Jim McCann (1) (1974–)

I stopped by the local comic book store to see if they had any of the Hugo nominated graphic novels. They did and I picked up [b:Saga, Vol. 1|15704307|Saga, Vol. 1|Brian K. Vaughan|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1351259514s/15704307.jpg|19113524] and [b:Saucer Country Vol. 1: Run|13536521|Saucer Country Vol. 1 Run|Paul Cornell|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348791526s/13536521.jpg|19098236]. I also grabbed this as it looked interesting. I have a nagging suspicion that someone recommended it on show more a podcast. In any case I'm glad I ended up with it.

Of the three, I'm most hooked by Mind the Gap. It has a very tight focus on small group of interesting characters. I liked this about Saga as well, but in that case it's a juxtaposition of a tight knit family against a galaxy spanning war. There's also a mystery at the core of Mind the Gap just as there is in Saucer Country. It's cool to see these elements mixed and matched in such dramatically different stories.

Mind the Gap alternates between a dream world occupied by coma victims and a very real feeling New York City. Our main character is stuck in the dream world and attempting to piece together the events that put her there. There's a doctor nurse couple also looking into things. Friends and family are all pulled into the story in various ways.

There's something comfortable about a story with a single dominating set piece - in this case, the hospital room where our coma victim lays. Action happens outside of the hospital and in the dream world, but everything always returns to the hospital room. It's sort of the bullpen from a police procedural or the living room out of a sitcom. It's a bit staged, but that ties nicely into the story as a number of the characters, including our coma victim are involved with the theater.

Some of my happiest memories involve working with the theater in various aspects. The process of building a physical manifestation of the setting so that it can be occupied by the characters in your favorite stories is magical. No other word for it. And it's that magic that manages to ooze from the pages here. show less

I've been in a graphic novel loving mood lately, and so I decided to try out something new. Generally what I read is dark, gritty and realistic. So why not take a step back and read something a little more light and fun? When I saw the cover of Return of the Dapper Men I instantly knew it was something I would want to read. From the gorgeously illustrated characters, right down to the steampunk looking gears, I knew this would be something I would fall in love with.

As always, let's start show more with the illustrations. Wow. That is pretty much as accurate as I can describe them. They are stunning. Multiple colors pop off of every page, and the attention to minute details makes it so that you can't bear to look away from a single page, for fear you might miss something important. I'll honestly admit that I reread this three times. Once to pour over the stunning illustrations, once to read the story, and again to fully appreciate both together. It was definitely worth it. Janet Lee has created a world that evokes thoughts fairy tales long lost. I don't like to compare books, but the illustrations greatly reminded me of the original Alice in Wonderland illustrations. Gorgeous, completely perfect on every page for the story that they were telling. Although the story is amazing, it is the illustrations that really bring it to life.

As for the story, Return of The Dapper Men is fantasy and magic blended together and penned upon a page. In the world of Anorev (Verona spelled backwards for you anagram buffs out there), time has literally stopped. Somehow all that is left are children and robots. Each has no idea of their past, or their future, and they separate themselves into separate parts of the world. Zoe and Ayden are the only two characters who understand that the divide doesn't make sense. They aren't sure yet just why, but they know something big is about to happen.

Zoe and Ayden are such wonderfully captivating characters. One a robot girl, the other a human boy, they find things in one another that are complementary and just perfect. As I followed along on their journey to find out why the Dapper Men had returned (bowler hats and all), I fell in love with the simple understanding they had. The city of Anorev couldn't have been named any more aptly, let's put it that way. The chemistry and mystery between Zoe and Ayden bleeds off the page, and it bled straight into my heart. Even if I had wanted to put the book down for a moment, I wouldn't have been able to. I was too enamored with their entangled lives.

Shades of fairy tales, morality tales, and so much more fill Return of the Dapper Men, and mesh into a beautiful and lyrical read. I quite truthfully was taken all the way back to my days of reading Grimm's Fairy Tales. Although the story may not always be happy, may not always be fair, it's as close to reality in the world of fantasy as you can get. Buried under here are thoughts, ideas, wishes and dreams that we all have hiding inside us. It's amazing graphic novels like this that remind us to bring them to the surface. show less

A stunning graphic novel that gently asks questions about what our roles in life are, our responsibilities and the choices we face or choose not to face.

I was first drawn to this book by the artwork which is just beautiful and seems to have a heavy Art Nouveau mixed with steam punk mixed with Maurice Sendak influence and yet still feels completely original and managed to be very light and whimsical without being fluffy and trite seeming.

The story took me a bit longer to get into becuase it show more asked way more questions than it answered...which may just be the point, also the first time I read it I was paying more attention to the art and this story really requires you to pay attention and think.

With the second reading I really enjoyed the depth of it and all the questions both answered and unanswered and that it makes you think instead of leading you by the hand from point A to point B. For me it felt like the questions were the main point of the story not just telling you what happens.

I also really appreciated how the dialog boxes were integrated with the art and felt a part of the art vs. just being plugged in to hold the text, and how they were shaped different to match the different types of characters and how the art and the story truly do compliment each other and support each other. show less

This was pretty good. I really liked the art a lot but obviously there weren't any big surprises. I can't remember if I've ever read the original so I was very curious how much of the text was the same.

It's funny because I thought it would have been really fun (but totally ridiculous) if Scrooge would have turned into the ultimate zombie killer and been totally armed to the teeth then wiped out the entire town.