Review - Fagin the Jew 10th Anniversary EditionReview by Paul Fiander
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Writer; Will Eisner
Art by; Will Eisner |
The Ten year Anniversary edition comes in Hard Cover and will be released on the 14th August 2013. The book features a Foreword by Brian Michael Bendis and a introduction by Dickens scholar Jeet Heer!
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I have had a strange love affair with the books of Charles Dickens. Growing up we had an amazing set of leather bound books which I was not allowed to touch, instead I had to make do with paperbacks (this makes sense now). Then secondary school came around and between uninspired teaching and having to read aloud in class I came to detest his works. Thankfully while at college a teacher taught me the insightful nature of one of literature's most famous sons and since then I have enjoyed his books for what they are; treatises on Victorian England. The amazing way Dickens highlighted the true darker side of the time was testament to an author, more concerned with making a statement then selling people on fake hopes and dreams.
Fast forward a century or two and writer Will Eisner created a comic based on one of the most infamous Dickens characters Moses Fagin (second only to Abel Magwitch in my eyes for best character). Unlike Tolkein, Dickens did not create a complex backstory for his character's instead he dropped you into their lives at a specific time and let you work the rest out for yourself. However Eisner did have the wealth of historical knowledge from the Victoria's to build upon and what he created is almost on par with the it's source material. The title of the comic is instantly inflammatory to some, Dickens constant references to Fagin as 'the Jew' caused accusations that he was anti-Semitic at the time. Eisner doe's a good job in the appendix explaining his views on the subject and I tend to agree with his outlook. Literature is of its time and there is always a certain amount of prejudice in a reportorial piece like Oliver Twist. This does not excuse Dickens and he did try in later versions to tone down the use of the term, nonetheless at the time just as now there were criminals of all race, creeds and denominations. Perhaps the better way to look at Fagan is a product of the world around him. In the forward by Brian Michael Bendis he sums this up more eloquently then I ever could in describing Eisners's work he says.;
His theory here is that you are not born to stereotype; you become the stereotype through circumstance and environment. |
The Front Cover of the Comic
The story in the comic covers Fagin from a small boy to late in his life, this includes his time with Oliver Twist. The story is filled with wit and charm along with the look at the seedy side of life in Victorian London. The art is all monotone penmanship and looks really effective as the story plays out. It's almost as if you're reading a comic that would have been produced at the time. There are routine plot expositions in between the panels and these I found helpful and they allowed me to concentrate on the visuals and dialogue.
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This really is a great piece of writing and Eisner did a great job. It may not be for all as there are no extreme action set pieces or fairy tales instead you get a chance to look at a treatise on a notorious character in English literature and decided for yourself if he really is as evil as you remember him.
The Hard Cover comic is available for pre-order from Dark Horse comics. Follow this link for more details.
Alternatively you can read a preview of the comic in the Dark Horse iPad app here and the Android version of the app here.
Alternatively you can read a preview of the comic in the Dark Horse iPad app here and the Android version of the app here.
Wrap Up
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The Good - Eisner at his best, Great treatise on Victorian London
The Bad - Not for all, |
4.5/5 |
Images courtesy of Dark Horse Comics
Comic - Provided by Dark Horse Comics
Comic - Provided by Dark Horse Comics
