Gunnerkrigg Court Vol. 1: Orientation

Originally posted at Libri Ago.

I've been fascinated for a while now with the fusion of text and graphics that comprise graphic novels. The problem I find is that most comics and graphic novels are geared toward a male audience. While it's great that there are books for the numerous guys who are reluctant readers, I wish there were more graphic novels that appealed to women—especially women who are strong, smart, and dress in actual clothes. So I was ecstatic when I found Gunnerkrigg Court, a captivating series of graphic novels for teen girls.

In the first volume, Orientation, Antimony Carver arrives at the gloomy Gunnerkrigg Court, a British boarding school that looks more like a factory than a school. Sounds normal enough, but that show more illusion fades within the first few pages as strange things start to happen.

Soon enough Antimony discovers that her parents—her mother recently deceased and her father missing—are intricately tied to this school and the mysteries that surround it. Events at Gunnerkrigg may even hold the key to understanding what happened to her parents.

Antimony's world is a dark one populated with robots, demons, and forest gods, but it also one in which she and her pre-teen classmates can still have fun. This isn't a humorous book by any means, but there is a quirkiness to the situations and scenes that give it a certain kind of depth I've only found in graphic novels. The best comparison I can make is to Emily the Strange, another graphic novel series* I absolutely adore. As with Emily the Strange, there's something youthful but dark about the illustrations that I find fascinating.

While some of the chapters in this volume feel a bit episodic—which makes sense considering the series started out as a web comic—enough of the the overarching plot threads are woven throughout that it all fits together well.

This volume ends much like the Harry Potter books: at the end of the school year but with enough mystery to propel readers immediately into the next book.

* There is a series of books for teens featuring Emily the Strange that are mainly text-based but with graphic elements. The original graphic novels are much darker, though just as compelling, and fit more into the traditional comic style. show less

This graphic novel/comic book, which marks the first print appearance of the award-winning Gunnerkrigg Court webcomic, is an absolute delight! I was drawn immediately into the adventures of its young heroine, Antimony Carver, as she begins to explore the world of Gunnerkrigg Court, the strange and magical boarding school to which she has been sent. From the very first chapter, in which Antimony discovers that the second shadow she has gained, since arriving at school, is a being who needs help returning to his home across the river, in Gillitie Wood, I was in love - with the characters, the setting, the artwork, and the magically matter-of-fact happenings.

There is a surreal quality to the storytelling that works very well, making the show more reader/viewer comfortable with not knowing everything (or much of anything, really) about the mysterious court. Of course, as the story unfolds, we learn more: about the many marvelous aspects of the "school" (is it really just a school?) itself, from the fabulous old library, with its hidden door into a Minotaur-inhabited labyrinth, to its massive robotic department; about the history of the students and teachers (many of whom were once students themselves); and about the residents (one of them a god) of Gillitie Wood. We also, together with Antimony, meet and befriend Kat Donlon, confront Reynardine the body-snatching demon, and have close encounters with everything from ghosts to fairies.

I raced through this, enjoying both the story and the art - I loved the dark backgrounds, the expressive faces, even the thick, glossy paper - and immediately sought out the second installment, Gunnerkrigg Court, Volume 2: Research. If that's not high praise, I don't know what is! I hope to continue enjoying the story of Gunnerkrigg Court for some time (I suspect I will become a regular lurker over on their site), and think I may need to own these! I've never felt that way about a comic book/graphic novel before... show less

I first read this way back in 2009 and fully intended to keep reading, but my library only had the first two volumes so I let it go. But now I have most of the series available so I'm eager to give it another go.

It's a fairly typical magic school kind of thing, with a pair of girl students forming a friendship and facing all sort of supernatural creatures and perils as they try to sort out all the secrets of the school and their parents. The art and characters are oddly endearing and the mythology is confusing but enticing, with the trickster god Coyote hanging around ready to add to the chaos.

I'm going to leave one review for all four volumes of Gunnerkrigg Court, but I devoured the whole comic last night and really enjoyed it.

It's Harry Potter-esque, with a Mary Sueish protagonist, Antimony, who shows up at a strange new school, Gunnerkrigg Court, where magic is common -- but science is King.

For Harry Potter similarities: the school is divided into four houses, there's a surprising lack of adult supervision, students are exposed to dangerous subjects and experiences, and especially the school as a locus for intergenerational discovery. Like Harry, Antimony learns about her parents by tracking and at times repeating experiences they had as students at the Court.

For Harry Potter not-so-similarities: this graphic novel show more isn't a rip-off. The school, for example, specializes in science education and magic is a fringe, frowned upon discipline. Mythical beasts and opiate trees may roam the grounds, but the students are supposed to be learning physics and engineering. A key sub-plot charts the invention and proliferation of robots, and Antimony's side-kick, Kat, is a science whiz.

The school administrators at the Court are not appealing or trustworthy. Antimony finds more to like in the leaders of the Wood across the way, which is -- of course -- forbidden, but they're not exactly trustworthy either.

The story is sweet and smart and, at times, really funny -- the comics about the pigeons, for example, made me crack up. The illustrations are lovely.

Fun read, and free! Online. show less

A delightful first volume to a quirky graphic novel series. There are all sorts of interesting ideas on display, and hints of an intriguing backstory for the adult characters, but what really gets me is the wonderfully unflappable and deadpan mien of the main character, twelve-year-old Antimony Carver, who takes all the weirdness in her stride. I definitely want to read more of her adventures!

Antimony Carver es una niña que acaba de empezar curso en un extraño internado de estilo británico llamado Gunnerkrigg Court. Entre clase y clase descubrirá poco a poco los misterios científicos y sobrenaturales en los que la escuela está inmersa. Sus aventuras también la involucrarán en las relaciones de desconfianza entre la escuela y el vecino bosque de Gillitie, en el que la tecnología está prohibida.

Muy bonito, muy interesante, muy recomendable.

Para que os hagáis una idea del estilo de las historias en este webcómic os diré que es como una mezcla de las novelas de Enid Blyton, las de Harry Potter y el viejo Mundo de Tinieblas. En Gunnerkrigg Court se entremezclan niños, clases, profesores, robots, fantasmas, monstruos show more y criaturas mitológicas. Un cóctel que podría haber salido muy mal, pero que deja buen sabor de boca.

El dibujo es sencillo, de línea clara y no muy detallado en los personajes aunque los fondos suelen estar más trabajados. En el apartado color, el autor usa una paleta limitada con predominancia de grises y marrones. Esto le da un aire algo triste y melancólico que, al menos para mí, es parte del encanto de esta obra.

Los arcos argumentales son por lo general largos, con minihistorias ocasionales insertadas dentro de los mismos. El registro toca tanto el drama como la comedia, pero lo normal es que se lea como un tebeo de aventuras y misterio. También tiene algo de viaje iniciático, por las pistas que Annie (diminutivo de Antimony) va reuniendo acerca del pasado de sus padres y por lo que aprende acerca del mundo en el que vive. show less

A group of my library kids have been raving about the Courtney Crumrin series, and I’m planning to buy this series and hand them over to those guys. It has the same kind of delightfully ho-hum response to really unusual situations, and similarly great characters. I loved the episodic feel – especially when it means there can be a one-pager featuring Fox Mulder.