Customer Reviews

V for Vendetta New (New Edition TPB)

5 star:		(59)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Written in the early 1980s, V for Vendetta tells of an England in the then near future of 1997-8. A limited nuclear exchange devastates much of the world while England is directly unaffected. However, the enormous economic and political ramifications of the conflict hurl the nation into anarchy. Out of the ashes arises the fascist Norsefire regime. Sure they restore order to the fallen country, but this is clearly a case of the serum being more lethal than the poison. This new government sends blacks, homosexuals, Jews, and other minorities to death camps. The culture of the pre-War world is now deemed as evil and subversive. A corrupt police force is implemented with the authority to murder suspects if they wish instead of adhering to ideals such as due process. The average citizen is forced to work for starvation wages, and sometimes to crime just to survive. Freedom, democracy, and privacy are as archaic concepts as the world being flat. Then comes V, whose motto is the title of my review. Translated from Latin it means: "By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe."

Replete with Guy Falkes regalia, V seeks to bring about an end to the Norsefire party through a series of assassinations, bombings, and kidnappings. At first, they appear to be revenge against everyone who worked at the prison camp where V was held. Instead, the plot turns out to be more complicated and planned out than anyone could possibly imagine. V doesn't strike the Norsefire at their body, he strikes for their heart - and never misses. He has a contingency plan in the form of 16 year-old Evey Hammond, a girl he rescues from corrupt cops when she is forced into prostitution by her intolerably low wages. Of course, Evey doesn't agree with all of V's methods; but it is through him that she learns the very essence of freedom, and how she may be the true hope of England in its darkest hour.

VfV is not just a great graphic novel, it is required reading period. So what else can you expect from Alan Moore, who also brought us Watchmen, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and a lot of other things that raised the bar for the comic book medium. I especially love the repeated use of the letter "V" throughout the story. Beware, there is violence, objectionable language, and a little nudity. The violence is really nothing when compared to a title from Marvel's MAX line. The language is pretty much the same thing you'd hear from a PG-13 movie. And the nudity is not for the purpose of titilation, it represents the symbolic idea of freedom. Even with my warning, VfV merits nothing except extreme recommendation from me.

story is great all though this novel should have stayed in black and white as the colour blurs out the text makeing
this a straining and hard to read noval but all togeather great story witch makes ups for the blurry text

Came in quicker than I thought it would. It's a brilliant story, and a great read. It's worth the money since Alan Moore does not disappoint !

superbe, mieux que le film (pas la même fin) c est du Alan moore au scénario, très très accrocheur et très bon

An excellent work of dystopian fiction. I purchased this for my Utopian Literature course and was not disappointed. I had seen the movie when it was new on DVD and enjoyed it then, but unsurprisingly, the source material blindingly outshines it. Film leaves out characters, events, plot points, makes parts unnecessarily "Hollywood"...buy this now if you're already considering it.

One of the latest gritty, dark graphic novels to be adapted to film was "V for Vendetta," based on Alan Moore's futuristic comic of the same name. But as usual, the source is the most compelling.

First published in the early 1980s, Moore painted a frightening future where there is only one man who can challenge the fascist system. Is he an anarchic madman, or a freedom-loving visionary? Readers will have to decide for themselves, but the story is a fascinating action story that raises quite a few questions.

The year is 1998 (okay, pretend it's an alternate reality), and Britain is ruled by a fascist regime, and dominated by a shadowy figure. Order is the law. Blacks, gays, Muslims and Jews are relegated to concentration camps, where they are tortured with medical experiments and evil priests. The one exception is a horribly scarred man, who blew his way out with a homemade bomb. He donned a Guy Fawkes mask, and calls himself V, for he "has no name."

One night he rescues a young prostitute, Evey, from a bunch of thuggish policemen, whisks her down into his hidden base, and involves her in a trap-and-murder plot. Evey is both repulsed and fascinated by V's plots, especially when she is interrogated. And when an order-obsessed policeman closes in on V, both he and Evey must accept their fates.

"V For Vendetta" is a thinking-reader's comic. Fascism and anarchy -- both concepts that Moore clearly understands -- are timeless concepts that pop up periodically throughout human history. So even though 1998 came and went long ago, "V For Vendetta" is an intelligent, deeply compelling story that still resonates in its readers.

Moore's London is a rather dank, dismal place, apparently reflecting the government. He knows how to chill his readers with a diversity-free England that seems a lot like Nazi Germany. Even nonessential scenes like Evey's interrogation are absolutely harrowing. But he can also tug at the heartstrings, such as when Evey reads Valerie's letters.

And Dave Lloyd's artwork is rather flat and a bit faded-looking, though this is not very distracting. But despite the ordinary art, the novel is brought to life by the solid characters and surreal illustrations, with V as the most surreal of all -- just look at that creepy smiling mask.

At first glance, V is a vigilante hero in the tradition of Zorro -- the government is oppressive, and he's trying to take it down. But V is not a plaster hero, and his actions can be very morally ambiguous. Is he a hero or a madman? Did those experiments make him psychotic, or did they just give him courage? Moore leaves it up to our imaginations what he is. By the end, V has become less a person than an ideal.

"V For Vendetta" is a memorable, somewhat frightening graphic novel, which will leave you thinking about what you might do in such a world. A deserving classic.

V for Vendetta is the story of an ideal. Not a man, for a man is flesh and blood, but an ideal. You can't kill an ideal.

These are the ideas presented in this very intruguing and fast-paced story. One of comic writer ALAN MOORE's greatest works, "V for Vendetta" is a story that will compell and haunt the reader.

After a devastating nuclear war in 1988, England is brought back together by the facists who have banded and formed the new government that rules with an iron fist. The concentration camps have been set up, and out of them comes a mysterious and almost insane vigilante. "To tell the truth, I do not have a name," he says. "You can call me 'V.' He cavorts about London wearing his Guy Fawkes costume with its smiling paper-mache mask. V sets about his grisly work of vengeance upon the people who wronged him and the system that killed his former self. "I am the Devil, and I come to do the Devil's work." But he has much more up his grey sleeve, as he tells the girl he rescues from police brutality.

Full of believable characters and a gripping plot, V for Vendetta is a look into the human soul, on what drives a man so far, until he pushes himself farther...

One of the most chilling phrases of the last hundred years is, "It couldn't happen here." Which essentially makes the terrifying future portrayed by V For Vendetta all the more possible.

V For Vendetta is set in Britain a decade after a limited nuclear conflict, which thanks to the Labour party removing American missiles from British soil ensures that Britain is not targetted. However the climatic conditions caused by the war end up plunging England into famine and chaos. One party promises an end to anarchy and a return to order, 'Norsefire'.

They are supported by desperate citizens. After they gain power they round up all the blacks, all the asians and gays, all the beatniks and radicals... and kill them. For their belief is in a unified uniformity. Orders are given and followed, no deviations, with a little (very little) bread and circuses thrown in for measure. The horrible absence of any faces other than white faces and the eradication of all culture seen as unfit really shocked me. Moore has always been concerned about Britain's tabloid press and its undercurrant of racism and 'moral values'. It is a concern I share. At a time when hatred for asylum seekers is being whipped up to new extremes by the far right press this is a timely warning.

In this nightmare Britain about four years after the 'final soloution' a terrorist begins to wreak havoc in London. He wears a Guy Fawkes mask and calls himself 'V'. He is after blood. Who is he, or more importantly, what is he? V begins a struggle for the heart and mind of England, a heart and mind that have become complacent and corrupted under the horrible 'better the devil you know' complacency that we are sadly famous for. It is however ordinary people who will decide this conflict, he has just to show us the way.

This is one of the most chilling and enthralling books I have ever read. One of the biggest points of the book is that most people don't want to be evil, but they will go along with it if it leads to a quiet life. This view is hammered home relentlessly. It also incredibly manages to be a ripping yarn at the same time. The look and style of a future Britian under a totalitarian dictatorship is wonderfully rendered by David Lloyd who draws everything in a wonderful gritty, harsh, sleezy style. This is arguably Moore's greatest work, it is certainly his most vicious and pointed. An important thing to take into account though is that Moore was primarily directing this at English audiences, the comic only got an American distribution later. As such there may be several cultural characteristics that may cause to the unfamiliar reader several vicious points to fall short. No matter, this book was intended to show Britian how it could happen here, and by implication how it could happen anywhere. Do not be complacent. England prevails!

I've read through this book in no time, it's well written and drawn. If you only saw the movie and loved it, you have to check this out. It's more intense and probably more controversial than the movie and that's why I loved it.

Don't hesitate!

The rates I have mentioned above speak for themselves. I however want to elaborate a little bit more on the "B" given to the story.

I really appreciated the background developed by Moore regarding both V and the political events that have followed the nuclear war. I have also enjoyed the dialogues related to fascism and anarchy, and the mystery surrounding everything that V does. However, I do not understand where the author was going with the Leader of the fascist government. I would have expected this character to be more important, scheming and combative. His infatuation with Fate, the computer system, left me clueless. I wasn't too convinced either by the relevance of the character of Rose Almond. The episodes where she was involved appeared weaker to my eyes. The bottom line probably is that V is such an original character, developed by Moore and illustrated by Lloyd so fantastically well, that the other characters were outshined and appeared weaker from a story perspective in my opinion. The end result is that I will remember more this graphic novel for its main character than for the story itself.