Mouse Guard, Volume 3: Legends of the Guard

I have to confess that I was a little disappointed, after reading and enjoying David Petersen's Mouse Guard: Fall 1152 and Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 - both volumes contains six individual comic issues, and relate the epic story of the eponymous Mouse Guard, a corps of murine warriors and guides who protect the Mouse Territories from diverse dangers - to discover that this volume does not continue the story begun in those titles, but rather, offers a series of short stories set in the Mouse Guard world, written and illustrated by a variety of other comic book practitioners. The connecting art and concept - a story contest at the June Alley Inn, in the mouse city of Barkstone, gives patrons the chance to clear their outstanding tabs, by relating the best tale - are provided by Petersen himself, while the thirteen stories (fourteen if one counts the epilogue) are contributed by various authors and artists.

Once I got used to the idea of an anthology, however, and accepted that I wasn't going to discover what "happened next," I began to enjoy this collection. I'm not very well read in the world of comic books, so only one of the guest artists - Ted Naifeh], creator of the Courtney Crumrin comic books, which I have enjoyed - was familiar to me, going in. It was interesting to get some more background information on this world, and to see it through the eyes of other artists. Kudos to Petersen for letting others play a role in its creation! The stories I tended to enjoy most here, were those that built the history up a bit: The Battle of the Hawk's Mouse & The Fox's Mouse by Jeremy Bastian, with its story of the formation of the proto-Mouse Guard, and how it came to have a Matriarch; Crown of Silver, Crown of Gold, by Mark Smylie, with its tale of two warring mouse kingdoms, and how both were brought low by treachery. I liked Craig Rousseau's The Lion and the Mouse because of its Aesopic references, but The Raven, adapted from the Edgar Allan Poe poem by Jason Shawn Alexander, didn't work as well for me. Naifeh's A Bargain in the Dark was engaging, but too short to really draw me in.

Still, despite my varied reactions - I didn't really enjoy this one, overall, as much as Mouse Guard: Winter 1152 - this is definitely a book that Mouse Guard fans will want to pick up: for the stories, the artwork, and the June Alley Inn ambiance! Now, if only the next installment of the actual story were coming out sometime soon... ( )

A companion piece to Brian Petersen's Mouse Guard series of graphic novels. This book contains a series of short stories by guest writers and artists that take place in the Mouse Guard world. Petersen frames these stories within a story telling contest. Several mice are having a late night drink at June Alley Inn. June will forgive the debt of the mouse who tells the best tale. Petersen writes the story and illustrates the sections that tie these stories together. As usual, his illustrations are beautiful and detailed. My favorite story was Potential, with illustrations by Sean Rubin. I very much liked the muted sepia tone of the illustrations. Another favorite was Crown of Silver, Crown of Gold By Mark Smylie.
Recommended for fans of Mouse Guard. ( )

Summary: Mice are small, and although they are safe in their cities and settlements, the lands between are wide and perilous with predators. Luckily, a mouse's courage, steadfastness, and sense of duty is not proportional to their size, and the Mouse Guard stand ready to protect travelers, defend the borders, safeguard the paths, and the defend the interests of mice.

Legends of the Guard is an anthology that centers around a tavern contest in which patrons compete to tell the best story, in the hopes of having their bar tab cleared. The framework story is written and drawn by Petersen, but the individual tales are written and drawn by a variety of artists.

Review: I enjoyed the Legends of the Guard volume as much as - if not maybe a little bit more than - the main series volumes. It was reminiscent of some of the parts I liked most about House of Mystery, and I really enjoyed seeing all of the authors' takes on the Guard's world. I particularly liked that the stories had different tones, some funny, some tragic, some from the distant past, some staring characters with which we're familiar, some text-heavy, some entirely in pictures - but all feeling true to the world. 4 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: It's got a kind of medieval, Robin Hood-esque feel to it, but honestly, I think even people who aren't fans of that sort of thing will be charmed by this series. ( )

Varying artistry, artistry as a rule better than the short stories, with the exception of Poe´s "The Raven" and the traditional fable of the lion and the mouse. ( )

I'm a big fan of this series and it was nice to have another book to read, even if it was just a collection of short stories. Petersen did a good job of connecting each of the tales through an inn where the mice were listening to the tales. All of the art was well done and the stories interesting. My favorites were Carver's story, "Crown of Silver, Crown of Gold" and Bowen's tale of the guard mouse. But I liked them all and all of the art. I can't wait for the next installment of the Mouse Guard series. ( )