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Petrograd
by
Philip Gelatt ,
Tyler Crook
Introducing the untold tale of the international conspiracy behind the murder of Gregorii Rasputin Set during the height of the first World War, the tale follows a reluctant British spy stationed in the heart of the Russian empire as he is handed the most difficult assignment of his career: orchestrate the death of the mad monk, the Tsarina's most trusted adviser and the s...more
Hardcover, 250 pages
Published
August 3rd 2011
by Oni Press
(first published August 2nd 2011)
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Petrograd by Philip Gelatt and Tyler Crook is a historic thriller in a graphic novel format due to released on August 3 2011. Rasputin and the events of Russian Revolution of 1916 have consistently been a subject of great curiosity and interest. Petrograd takes a close look at the people and powers of the time, and speculates on exactly how Rasputin was really murdered. No one knows the whole, true story, but the version of events in this graphic novel seem quite realistic and connect well the t...more
1916. Petrograd, Russia.
The eastern front of the Great War is raging on just outside the city limits. Within the metropolis, a different struggle is emerging. Revolutionaries, sick and tired of the famine and poverty that’s destroying the population, plans to overthrow the current ruler, Tsar Nicolas II.
Across town, a daring plan is being formed by a small fraction of the recently formed British Secret Intelligence Service. News has reached the British that the Russians seem to negotiate peace-n...more
The eastern front of the Great War is raging on just outside the city limits. Within the metropolis, a different struggle is emerging. Revolutionaries, sick and tired of the famine and poverty that’s destroying the population, plans to overthrow the current ruler, Tsar Nicolas II.
Across town, a daring plan is being formed by a small fraction of the recently formed British Secret Intelligence Service. News has reached the British that the Russians seem to negotiate peace-n...more
Many times, different assassins tried to take Rasputin out. You've probably heard the story of the most famous attempt: first, a group of conspirators invited Rasputin to their home and poisoned him. Then they shot him. Then they threw him into the river. Russia is always cold, but this happened in the middle of winter. Naturally, Rasputin shows up for work the next day carrying on as if absolutely nothing happened. There is not a scratch on him.
This is the story of Russia during World War I. Be...more
This is the story of Russia during World War I. Be...more
Very highly recommended! It's a gorgeous looking book, and the story and atmosphere is reminiscent of a John LeCarre spy novel. There's also a bibliography at the end which I might very well check out soon because I was quite hooked in by the story.
I'm now a fan of both Gelatt and Crook.
I'm now a fan of both Gelatt and Crook.
Mediocre novel. Great artwork. Rasputin is one of those figures in Russian history who is shrouded in legend. How you make this bizarre chapter in Russian history unexceptional and even boring is beyond me but somehow the author achieves this.
Next time he might not want to base his book largely on Anglo-centric sources like the problematic Orlando Figes. Also, the scene where a Russian peasant woman embarrasingly apologies to the English main character for being subject to a "backwards" society...more
Next time he might not want to base his book largely on Anglo-centric sources like the problematic Orlando Figes. Also, the scene where a Russian peasant woman embarrasingly apologies to the English main character for being subject to a "backwards" society...more
Russian lore is filled with tales about the mad monk known as Rasputin. In Tyler Crook's graphic novel, we explore the rumblings of the plot designed to eliminate the crwon's advisor and its effects on its conspirators. Englishman Cleary is part of the British SIS intelligence agency, assigned to report on the goings-on in the Russian territories. As word reaches his boss of a possible partnership between the tsarina and German government, Cleary is sent to put into motion a plan that will preve...more
Petrograd by Philip Gelatt (art by Tyler Crook) is a graphic novel about an assassination. The graphic novels tells about an international conspiracy behind the murder of Gregorii Rasputin.
World War I is ravaging the world. Hunger, depression and despair reign while only hard core revolutionaries at the bottom of the food chain and those in the upper echelons of government cling to a drop of hope.
The powers that be think that Rasputin is urging the royal family to make...more
World War I is ravaging the world. Hunger, depression and despair reign while only hard core revolutionaries at the bottom of the food chain and those in the upper echelons of government cling to a drop of hope.
The powers that be think that Rasputin is urging the royal family to make...more
Huh. A graphic novel about the Rasputin's assassination and the Russian Revolution. Not what I normally think of when I think of sitting down to read a graphic novel.
Petrograd is a seemingly well-researched story from Phillip Gelatt and illustrated by Tyler Cook. When I first started reading it, I was put off by the whole thing. It was history, it was an extremely muted palette - which seemed so obvious, and it just didn't appeal to me.
BUT WAIT! I started to really read it. I started to really w...more
Petrograd is a seemingly well-researched story from Phillip Gelatt and illustrated by Tyler Cook. When I first started reading it, I was put off by the whole thing. It was history, it was an extremely muted palette - which seemed so obvious, and it just didn't appeal to me.
BUT WAIT! I started to really read it. I started to really w...more
**Read via NetGalley**
Petrograd is an incredibly well executed graphic novel. Set amongst the backdrop of World War I and the October Revolution, this tight espionage tale follows a conflicted British spy dealing with his own doubts and loyalties, as he is drawn into the plot to assassinate Rasputin. Far more than just an entertaining and stylish read, I was surprising by how successful it was in grabbing my attention.
Philip Gelatt creates a layered and quickly paced narrative which, while set...more
Petrograd is an incredibly well executed graphic novel. Set amongst the backdrop of World War I and the October Revolution, this tight espionage tale follows a conflicted British spy dealing with his own doubts and loyalties, as he is drawn into the plot to assassinate Rasputin. Far more than just an entertaining and stylish read, I was surprising by how successful it was in grabbing my attention.
Philip Gelatt creates a layered and quickly paced narrative which, while set...more
I'll admit that I only heard of Petrograd because Tyler Crook became the artist for B.P.R.D. But once I heard about it, it was as much curiosity about the book itself as interest in Crook's art that got me to track it down.
It was everything I've come to expect from a good historical comic. Layered storytelling, bringing together seemingly unrelated events. Sharp, monochromatic artwork. The art in Petrograd seems a little denser than Crook's art in B.P.R.D. so far, but the almost cartoonish fluid...more
It was everything I've come to expect from a good historical comic. Layered storytelling, bringing together seemingly unrelated events. Sharp, monochromatic artwork. The art in Petrograd seems a little denser than Crook's art in B.P.R.D. so far, but the almost cartoonish fluid...more
Nearly 100 years after his death, the Russian holy man Grigori Rasputin, intimate advisor to the Tsarina Alexandra and healer of her son Alexei, remains one of history's more enigmatic figures. Petrograd reveals the untold plot behind the Mad Monk's assassination -- political, social, and romantic. What role did the British consulate play? Which of the bourgeoisie formulated the plan? How exactly were the Bolsheviks involved? Gelatt's well-crafted script combined with Crook's incredible draftsma...more
Bleak, but captivating. Tells an excellent story with plausible characters, and manages to address the compelling issues of the time and place: revolution, monarchy vs. self-rule, endless war, hunger, despair, and cold. Rasputin was well-rendered and menacing. The elaborate background architecture was a necessary counterpoint to the human desolation at its feet. I don't know anything about the historical facts of this event, but this story felt all too plausible due to the sloppiness and ineptit...more
Um inquieto agente secreto britânico na S. Petersburgo de 1915 é apanhado num curioso jogo de poderes entre a polícia secreta do czar, um superior hierárquico sem escrúpulos, uma amante revolucionária e um grupo de decadentes príncipes russos a quem o agente tem de convencer a eliminar um homem tido como uma ameaça ao curso esperado da primeira guerra mundial: nada menos que o lendário Rasputin. O caminho é inseguro e o protagonista depressa se vê abandonado por todos, numa cidade à beira da exp...more
I picked this up on a whim but wow did it pay off.
The real star here is the art. The faces are so compelling and interesting that it pays off in a way that film or text wouldn't. You get to really dive in to the looks on the faces.
The handling of Rasputin is also worth noting. This could have been shlock with an over-the-top Johnny Depp-style Rasputin, but the understatement is wonderful and even a bit chilling. Considering that he has fewer lines then probably any other major character that's r...more
The real star here is the art. The faces are so compelling and interesting that it pays off in a way that film or text wouldn't. You get to really dive in to the looks on the faces.
The handling of Rasputin is also worth noting. This could have been shlock with an over-the-top Johnny Depp-style Rasputin, but the understatement is wonderful and even a bit chilling. Considering that he has fewer lines then probably any other major character that's r...more
Petrograd is, as its synopsis so aptly puts it, a graphic novel about the plot to kill Rasputin. Set in WWI Russia, the tale is told through the eyes of an English spy, Cleary, who is caught between duty to country and his own shifting convictions.
Rasputin is a fascinating character, partly because Americans like to pretend they could never understand him - he must just be a Russian thing. Except, he's not. Rasputin plays his victims like any other grifter - giving them the false hope they need...more
Rasputin is a fascinating character, partly because Americans like to pretend they could never understand him - he must just be a Russian thing. Except, he's not. Rasputin plays his victims like any other grifter - giving them the false hope they need...more
EDIT: A more thorough version of my review of this book was published at Comic Book Snob.
I'll admit, I mostly picked up this book because I wanted to see more illustration work from Tyler Crook, the new regular artist on John Arcudi's B.P.R.D. series. I am a big fan of Guy Davis, who left B.P.R.D. this year to work on some other projects, and I wanted to know more about the guy taking up Guy's mantle.
Interestingly enough, this is Crook's first comics project, even though his first issue of B.P.R...more
I'll admit, I mostly picked up this book because I wanted to see more illustration work from Tyler Crook, the new regular artist on John Arcudi's B.P.R.D. series. I am a big fan of Guy Davis, who left B.P.R.D. this year to work on some other projects, and I wanted to know more about the guy taking up Guy's mantle.
Interestingly enough, this is Crook's first comics project, even though his first issue of B.P.R...more
A scattered, frantic tale of deception and plotting, bookended by the sweeping cultural changes that made Rasputin-era Russia so intriguing. The art is fantastic, the dialogue appropriately murky and double edged, all delivered with a knowing smirk, growled disdain or panicked hopelessness that marked the times. This isn't so much an entertaining read as one that invites further academic reads ignited by the slice of time represented within this graphic novel.
This book was amazing. The level of research by the creative team – from the script to the art - really shows and help make this history lesson not only entertaining but informative as well. As I was reading Petrograd, I really felt I was witnessing history in the making. Some creative liberties were probably taken, of that I’m not fooling myself, but the version of the events surrounding the assassination of Rasputin
as presented in this book
is pretty convincing and definitely
plausible
. And...more
So glad I picked this one up on whim at the library - what a surprise! Epic story of Russia during the Revolution, and the plot to assassinate Grigori Rasputin. The story follows Cleary, a British spy, and his small cohort of friends and colleagues as they plan and execute the "Mad Monk". Fast-paced and thrilling - yet historical and epic. Hope to see more graphic novels and stories like this one in the future.
Set during the first World War, Petrograd follows an english spy as he navigates the Russian aristocracy, revolutionary peasents and his own superiors while trying to have Rasputin assassinated for the sake of the war effort. The art is fresh and unique, but sacrifices a bit of clarity for style. Oftentimes I wouldn't know if I was looking at the main character or other supporting characters. The story and dialogue and good and satisfying, but never rises above that.
I like this interpretation of the murder of Rasputin. The involvement of the British agent as a catalyst is an interesting twist as well. The thing that caught my interest on this one is that there is an actual story here that the reader can follow. No flash backs and forwards or weird timeline jumps, and with actual human characters. It made this seem more of a novel than a comic.
Story and art come together in this comic to good effect. The muted tones and watercolor feel of it were great. The storytelling was altogether good, and while I didn't like the main character (I think he's an obviously divisive character), I generally enjoyed watching him deal with the crazy situations he was put in, and that he put himself in. More like 3.5 stars.
Superb historic-fictional account (based on the newest evidence) of the assassination of Rasputin.
I read about Rasputin when I was a kid, and most of what I read was anti-Russian propagandistic Bullsh!t.
Most of the "facts" about him are now strongly questioned.
The lesson?
Non-fiction has the word FICTION in it!
Perhaps all history is historic-FICTION.
This version of the story was plausible and both well-written and expertly illustrated.
I read about Rasputin when I was a kid, and most of what I read was anti-Russian propagandistic Bullsh!t.
Most of the "facts" about him are now strongly questioned.
The lesson?
Non-fiction has the word FICTION in it!
Perhaps all history is historic-FICTION.
This version of the story was plausible and both well-written and expertly illustrated.
A brilliantly executed graphic novel depicting the origins and the act of assassinating Rasputin, the mad monk who was basically steering the ship of state for Imperial Russia through his relationship with the Tsarina. The author wonderfully details the chaos that was Russia during the early years of World War I, and the artist's gritty work harkens the reader back to the early 20th century.
Very interesting graphic novel about a third the way through.
Interesting style, wondering how will proceed, good historical fiction.
---------------
Good graphic novel.
Excellent artwork by Tyler Crook. Curious how close it is to the actual story of Rasputin's death.
Would be curious to read other Gelatt/Crook graphic novels.
Recommended.
Interesting style, wondering how will proceed, good historical fiction.
---------------
Good graphic novel.
Excellent artwork by Tyler Crook. Curious how close it is to the actual story of Rasputin's death.
Would be curious to read other Gelatt/Crook graphic novels.
Recommended.
Very well-written graphic novel about the fall of the tsar in Russia in 1916-1917. The historical context of the story is well-realized, and the thriller aspects of the spy plot that drives the narrative do not disappoint. The characters are rounded out perfectly, and the art in the book is extremely expressive and gorgeously rendered.
the fascination continues. a graphic novel version of one of the many assassination attempts on Rasputin. I've got to find a biography on the madman, but preferably one that won't bludgeon me into unconsciousness.
the art is lovely, the story well crafted, and yet another writer and artist enter into my search for list. le sigh.
the art is lovely, the story well crafted, and yet another writer and artist enter into my search for list. le sigh.
This is one of the better stand alone graphic novels that I have read in a long time. The story presents an interesting espionage piece with interesting (and at times completely insane) characters. The book also takes a historic setting and makes it feel alive and vibrant.
I really dug the art in the book, but I don't think it would be perfect for everybody.
I really dug the art in the book, but I don't think it would be perfect for everybody.
Very interesting subject matter, if a little historically goofy, I think the license taken was necessary and it was well researched. I wish the main character, Cleary, was less of a cypher. There was no explanation for why he was involved in the first place. Which I guess is part of his arc, but he just comes across as static.
OK, so now I'm looking at some graphic novels. MKW lent this to me when she saw me reading the Bee times. A quite remarkable telling of the story of the assassination of Rasputin, that reveals that it was essentially a British plot (who knew?), but all told as comic book through dialogue.
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Feb 12, 2012 03:30pm