Black Orchid Deluxe Edition

Author: Neil Gaiman

Illustrator: Dave McKean

Title: Black Orchid Deluxe Edition

Publication: May 1, 2012

Publisher: Vertigo

Genre: Comic Book, Graphic Novel, Fantasy

Pages: 176

Audience: 16 and up

Rating: 2 out 5

Source: Purchased
Goodreads

Purchase: Amazon |Barnes and Noble| Books A Million 

Goodreads Synopsis:

Before introducing the modern version of The Sandman, Neil Gaiman wrote this dark tale that reinvented a strange DC Comics super hero in the Vertigo mold. Featuring spectacular art by Gaiman's frequent collaborator, Dave McKean, BLACK ORCHID is now collected in hardcover for the first time.After being viciously murdered, Susan Linden is reborn fully grown as the Black Orchid, a hybrid of plant and human, destined to avenge her own death. Now, as this demigoddess attempts to reconcile human memory and botanical origins, she must untangle the webs of deception and secrets that led to her death. Beginning in the cold streets of a heartless metropolis and ending in the Amazon rainforest, this book takes the reader on a journey through secrets, suffering and self-rediscovery.

My thoughts:

I am a huge fan of Neil Gaiman's. I have been reading The Sandman saga, which I love. When I heard the re-release of Black Orchid, I was excited. I went to the local comic book shop and bought a copy of it. The art is gorgeous and is worth looking at. The storyline, however, was lacking. I can't go into much detail without giving away the whole story because there isn't much to it. The graphic novel explains how Susan becomes the Black Orchid, but it raises new questions that have not been answered. I felt confused while reading and was very confused and unhappy when I finished. I was trying to piece information about Susan together, figure out who all these other people are and why they were important, and it ended up being a tangled mess of a story. One part of the storyline made no sense, I was wondering why it was even included. It could have been left out completely. I did like the cross-over of DC characters into the Vertigo world. Batman, Poison Ivy, Mad Hatter, the Joker, Swamp Thing, etc. are all intertwined in the story. That was the only plus side to the story. Another plus was the artwork. If you purchase it or read it, do it for the artwork. The book is very beautiful. Overall, I was disappointed in the book, but the artwork made it worth it. I had bought the book,and in the end I gave it to someone else who also loves graphic novels.