came out over 10 years later) all the way back in the first volume.

Far be it for me to cheer the crass commercialization of art, but it's a damn shame this game - or a really demented first person shooter for some specially-designed steampunk Sega Genesis - does not actually exist.

Worth expanding here, for the caption. I imagine this is pretty close to "things Alan Moore finds uproariously funny that might puzzle other folk."

Speaking of moments of questionable-taste comedy in League, or perhaps just things that crack me up, I thought I'd isolate a few of them. These don't flow from panel to panel (except where they do) - sorry for any confusion.

This whole section - recruiting the Invisible Man, who has been raping the girls of a very depraved home for wayward girls - is guaranteed to make our moral superiors and Newspeak censors in the media-academe beside themselves with word salad.

I submit, though, that the levels of satire on display just might serve some other literary purpose than propagating rape culture or whatever else. Get thee to a pun-nery.

This whole Moreau stuff is a mix of hilarious and horrifying. I love that "Mina, for God's sake, don't criticise them!" While we're here, the Mina of the first two volumes - while definitely written as a Victorian lady, i.e. matrons know best, dearie - is sympathetic; in later volumes she becomes a bit Joey Potter-esque. (i.e. why on earth would these men be so infatuated with such an unpleasant person?)

"Ravaged by a foreigner" - the subtext of Bram Stoker's Dracula.

And finally, the best response to entitled-fanboy-grumpiness from a creator/ creative team I've ever seen:

~
 You have been enjoying screencaps from:

Vol. 1 (1999) and

Vol. 2 (2002)

See you next time for The Black Dossier, when things get really weird.

A Righteous Train Rollin' Down This Track: Live in Dublin

Tonight!

Bryan: Ho Ho Ho, good people of Earth! As I type these words, Santa's sleigh is on its way to the U.S.A. so it's an appropriate time to link to this, even though it's not from the album at hand. (Though the performance is from 2007, so pretty close to its release date.) I'm here once again with Bryant - Bryant, what'd you think of this when it came out? I only heard it for the first time doing this project, and I love it. 

Bryant: I don't know that I ever sat down and listened to this album. I didn't buy it, so probably not. I watched the concert when it aired, though, and thought it was awesome. (Edit: First things first: I ain't never seen this concert. What I saw was a PBS Great Performances special, which I think is the same thing you can find here.)

"Atlantic City"

Bryan: 5/5 Love this version. Is it better? I have no idea anymore. It's equal to the task of conveying the awesomeness of the song while being a new approach so that's pretty cool.

Bryant: Obviously a very different take on this song, but I don’t mind one bit. The DVD documentary The Seeger Sessions makes it clear that part of Springsteen’s aims in recording the album was to, by recontextualization, reinvigorate those songs (which in some cases were in danger of being lost to the cultural consciousness). It makes perfect sense to me to take the band with which he did that and put them to use on his own songs.  Even if the recontextualization doesn’t work, it’s a worthy experiment. I think it works okay here, though the power of the original recording is so mighty that this recontextualized version can only seem unnecessary. But so what? It’s still pretty great. 3/5 I’m not AS high on it as you, but we’re parsing.

"Old Dan Tucker"

Bryan: 5/5 I still get such a kick out of the Wiggles/ Springsteen overlap in my life, here.  Love the crowd singing at the beginning. Is it a 5? Again, I have no idea anymore. I know I love it though.

Bryant: You’ve got no soul and are probably going to Hell if the cheer that accompanies the beginning of this song (and, as you point out, the crowd singing) doesn’t put a smile on your face. 4/5 Fun fact: last night, upon returning home from work, I sang to one of my cats, who was very excited to see me and was determined to get me to feed her, “Get out the way, motherfucker, it’s too soon to get your supper!” I give myself a thumbs-up on that one.

"Eyes on the Prize"

Bryan: 4.5/5 Those New Orleans-y horns totally make this one.

Bryant: 4/5 Even better than the studio version, which is saying something.

"Jesse James"

Bryan: 4.5/5 I could listen to this Celtic Cajun blend of Springsteen for the rest of my days and be quite happy. Of all the non E-Street bands Bruce has played with over the years, these Seeger Sessions guys are my favorite.

Bryant: Bruce’s vocals are rough as a corn cob on this one toward the beginning. But the band kicks elephant asses, so who cares? 3/5

"Further On (Up the Road)"

Bryan: 4.75/5 Why not a 5? I don't know. I can't firmly recall the studio version enough right now to determine whether or not this is a superior version to it, but I like it so much I'm going to just assume that's the case.

Bryant: I think I actually DO like this better than the studio version. 3.75/5 The sound of these songs is amazing. I totally agree that this band is perfectly in sync with Springsteen’s sensibilities. I’m not sure they aren’t better than the E Street Band themselves. (I don’t think they are, for the record; I’m just not sure they aren’t, the way I would be regarding, say, Bang Tango.)

"O Mary Don't You Weep"

Bryan: 4.5/5 Not sure why this one earns an extra point either. But man this song is a good time.

Bryant: 3.5/5 Does Bruce muff up a line at one point? If so, so be it.

"Erie Canal"

Bryan: 4.25/5 I think Bruce's vocals are a tad better on the album, although this does have the crowd singing and a fine performance all around from anyone. 

Bryant: Bruce’s vocals in general are not at their finest during this show. You’ve got to figure shit like that happens every so often. I agree with you that everything else makes up for it. 3/5

"If I Should Fall Behind"

Bryan: 3/5 I like it about the same (as the studio version) I guess.

Bryant: Turning this into a waltz was a nice move. Nothing will ever top that Live In NYC version for me, though; not unless somebody gets a time machine and goes back to reunite The Beatles to sing it. That might do it. This is great, though. 4/5 Patti adds a lot here.

"My Oklahoma Home"

Bryan: 4.75/5 Sometime around turning 30 I (more or less) gave up going to live shows. I hate crowds and they were too expensive and basically just felt I'd gotten my life's fill of it all in my 20s. That said, I wish I could transport myself into this room/ this show. Even if we were packed like sardines, I was holding a coat, no bathroom access, and beer and tickets were overpriced. It'd be worth it. This sure sounds like a fun room to be in. When I first saw the length of this performance I assumed I'd think it was too much. Nope!

Bryant: As I listen to this, a hurricane has made landfall in Texas, so there’s that. I like the image of a grumpy McMolo being in the room for this and being totally won over by the experience. The live thing isn’t really for me anymore, either, I guess. I’d make an exception here and there, though. I give this a 3.5/5.

"Highway Patrolman"

Bryan: 3.5/5 I like the different spin he gives it here but I prefer the studio version I guess.

Bryant: This is a blatantly country/western take on this song, which, frankly, makes sense.  It’s pretty great. I will equal your 3.5/5.

"Mrs. McGrath"

Bryan: 4/5 Love it. While we're here I wish I could have convinced Bruce to include any of the St. Patrick's songs from that one episode of "Cheers." ("Twas a baby's crib that floated by…" "OKAY, THAT'S IT!") 

Bryant: Bitch, how the fuck ‘m I s’posed to run from a cannonball?!? I ain’t freakin’ Quicksilver! 3/5

"How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live"

Bryan: 3.5/5 Not bad. I was cringing in anticipation for the "Hurricane Katrina" extra lyrics but they're universal enough to not alienate. I hate when my Springsteen fan-ness (or King fan-ness or so many others) comes to wreck upon those kind of shores.

Bryant: 3/5 Better than the studio version, and by a good margin.

"Jacob's Ladder"

Bryan: 3.75/5 Okay, to extend my going-to-a-show remarks, this might be the point where I'm getting antsy to get out of there. Still a good time, spirited performance, etc. 

Bryant: This does have an end-of-the-show feel, doesn’t it? Goes on much too long for my tastes, but I don’t begrudge them the time. You can’t get a band like this together and expect such not to happen. 2/5

"Long Time Comin'"

Bryan: 3.5/5 Prefer the studio version but not a bad take.

Bryant: This is fine, but it’s the same arrangement as the studio version, for the most part; which makes it a bit of a missed opportunity, in my book. There are some nice horn flourishes right at the end, though. 3/5

"Open All Night"

Bryan: 5.5/5 Wow! I did not see this coming at all. How did they manage this with this song? Masterful. I love everything that's happening here.

Bryant: Man, talk about a recontextualization…! This one doesn’t work quite as well for me as it does for you, but it’s unquestionably a heck of a thing. 3.25/5

"Pay Me My Money Down"

Bryan: 3.5/5 You can hear the toil the night's taken on Bruce's vocals here! Hard to argue with this one, but I'll give it the same score as the studio version.

Bryant: This is the sound of people having a good time. 3.25/5

"Growin' Up"

Bryan: 5/5 Amazing he can still mine new gold from this old ore! Another one I never would figure on ever giving a 5 but wow.

Bryant: As much as I like the studio version, I’d be hard pressed to say it’s better than this version. In fact, this version probably smothers it in its crib. 4/5

"When the Saints Go Marching In"

Bryan: 2.5/5 I kept waiting for the uptempo stuff to kick in but I guess the last track was so uptempo it would've been redundant. (Link to Simpsons)

Bryant: This fits in perfectly with Bruce’s thesis of recontextualizing old songs. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard this song played this way, and it makes me pay a different kind of attention to it. Works for me. 3/5

"This Little Light of Mine"

Bryan: 3.5/5 A little too much for me but it's cool and all. Nice musical breaks. Special shout-out to the background soaring-gospel vocals. I'll give that section of the song a full-on 5 stars.

Bryant: 2/5 Very well-played, but it takes a LOT to get me into gospel.

"American Land"

Bryan: 5/5 This one really hits me. I can't help but think of the Scots-Irish diaspora and Bruce heading back to deliver this to Dublin. Reminds me a bit of the Pogues' "Body of an American." 

Bryant: More elephants’ asses were kicked in the performing of this song. 4/5 Great lyrics. Fuck you, Klan. For you, the shit from my asshole.

Bonus tracks:

"Blinded by the Light"

Bryan: 4.25/5 Here's another one I like significantly more when re-arranged in this sort of yiddish/klezmer-sounding way.

Bryant: Jeez, man. On the one hand, I cannot in good conscience give this a higher score than I gave the studio version (which was 3.75), because I love that. I think that may mean I scored it too low, though, because my gut impulse is to give this version about a 4.5/5. It’s great!  I will have to think of this, but for now, I’ll say 3.74/5.

"Love of the Common People"

Bryan: 4.25/5 This live CD captures Bruce effortlessly going through so many different styles of music. It's really a treasure. I like the performance here more than the song itself. Whenever I hear the sax I wonder if Bruce gave the guy (Ed Manion) a lot of crap all the time. 

Bryant: Whose song is this? To Google, away…! [tick-tick-tick…] Well, the Wikipedia page informs me that it was originally performed by The Four Preps, but notable cover-ers include The Everly Brothers, Waylon Jennings, Wayne Newton, John Denver, Paul Young, and LEONARD FUCKING NIMOY. I don’t think I’ve heard any of those, but I’m pretty sure I agree it’s a better performance than a song. 2.25/5

"We Shall Overcome"

Bryan: 2.5/5 Not my thing but I get it.

Bryant: This is better than the studio version, but still nothing super-duper special. 2.25/5 It serves as an album-closer so adequately, however, that I really don’t understand why isn’t this album’s album closer. This is especially confusing considering it closes the CD set, if not the album itself. As Khan said of a certain captain, this shit tasks me.

~

Bryant: Total 73.99 Avg 3.22

Bryan: Total 94.5 Avg. 4.11 With quite a few "5"s. Let's see where that places in the Rankings.

Bryan:

Lucky Town 2.15

Greetings from Asbury Park 2.19

The Ghost of Tom Joad 2.44

In Concert / MTV Plugged 2.82

Tracks 2.83

Chimes of Freedom 2.86

Blood Brothers 2.88

Human Touch 2.9

Book of Dreams 3.1

Hammersmith Odeon, London 3.1

The Rising 3.3

Devils and Dust 3.36

The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle 3.43

Live in New York City 3.5

Loose Ends 3.63

Greatest Hits (New Tracks Only) 3.65

We Shall Overcome: The Pete Seeger Sessions 3.67

The River 3.71

Tunnel of Love 3.8

Darkness on the Edge of Town 3.82

Live ’75 - ‘85 4

Live in Dublin 4.11

Born to Run 4.41

Nebraska 4.5

Born in the USA 5.4

Bryant:

Human Touch 1.7

Hammersmith Odeon, London '75 2.04

Lucky Town 2.15

The Ghost of Tom Joad 2.46

Devils and Dust 2.48

Book of Dreams 2.58

Chimes of Freedom 2.69

In Concert / Mtv Plugged 2.75

Greetings from Asbury Park 2.75

Tracks 2.81

Blood Brothers 2.9

The Rising 3.1

Live in Dublin 3.22

Tunnel of Love 3.35

We Shall Overcome: The Pete Seeger Sessions 3.37

Greatest Hits (New Tracks Only) 3.38

The River 3.39

Live in New York City 3.48

The Wild, the Innocent, and the E Street Shuffle 3.68

Live ’75 - ‘85 3.7

Loose Ends 3.92

Born to Run 4.35

Darkness on the Edge of Town 4.4

Nebraska 4.63

Born in the USA 4.88

Bryan: Makes sense to me. It feels like one of my faves, so seeing it up there in the top 5 makes sense to me. We've got a special Christmas Eve special for you before we close up shop. Take it away, sir!

Bryant: There was also, evidently, an EP featuring other Dublin performances. (It can be found on YouTube here.)

(1)  “Bobby Jean” – Shit, this is great. It doesn’t top the studio version, but that’s no sin. 4.25/5

(2)  “The Ghost of Tom Joad” – I wish he’d taken a few of the blander songs on that album and tried to gussie ‘em up with this band. Maybe he felt they were all lost causes. This one wasn’t, but then, it never was. This is a country version, and it’s worth about a 3/5 from me.  I like the song no matter what guise you put it in.

(3)  “Johnny 99” – Impossible to rock harder than the original rocks. Why even try? Well, because I guess you can rock in a different way, which is what this does. I can’t honestly say I’m that into it, though. 2.25/5

(4)  “For You” – He should have just redone the entirety of Asbury Park with this band.  They might could have even got something decent out of “The Angel.” Lol, what am I saying, of course they couldn’t! They sure did out of “For You,” though. About 4/5 worth. This IS better than the studio version; I got no compunctions about saying that.

(5)  “My City of Ruins” – This is my third-favorite version of this song (behind the studio and the Tribute to Heroes live version), and it trails the others by a substantial margin. 2/5  Some of Bruce’s vocals are iffy. You’re not cut out to belt out gospel-style, Boss; you’re just not.

Third:

Holy God, this version of "Because the Night" rules. I'd forgotten all about it! I saw that as a bonus performance tacked onto the end of Springsteen and I, which played at my theatre a few years back one night.  I thought I was going to freak out during that Nils solo.