Michel Gagné
Author of The Saga of Rex
About the Author
Image credit: Stumptown Comics Fest 2006, photo by Joshin Yamada
Series
Works by Michel Gagné
Associated Works
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- Gagné, Michel
- Birthdate
- 1965
- Gender
- male
- Education
- Sheridan College School of Visual Arts
- Occupations
- writer
artist
sculptor
illustrator
animator - Awards and honors
- Annie Award nomination (4)
- Short biography
- Michel Gagne was born in Quebec, Canada. He studied animation at Sheridan College School of Visual Arts in Ontario, Canada and in 1985, began a highly successful artistic career.
Renowned for his unique vision, Michel has lent his talent to several animation companies, such as Don Bluth Studios, Warner Bros., Disney, Pixar, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, etc. His creative work can be seen in over twenty feature films including: The Iron Giant, Osmosis Jones, and Ratatouille. His short films, Prelude to Eden and Insanely Twisted Shadow Puppets are favorites among animation students and teachers, and have played in festivals throughout the world. He was honored by the International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood, with four Annie Award nominations. He continues to create animation, special effects and conceptual designs for companies all over the world.
Michel is also very active in the publishing world having written and illustrated a dozen books, as well as two ongoing comic series: ZED and The Saga of Rex. His work has been published by DC Comics, Image Comics, Random House as well as Michel's own imprint, GAGNE International Press.
Among his other creative endeavors, Michel has experimented in a variety of projects in various media including video games, art shows (paintings, sculptures and mixed-media), trading card games, etc.
Simply put, Michel loves what he does!
He lives peacefully with his Family, in the Pacific Northwest, USA. [from Amazon.com, retrieved 7/20/2019] - Nationality
- Canada
- Birthplace
- Quebec, Canada
- Places of residence
- Bellingham, Washington, USA
- Associated Place (for map)
- Canada
Members
Reviews
Okay, this was cuter than expected. Also, no quote this time because this book is 98% no text.
STORY:
In The Saga of Rex by Michel Gagné (200 pages), basically, a frog-like God of some alternative universe akin to Noah's ark created and paired animals together (the beginning had me confused but who cares). Also, somehow the God collected/teleported real creatures to the world. Anyway, Rex, a cute little fox creature, got teleported to the weird world and was paired with a purple-shapeshifting show more squirrel-fox, Aven. Rex doesn't have a clue about his new surroundings, but he just wants to follow his new mate.
I hadn't expected there to be such a violent part in the book (a creature was about to be sacrificed, a creature was pierced through the stomach with a bloody knife, and a creature died), but it was okay because nothing stayed too sad for long.
ART:
The art was very beautiful! There's a climatic part when Rex loses a unicorn horn that is just mesmerizing to see. When Rex and his mate become one (nothing vulgar or sexual; kids won't even pick up on the symbolism) was another beautiful part. I loved the color direction in this book as well.
CHARACTERS:
Rex was an absolute cutie and Aven seemed to be a lot of fun.
OVERALL:
To sum this book up, it's message was "travel all you can with the one you love." Or maybe it was really "this book was kind of weird and I didn't understand most of it, but I loved the pictures." Either way, it's worth picking up! I found the ending so sweet. show less
STORY:
In The Saga of Rex by Michel Gagné (200 pages), basically, a frog-like God of some alternative universe akin to Noah's ark created and paired animals together (the beginning had me confused but who cares). Also, somehow the God collected/teleported real creatures to the world. Anyway, Rex, a cute little fox creature, got teleported to the weird world and was paired with a purple-shapeshifting show more squirrel-fox, Aven. Rex doesn't have a clue about his new surroundings, but he just wants to follow his new mate.
I hadn't expected there to be such a violent part in the book (a creature was about to be sacrificed, a creature was pierced through the stomach with a bloody knife, and a creature died), but it was okay because nothing stayed too sad for long.
ART:
The art was very beautiful! There's a climatic part when Rex loses a unicorn horn that is just mesmerizing to see. When Rex and his mate become one (nothing vulgar or sexual; kids won't even pick up on the symbolism) was another beautiful part. I loved the color direction in this book as well.
CHARACTERS:
Rex was an absolute cutie and Aven seemed to be a lot of fun.
OVERALL:
To sum this book up, it's message was "travel all you can with the one you love." Or maybe it was really "this book was kind of weird and I didn't understand most of it, but I loved the pictures." Either way, it's worth picking up! I found the ending so sweet. show less
I got a copy of this book to review through NetGalley(dot)com. So thanks to Image Comics and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to review this book. I had previously read the Saga of Rex and really enjoyed the beautiful illustration and quirky story. This was an excellent read that was much more violent than The Saga of Rex.
Zed is presenting his invention that will change the way the whole universe uses energy when things go awry and he evaporates the whole planet only to be saved by a show more spaceship invented by one of the other inventors. In his quest to find out what went wrong he discovers that he wasn’t at fault but was the target of espionage by an energy producing planet. Now he just needs to save his home planet and save the universe...no biggie, right?
This is a cute sci-fi graphic novel that I would recommend for young adult and older ages. The story itself it a bit disturbing and depressing, but in a tongue-in-cheek kind of way. So definitely some dark humor. This is definitely not the light-hearted and all age appropriate book that The Saga of Rex was.
Although this is illustrated in a cutesy and young looking style this is not a read for children. Zed kills off a whole planet of people including his parents and is very upset by the whole scenario. There are also some pretty gory scenes where people lose limbs and life in battle. In addition there is some mild swearing and a somewhat sexually suggestive image of metal rock band groupies. I think it would be okay for young adult and older though.
The illustrations are stunning and the story is well done. Despite all the horrible things that happen to Zed, he is determined to save the day. The poor little guy is really put through the wringer though, so be prepared for the first section of the book to be violent and depressing.
The whole story is full of dark humor. The things that happen are a bit too epic and a bit too out there, this ends up lending the story a darkly humorous edge. I really really enjoyed it. It’s quirky, goofy, and totally off the wall. It is delivered in a way that is high quality and top notch.
Overall I really enjoyed this graphic novel. It’s beautifully illustrate and quirky and crazy. As mentioned above it is definitely not for younger readers. I would recommend this for people who enjoy graphic novels that are quirky and different. If you are offended by over the top epic violence I wouldn’t pick this up. show less
Zed is presenting his invention that will change the way the whole universe uses energy when things go awry and he evaporates the whole planet only to be saved by a show more spaceship invented by one of the other inventors. In his quest to find out what went wrong he discovers that he wasn’t at fault but was the target of espionage by an energy producing planet. Now he just needs to save his home planet and save the universe...no biggie, right?
This is a cute sci-fi graphic novel that I would recommend for young adult and older ages. The story itself it a bit disturbing and depressing, but in a tongue-in-cheek kind of way. So definitely some dark humor. This is definitely not the light-hearted and all age appropriate book that The Saga of Rex was.
Although this is illustrated in a cutesy and young looking style this is not a read for children. Zed kills off a whole planet of people including his parents and is very upset by the whole scenario. There are also some pretty gory scenes where people lose limbs and life in battle. In addition there is some mild swearing and a somewhat sexually suggestive image of metal rock band groupies. I think it would be okay for young adult and older though.
The illustrations are stunning and the story is well done. Despite all the horrible things that happen to Zed, he is determined to save the day. The poor little guy is really put through the wringer though, so be prepared for the first section of the book to be violent and depressing.
The whole story is full of dark humor. The things that happen are a bit too epic and a bit too out there, this ends up lending the story a darkly humorous edge. I really really enjoyed it. It’s quirky, goofy, and totally off the wall. It is delivered in a way that is high quality and top notch.
Overall I really enjoyed this graphic novel. It’s beautifully illustrate and quirky and crazy. As mentioned above it is definitely not for younger readers. I would recommend this for people who enjoy graphic novels that are quirky and different. If you are offended by over the top epic violence I wouldn’t pick this up. show less
I picked up a copy of this book at random off a bookshelf on free comic book day and fell in love with it. It is suitable for all ages, tells a creative, heartfelt, and fun story and is full of absolutely stunning pictures.
The story starts out with a bit of history about a Guardian-Shepard who helps some shapeshifting flowers blossom so that they can search the galaxy for specimens to start new worlds with. One of these blossoms stumbles upon a little fox named Rex. Rex is deemed a worthy show more specimen and goes on an intergalactic adventure that is breathtaking, at times ironic, heartfelt, and just plain fun.
The intro about the Guardian-Shepard is the weakest part of this book; it is also the only part of this book that tells the story in words. The wording looks beautiful on the page, but it comes off mostly as a necessary info dump to give the reader a clue about what is going on. It’s one of those necessary but not incredibly well done bits. It’s okay just not wonderful.
After these first few pages the book is absolutely spectacular. The rest of the book is told only in pictures. The pictures are full color, absolutely stunning, and do an excellent job of telling an amazing story.
Rex is a cute, honorable, and brave little guy. He is a fun character to follow through the story. He faces many foreign planets and adventures with curiosity and bravery. He undergoes many transformations and sees many crazy and creative worlds. In the end though, it is his friendship and love with the blossom that chose him that really gives his life meaning.
This is a wonderful graphic novel that was a joy to read. It is fun and beautiful and really makes you feel good. I also loved that it is great for all ages. My five year old son “read” it, loved it, and was absolutely entranced by the amazing worlds and by the adorable little fox.
Overall just an absolutely wonderful find. I would recommend for fans of fantasy graphic novels such as the Amulet series by Kazu Kibuishi and the Bone series by Jeff Smith. This is a book that boys and girls; adults and kids will all love. show less
The story starts out with a bit of history about a Guardian-Shepard who helps some shapeshifting flowers blossom so that they can search the galaxy for specimens to start new worlds with. One of these blossoms stumbles upon a little fox named Rex. Rex is deemed a worthy show more specimen and goes on an intergalactic adventure that is breathtaking, at times ironic, heartfelt, and just plain fun.
The intro about the Guardian-Shepard is the weakest part of this book; it is also the only part of this book that tells the story in words. The wording looks beautiful on the page, but it comes off mostly as a necessary info dump to give the reader a clue about what is going on. It’s one of those necessary but not incredibly well done bits. It’s okay just not wonderful.
After these first few pages the book is absolutely spectacular. The rest of the book is told only in pictures. The pictures are full color, absolutely stunning, and do an excellent job of telling an amazing story.
Rex is a cute, honorable, and brave little guy. He is a fun character to follow through the story. He faces many foreign planets and adventures with curiosity and bravery. He undergoes many transformations and sees many crazy and creative worlds. In the end though, it is his friendship and love with the blossom that chose him that really gives his life meaning.
This is a wonderful graphic novel that was a joy to read. It is fun and beautiful and really makes you feel good. I also loved that it is great for all ages. My five year old son “read” it, loved it, and was absolutely entranced by the amazing worlds and by the adorable little fox.
Overall just an absolutely wonderful find. I would recommend for fans of fantasy graphic novels such as the Amulet series by Kazu Kibuishi and the Bone series by Jeff Smith. This is a book that boys and girls; adults and kids will all love. show less
I got a e-copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for a unbiased review.
My first reaction, and the reason why I requested this book, was, "ZOMGHEISSOCUTEWHATISTHIS?" I pretty much had the same reaction while reading the book from frame to frame. The alien Zed is super cute, even when he's traumatized.
Speaking of him being traumatized, this is SUCH a sad story. Sad and violent, probably two moods that describe the human race. You see mob mentality, how easily we can get swept along show more in rhetoric even when our inner voices are telling us to back up.
The story was fluid and sad; cute and gory. The appearance of God was unexpected seeing as how it's a cosmic tale.
All in all, it was a enjoyable read and one that really needs to be physical to appreciate the artwork. I will be buying this book! show less
My first reaction, and the reason why I requested this book, was, "ZOMGHEISSOCUTEWHATISTHIS?" I pretty much had the same reaction while reading the book from frame to frame. The alien Zed is super cute, even when he's traumatized.
Speaking of him being traumatized, this is SUCH a sad story. Sad and violent, probably two moods that describe the human race. You see mob mentality, how easily we can get swept along show more in rhetoric even when our inner voices are telling us to back up.
The story was fluid and sad; cute and gory. The appearance of God was unexpected seeing as how it's a cosmic tale.
All in all, it was a enjoyable read and one that really needs to be physical to appreciate the artwork. I will be buying this book! show less
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 21
- Also by
- 8
- Members
- 331
- Popularity
- #71,752
- Rating
- 4.0
- Reviews
- 8
- ISBNs
- 27
- Languages
- 1