Hail, Morningstar!

[alobear]

Wow. I’m reading something that requires me to look stuff up in order to understand it – that hasn’t happened in a long while. And it does me no credit that I’m surprised this intellectualism is to be found in a comic. Having read Watchmen, 1492, V for Vendetta and the Sandman series, I really should have managed to kick the ingrained dismissal of comics, but apparently I still have much to learn, grasshopper.

Adding to the impenetrable cool of obscure references is one of my favourite reoccurring characters from literature. Whether it be the epic anti-hero of Milton’s “Paradise Lost”, the scenery-chewing master manipulator of Al Pacino in “The Devil’s Advocate”, or the foul-mouthed and agony-enduring narrator of Glen Duncan’s “I, Lucifer”, the devil always gets me going.

He embodies evil and pain, but he always has a seductive beauty, wicked humour and a sense of bottomless depth that will suck you in and never let you go. Basically, he’s the ultimate bad boy, but this is one bad boy I never want to see redeemed. While he cannot offer true freedom (if God is omniscient and omnipotent, he must have orchestrated or at least condoned the war in heaven, yada, yada), he can offer rebellion and mockery over blind worship.

Lucifer himself famously said it is better to rule in hell than serve in heaven. I have no desire to rule in hell, but laughing with the devil is always going to be more attractive to me than kneeling before the Lord.

Mike Carey’s series of Lucifer comics also includes intelligent writing, powerful dialogue, and a very dry humour that suits its main character down to a tee. He is sarcastic and smooth, but still trapped by the forces that surround him, even despite his retirement, which makes him very interesting. I thought perhaps buying the instalments would be rather extravagant, but they are well worth the asking price and I’m certainly going to want to read them again in the future.

On top of all that, disapproving looks from straight-laced commuters on the tube are always an added bonus!

(Much later: It's taken me all day to find the right word to describe Mike Carey's writing, but I finally figured it out on the train home - it's visceral.)

Comments

[corone.livejournal.com]

If you need to fill in any gaps I have all the Lucifers.

You may also like to try 'Books of Magic' and 'Fables'

[cholten99.livejournal.com]

> Lucifer himself famously said it is better to rule in hell than serve in
> heaven. I have no desire to rule in hell, but laughing with the devil is
> always going to be more attractive to me than kneeling before the Lord.

You know I love you, yeah? ;-)