Legends of the Dark Crystal, Vol. 1: The Garthim Wars

Legends of the Dark Crystal #1

by Barbara Randall Kesel, Heidi Arnhold, Max Kim (Illustrator)

This much-anticipated original prequel to Jim Henson's fantasy masterpiece is set 100 years before "The Dark Crystal," the groundbreaking film that won the hearts and minds of fans all over the world, and set the stage for the new age of muppet-making. Available March 2007.

Genres: Manga, Fantasy, Graphic Novels, Comics, Young Adult, Comics Manga, Comic Book

190 pages, Paperback

First published November 13, 2007

About the author

Barbara Randall Kesel is an American writer and editor of comic books; her bibliography includes work for DC Comics, Marvel Comics, CrossGen, Image Comics and Dark Horse Comics. Kesel is a very outspoken opponent of sexism in the comic book industry. She is known for her strong female characters, influencing her then husband Karl's work on Lois Lane in the Superman titles and creating Grace, the ruler of the Golden City location in Comics' Greatest World.

Kesel initially came into the comics world after writing a 10-page letter to editor Dick Giordano regarding the portrayal of female comic book characters. At Dark Horse, Kesel was part of Team CGW, responsible for most of the design and creation of the setting and characters in the Golden City location. She is currently part of book packaging company The Pack, alongside Lee Nordling, Brian Augustyn, Gordon Kent and Dave Olbrich.

Kesel has been nominated for the 1991 "Best Editor" Eisner Award for Badlands, Aliens: Genocide and Star Wars. In 1995, she was nominated for "Best Anthology" and "Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Material" Harvey Awards for, respectively, Instant Piano and Hellboy: Seed of Destruction. She won the 1996 "Best Graphic Album of Previously Published Work" Harvey Award, for Hellboy: The Wolves of St. August.

Reviews

[lief · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very enjoyable! Love love love the world. The writing was a little juvenile at times for me, but it is 13+. I also find the whole black and white morality stuff kind of bland sometimes, but hopefully the characters and their intentions will become more fleshed-out as the series goes on.
Definitely going to continue onwards with this series!

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a life-long fan of the Dark Crystal, I may be a bit biased in my opinion, but I thoroughly enjoyed this graphic novel. The artwork is expressive and suits the characters well, even if it seems more manga-style than the original Brian Froud creations that inhabit the original film. The Garthim Wars is a fun storyline that reveals more of the backstory leading into the circumstances of The Dark Crystal film plot.

[cauldronofevil · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve only seen the Dark Crystal movie within the last five years or so. So I don’t really have any sentimental attachment to it. I appreciated the artistry and imagination of it, though, so I was curious about the comic.

This appears to be a ‘manga’. Comics no one was willing to pay for doing in color.

It’s also a prequel to the movie. Which might be tough since I don’t remember much about the movie.

”Chapter One” starts with a Gelfling and his wolf-dog Whouf seeing a herd of Garthim. He seems to be a ‘shepherd’ for Mounders. The Garthim appear to be heading for his home!

He gets the Mounders up and running. When they get home it appears to be destroyed. There are no bodies and no one answers his call. He thinks they’ve been taken to the palace to be fed to the crystal by the Skeksis.

One of the Garthim have heard his cries and comes back to attack him. They must be very sneaky. They break his flute. He fights back and stabs it with his broken flute, killing it.

He laments that the Skeksis won’t leave them alone. They finally found a place of peace with plenty of food.

” Isn’t anywhere safe anymore?!”

He takes the herd and Whouf and sets out to find their clanmates. They head out.

This was a pleasant story. A bit typical sure, but no more than ‘once upon a time’. The art was very good. And surprisingly not very anime-style but a pleasant mix. I’m calling it 3 stars and I’ll keep reading.

“Chapter Two“ starts with Whouf and Lahr sleeping against a Mounder. They rouse the Mounder herd to take to market.

They both hide under a tree and watch the herd go back so that they can attack the female Gelfling that has been following them. She reacts by screaming.

” Get away! Get away! ”

She’s woozy and tells them that the Garthim are coming. They dreamfast with each other.

I had to look this up. It’s like a Vulcan mind-meld where Gelflings can share memories with each other, like a mental montage.

Neffi shows Lahr her village where she made tapestries. Her older friend Lolly nags her about having kids. Neffi goes for a walk to get away from her. When she gets back to the village it is destroyed. There are no dead bodies. But they did ruin her rugs. She figures it was Garthim. She was the sole survivor. She decides to go warn the other villages. They decide to go together.

She asks Lahr for food. He gives her a donut he had in his pocket and tells her to sleep on a mounder.

Lahr tells her that the Garthim can be killed. He killed on with his flute.

Okay, that was pretty slow meet-cute, but was pleasant and the art was very good. 3 stars

”Chapter Three” Neffi and Lahr have reached Namopo valley. They are approached by a woman with wings.

Neffi says ‘like me’ but I don’t thing we’ve seen that yet!

She says her name is Kelsee and the Elders are waiting to talk to them. She leads them into a large cave where the Elders are arguing about the Garthim. Some say they should prepare, but some say they are well-enough hidden.

Lahr advises that they prepare because the captured ones taken to the castle never come back.

Neffi wanders off to talk to the children who aren’t allowed to speak when the adults are at the round table. The elder women assume she is a couple with Lahr. She resists that. She makes yarn mazes with the kids.

Belleg an elder also assumes Lahr has a mate in Neffi. He denies it.

One of the Elders remembers when he was a boy, Gelflings and Skeksis were not enemies. But something dark happened to them and they became prey.

The Elders call for a vote. Stay and defend ourselves? Flee and Leave ourselves unprotected?

This won’t get your heart racing but it’s still cute. 3 stars

”Chapter Four” starts with Emperor Skekso fearing they are running out of Gelfling Essence and General Skekvar assures him that there is plenty.

”Stop spewing steam up my beak General Skekvar. My sources say otherwise. ”

Skeklach the Collector is peeping through a hole at this and is glad for the discord.

In the caverns of the mountain Gelflings they are having a vote on whether to stay or flee.

While voting, the lookout spots a Garthim hoard coming. When he comes to the cavern to warn everyone someone is so started they break the jars holding the voting marbles so they don’t know which decision was made and there is no time to vote again!

Lahr yells at them that they’ve got to go, but Neffi says she counted the marbles and the vote was to stay! She says we stay and fight! With art!

”Our art will be our strength!”

Okay, well the art is still good and since it de-emphasized their snouty-ness the Gelflings look more like elvish types so it makes them more sympathetic. The pace is still pretty glacial but this is kind of a ‘cozy’ fantasy. I’m still in. 3 stars.

”Chapter Five” starts with the Elders and the whole clan giving a concert. And then smashing all their beautifully designed instruments.

”And thus our symphony is silenced. Let us now prepare our defense.”

Skektek takes one of the Gelflings out of the cage to drain it of its essence. Another Skeksis asks him why the Emperor takes all the Essence for himself? He then grabs a bottle of Essence and quaffs it down. He says it’s delicious and that Skektek better keep quiet about the heresy because he provided it!

The Elders are carving wooden takes, while some are cooking provisions. Neffi is twisting and knocking rope until her hands blister. Some are carving slingshots and bows. Kids are getting in the way.

One Gelfling goes nuts that they are preparing for war. It’s obscene. Lahr tries to reason with him.

Still slow going but I’m enjoying the art. This was 4 stars

”Chapter Six” starts with Neffi putting up a huge net with spikes in it across the canyon entrance.

The Garthim are coming toward the net while the Gelfling hold weapons and ride Mounders behind the net.

They manage to kill a Garthim or two but some also get captured and put in baskets on the Garthim’s back.

By stabbing the Garthim in the spaces between the shell plates they do manage to kill some of them. They even manage to free some from the baskets.

After taking some loses the Garthim turn and run away.

Elsewhere a bat-like creature (a Crystal Bat) shows a Skeksis some ‘video’ of the battle. He vows revenge!

Lahr and Neffi decide that next they should go to the castle and try to rescue everyone.

Well that was fine. No real surprises, but the art was nice. 3 stars

“Bonus Material“ comes with 18 really nice pieces of Dark Crystal art. Not really related to anything, but very good stuff.

Overall this was pretty average. 3 stars for the whole book and definitely not something you should hunt down unless you’re a completest. But it was pleasant enough and showed some personality and creativity.

This could have really been any old fantasy adventure type story but there are some nice touches and I could see this being adapted to the Dark Crystal Adventure Game.

This is the earliest comic story I could find about Dark Crystal (2007). So 25 years after it was released! (1982).

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

In concurrence with other reviewers, I would not call this a bad read. If you like the Dark Crystal, you'll be entertained enough to enjoy yourself. The artwork is easily my favourite way the Gelfling have been depicted in comic book format. Even the little background creatures feel like something that came from the Jim Henson Creature Workshop. My biggest qualms are with the story, namely with how little time anything is given to develop. Danger begins and resolves within one or two pages at times, leaving little room for actual suspense. It's odd that a graphic novel can feel so rushed, and pershaps this is due to the fact that the story was supposed to originally be three volumes as opposed to two. But the fact is, it's less of a Garthim War, and more of a Garthim battle.

The characters are likeable but not very fleshed out. Sometimes there is an emphasis on a strong moment of emotion with little follow-up or explanation. There is a scene where the female Gelfling, Neffi, is chastised by a child for holding her hand too long. There's a weird gravity given to this moment with no real reason. I suppose children's honesty can be jarring, but it felt out of left field and did little to build toward the story. Furthermore, everyone keeps trying to insinuate that the two main characters should couple up. It wouldn't bother me so much if it didn't happen so often.

The Skeksis are written well enough, if not ripped wholesale from the movie. The Chamberlain acts exactly the same as he does in the film, in that he doesn't really do anything new to his character. He pretends to be a friend to Gelfling, he schemes against Skeksis, he fails a trial. This isn't exactly a criticism, as at least he feels true to his character. The Mystic telling the story seems a bit redundant at times, especially in volume two when he appears directly after a synopsis of volume one, only to give a synopsis of volume one. Also, it was odd to me that skekLach is missing a hand, but his Mystic counterpart was not. I will say I was rather impressed with Aughra. They seemed to capture her tone very well. Every line of her dialogue was something I could have easily heard her saying.

All in all, the books are a disappointment, but in a way I am sure their creators would agree with. Due to never really getting to tell the story as originally intended, things feel truncated and abrupt. It's hard to lob any real criticism at it as it never got a chance to be what it was supposed to be. While it has an ending of sorts, it doesn't really feel like much of one. While it's not canon and never got much of a chance to develop, I would still say it's essential reading for any Dark Crystal fan. If nothing else, it's nice to read a tale from Thra. For the little time it was given, it captures a bit of the magic that we all loved about the movie.

[Uche · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chapter 1, Lahr, full-time "mounder"-herder (who are giant sheep basically), and part-time musician, and his faithful dog analog appropriately named Whouf, have just survived a Garthim invasion on their village. Away from the village, Lahr saw the appraoching army but was too far away to warn them, arrived in time to meet the ashes a la Luke Skywalker. In a fit of rage, he stabs a Garthim with his flute and ... kills it! For probably the first time ever, a Gelfling fights a Garthim and wins.

Chapter 2 - We meet Neffi, a weaver. Like Lahr, she too is a survivor of a Garthim-invasion of her village. As they dreamfast, they share thier memories of their peaceful existence "before the Fire Nation" attack.

Chapter 3 - They get to another Gelfling village, where they share their stories with the elders who are deciding on whether to hide or flee. They decide to fight.

Chapter 4 - Interlude chapter with the Skeksis. Apparently only the Emperor drinks Gelfling essence? Sounds a bit counter-intuitivec. Lots of wildlife imagery of unsuspecting prey. Who's the dude who's spying on the General? Lol at the Emperor choking and the general is more worried about protecting the sceptre from breaking that his dying leader.

Back to the Gelflings... there's a vote that ends up being moot because the voting pots were broken when a panicked scout rushes in to tell them that the Garthim are coming. Perhaps if they didn't make the speech about accepting the results... Lahr has a panic attack, telling everyone to run but Neffi, in a surprising turn of events, takes charge, verbally slapping some sense into him and organising everyone else. She also claims she "counted" and saw the vote was to stay (and presumably) fight.

Chapter 5 - they prepare for war. Lahr is busy encouraging and advising everyone and feels a bit useless until Neffi points out to him that he's doing the most important job - he's HERDING. Touching moment with a little kid who wants to help, and he's given the job of hiding the other little kids because if he has to do that - ---- he has become an Elder.

Chapter 6 - the war. Losses. Including one old Elder, and then another Elder - maybe his wife or sister - avenges him by killing a Garthim. It's a resounding success and the Garthim end up running away. A Crystal Bat is watching though so we know that the Skeksis will have their revenge. But at least it ended on an optimistic note.

Now, will I ever read Volume 2....?

[Su · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn’t find this to be especially good but I think it would be unfair to say it was a terrible read. The pacing was wonky in several respects. The action just happens in bursts and it seems like all the events in this installment happen in the course of a day and a half. I will often suspend my sense of disbelief when the world being turned on it’s head in less than 6 months, but one and a half days is really a lot to ask a reader to buy into. The secondary(?)/parallel plot, the romance between Lahr and Neffi, also develops at the pace of a Big Bang. I think that even under the stress of extreme traumatic events taking place, romantic love would still take more than a day and half to come about. On that note as soon as Neffi is introduced her biggest concern is getting married. This was published in 2007 - I don’t care that the characters are imaginary creatures in an old, fictional fantasy world - there is no reason for a young Gelfling teen/young adult’s life to center around the prospect of marriage. And yet once she and Lahr make it to the next village, suddenly everyone is taking about them being mates (like of the breeding variety)/a couple and each one puts serious consideration into that while a Lahr fan club is also being founded. Furthermore for a Gelfling who spent the better part of the first two chapters insisting he wasn’t a warrior and just a peaceful, music-loving shepherd, Lahr was very quick to rally an entire tribe to war.

I also found the dialogue to be exhaustively expositional and repetitive. This was trying so hard to be a manga about Jim Henson’s Dark Crystal and the world of Thra before the events of the original film, but maybe the attempt was crippled by trying to confine the story to the manga format or constraining the format to accommodate the story. I think the concept and the story are there but the execution came off flat - however, I still believe it’s only fair to read the second book before too before any final judgments can be made.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been doing a chronological reading of The Dark Crystal media, and I figured it would be good to read this after watching Age of Resistance. As excellent of a show as it is, it turns out that it contradicts Legends of the Dark Crystal. And it's not small stuff but rather the fates and identities of certain Skeksis. The show does not really fit with the recent young adult novels either, for that matter, since events are altered. I suppose one could use unreliable narration from the Mystic at the beginning as an explanation, but that begs the question of why that Mystic would tell the story inaccurately. But this was a fun read regardless. As a manga, it lacks the colors I prefer to see in The Dark Crystal stories. Since it's black and white, dark creatures like Skeksis and Garthim don't stand out as much. But I really liked the post-apocalyptic feel of Thra at this point in time where the Gelfling are being hunted. And there's the usual machinations going on at the Skeksis castle.

[Kathy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the premise of this book but unfortunately it was a bit of a struggle to get through for me.

The storyline was broadly fine but I found the two main characters difficult to root for, especially since the romantic angle between them felt forced. It struck me as odd that the Gelfling in this version of The Dark Crystal had extremely similar customs to us, down to the point where an elder Gelfling woman was even asking the female protag when she was going to settle down with a guy.

The artwork was beautiful but the artist didn't really pin down the Gelfling look; the characters look basically human with only really full profile views of faces showing the muzzle and the eyes being basically human too. It stopped it feeling like it was set in the same world as the film.

[Riley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had no idea there were dark crystal manga, and I’ll say I wish there were more!
It’s a creative way to further the story and world of Thra, the art style is nice, you can see where the autonomy is a bit off and some of the creatures look funny, but the Garthiam look scary accurate!
The story is simple, but that is not a big weakness, it’s a nice continuation of the lore and such. Hopefully the story will get stronger in the next volume!
3.5/5

[Ren · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a prequel, the Dark Crystal movie is needed to understand the story, but even the new plots and characters need more explanation. It has to be taken partially out of context, as I believe this series is no longer considered canon to the Thra story. The Gelifling look too human, and there is a less magical feel, but perhaps due to Manga style. The Mounders are wonderful characters, and the battle scene is incredible. I liked it! (Especially loved the guest art!)

[Julie Akeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kinda wished this was in color but I do love the guest art in the back, really nice. Good story and a very fast read. I'm thinking these two gelflings are the ancestors of Kira and Jen. I am such a big fan of the original movie and glad to read more of that world and I am looking forward to Age of Resistance when it comes on Netflix.

[Aria · Rating 1 out of 5]

Supongo que no es para mi esta historia, no me gustó ni Lahr ni Neffi (los protagonistas) los sentí raros. Tampoco entendí que onda con lo de compartir sueños... ni porque si es un momento tan complicado se empeñan en emparejarlos.

[R · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a phenomenal addition to the Dark Crystal lore. I love the illustrations and the attention to detail. I also love the cover art at the end of the book. Such talent! I look forward to the concluding volume.

[Lacie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't know if I love this because it's nostalgic or because it's truly a wonderful story. Let's go with both!

[Makenzie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super cute series so far! I remember watching the dark crystal as a kid, but i don't remember the story line that well. I like how the artwork matches the movie style well. I also never realized they only have 4 fingers on each hand!

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's entertaining. Sure, we know where this will eventually lead, temporary successes aside, but it's nice to revisit this world again.

[Megan Houpt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent prequel to the Dark Crystal legend.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great art, not so great writing. I wanted the main character to shut up after the first 5 pages. That art is great, though. The Mystic and the mounders look good.

[Scott Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first, I didn’t read the gelflings as gelflings. Something about the manga-ized design was throwing me off. There’s not much to the story, but I still enjoyed what was here.

[Mary Drover · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was honestly not as good as I wanted it to be. My expectations were pretty high because the graphic novels in this universe so far have been excellent. I've continued to say that the plot in the graphic novels does not repeat the plot of the movie, but rather adds twists and brings in new elements, but this manga definitely regurgitated the plot of the original movie 100%, thus making it pretty lackluster. The art was also weird for me, and I couldn't connect with any of the characters. I'd recommend only reading this if you're deep in the Dark Crystal universe like I am currently. (Save me?)

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

(review for vol. 1&2)

two stars not because the story scored a 40% but simply because it "was ok." just ok, and really nothing more.

when I found this series I was filled with a mixture of excitement and anxiety. oh cool, Dark Crystal graphic novels! oh no...they are published by Tokyopop...the last thing any Dark Crystal fan wants to see is a Dark Crystal comic drawn up by manga artists. at least, I didn't (and I like Japanese comics).after finishing these two volumes, I felt disappointed but considering the Dark Crystal sequel was never made, oh well, at least it's something?

the story line is simple which could generate criticism but think about the movie -- it was a movie meant for kids, therefore it was simple as well. in these two graphic novels we spend most of our time with the gelflings as they are slowly being wiped out by the garthim. this conflict is where the story begins and ends, spoilers withheld. there are a few new creations including Woulf (essentially a Fizzgig with legs) and the mounders which are again on the "ok" scale. a smaller portion of the story is spent with the skeksis and the whole story is opened and closed by a mystic (narrator). surprisingly, there is almost no time spent on the podlings. you briefly see some in the skeksi court but then that's it. no land striders either or swamp creatures while I'm at it.

since it is easier to destroy than to create, here are some good things about this 2-part prequel to the Dark Crystal:

-the graphic novels follow the proper Froudian lore by bestowing their gelflings with a strong connection to music. our main character, Lahr, carries around a flute like Jen. the importance of music and its occasional magical powers are also later showcased by the Namopo valley gelflings.
-the story spends a lot of time with gelfling tribes which allows the readers to observe gelfling life which was never really offered in the movie.
-there are complaints here that the skeksi names are too similar. however, according to The World of the Dark Crystal, these suffix oriented names are right though not a direct match with the original Froud creations.
-the urRu design is integrated into character costumes (especially in Neffi) which again goes back to The World of the Dark Crystal mythology.
-the portrayal of skeksis in these books is close to those in the movie. Chamberlain is the main skeksi in the book and his "hmmmmm~!" moments are plentiful. the skeksi emperor staff is also properly replicated in the books.
-Aughra also makes some appearances in all of her glory. Aughra ties with the mystics in terms of what was drawn best in these books.

so with these good points in mind I suppose my main criticism of this 2007 prequel is that it could have been so much more, especially in the art department (most of these artists graduated from SCAD, come on!). while there were a few good moments of artistic design the art was just too simple to do justice for the original Froud creations. thankfully, the art wasn't too manga-ized (phew) but still, the art just lacked whimsical charm. this could have easily been fixed by maybe stepping characters out of the simple panel format used in this series or just incorporating more detail into the character costumes, especially in the case of the skesis which are hard to distinguish from each other in black and white format. complexity sold the Froud world and the artists here fail to live up to that standard.

in conclusion, the second volume is more satisfying than the first in my opinion. they are a very quick read overall. if you've seen the movie, these are worth the read. if you haven't seen the movie but find your interest pricked, go for it and then watch the movie. however, if you've seen the movie, really like Froud and have read all the other published Dark Crystal material, you might appreciate but not necessarily enjoy this prequel. nevertheless, these were a nice birthday present, a reluctant smile to those who crafted this prequel and I am ok with housing them in my book collection.

[RJA Lackenbauer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I watched both the Movie and the Netflix TV show for "Dark Crystal." This manga book was beautifully drawn and the writing wasn't too dry, as some manga and anime are. This book can't compare to things like Bleach and even Maximum Ride, but because I liked the story and conversations, it does get a rating above 2.5 (the center of the scale). Good.

[Kathryn · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Legends of the Dark Crystal – The Garthim Wars' takes place 100 years before Jim Henson’s classic film 'The Dark Crystal' and gives the reader a peek into the history leading up to the healing of the dark crystal by the Gelflings Jen and Kira.

But this is before the crystal was healed and the Gelflings almost extinct. Garthim still hunt the nonviolent Gelflings for the evil Skeksis. The captured Gelflings are taken to the Crystal Palace were they are drained of their essence which the Skeksis drink for immortality.

Lahr, a peaceful shepherd, is away from his village when it is raided by a large group of Garthim. He comes back to find everyone gone and is attacked by a lingering Garthim. Lahr successfully fights the monster off, an unheard of feat. Determined to warn the other Gelfling villages Lahr leaves behind the ruins of his past.

Neffi’s village was attacked as well and when she stumbles across Lahr’s path they decided to go on together. Soon the two heart-sore Gelflings have reached the next village. Lahr warns the elders of what is coming but the village is split in its decision to stay and fight or flee. The Gelflings are a peaceful nonviolent race and the idea of fighting and war are completely alien to them.

The art by Heidi Arnhold and Max Kim is great, very detailed and there is a lot to look at in each panel. They did a good job of sticking to the ideas of Brian Froud, who did the original artwork and designs for the movie, while making it their own. There is also a guest art gallery at the back with drawings from 16 other artists.

The gentle Mystics don’t play a huge role in the manga though the evil Skeksis make an appearance and are as creepy as ever. I really liked the idea that this story is history, set 100 years before the story we are so familiar with, and that it isn’t bogged down with cameo appearances. 'Legends of the Dark Crystal' is new and fresh while still feeling slightly familiar. It’s perfect if you’re a fan of 'The Dark Crystal' or are just looking for a solidly drawn fantasy.

[Hannah · Rating 3 out of 5]

First Impression: I'm a bit confused by the pace. There's a lot of action right at the beginning, and then it dies down for the council discussion in the gelfling cave community. I'm concerned that this storyline won't fit very well into the timeline of The Dark Crystal and its other prequels. I like that the authors included dream-fasting--that's a nice little tidbit from the movie. The art is pretty good and its fairly accurate to the style of Henson's puppets. I like the different outfits, hair, and everything they pulled in to make the characters unique, but I wish the faces were a little more varied, as well. This would make a huge difference, especially since the art is all black and white.

Conclusion: Lahr and Neffi had good interaction with each other as well as other characters. It's interesting to see how the gelfling society traditions conflict with wartime--for example, all of the older gelflings are constantly trying to discuss Neffi's search for a husband, but she is more focused on necessary defense tactics. The story would have been more unique if the authors had chosen two boys or two girls to be the main characters rather than a boy and a girl. As it is, the graphic novel reads a bit like an attempt to copy Jen and Kira from the movie. I was surprised that the book ended where it did, but it's apparently the first volume in a sub-series of The Dark Crystal timeline. Stories set in war time rarely grow old, even if the war is fictional and/or unrealistic. Many of the issues remain the same, and the primitive setting of this story puts an interesting spin on war and Henson's fantasy world. This is, in fact, an official graphic novel from the Jim Henson Company--not a separate one as I originally thought. I enjoyed it more that I thought I would, too, though I'm still unsure how it will fit in the complete storyline. I will probably read the second one if only to know what happens next.

[J.N. Tomczak · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't typically read Manga, but, hey, it's the Dark Crystal. What could go wrong?

First, I have to admire the illustrations found within its pages. They are absolutely beautiful and stunning!

The story follows our main protagonist, Lahr, a young Gelfling shepherd who finds that his village has been raided by the evil Garthim, twisted servants of the tyrannical Skeksis. Lahr finds the courage to seek out his captive villagers and save them before the Skeksis kill them first. Along the way he pairs up with another local village raid survivor, Neffi, who, just like him, seeks to find her lost loved ones from the clutches of the Skeksis. But Neffi and Lahr both know this quest will take more than just their courage to succeed.

At first, I didn't think I'd enjoy the story as much as I thought I would. To me, it started out a bit slow and didn't really pick until the last third of the book. However, what I found interesting was learning more about the Gelfling in the process. We actually get to see more of them in numbers, how they lived, things like that. And now it makes a TON of sense why their race was eradicated in the first place. I won't spoil it for those who haven't read it yet.

That battle at the end, though. That was EPIC and very creative. I was rooting for the characters all the way through. There was even one death in particular that made me a little sad, but it's war. The good die just as easily as the bad. Sacrifices have to be made on both sides.

Although it was short, the ending made me want to pick up the next book, which I will read, because I MUST know what happens next! All in all, it was a light but entertaining read for this evening, and I definitely recommend it for fans of The Dark Crystal.

Full review can be read here: http://sisterhoodofbooks.weebly.com/h...

[El Templo]

"Tras la recuperación, hace unos meses, de personajes y escenarios de la mítica película Dentro del laberinto en formato cómic, ahora le toca el turno a otro entrañable largometraje de la factoría Jim Henson: Cristal oscuro. Hay que advertir que, en esta ocasión, los personajes principales son distintos, ya que esta historia acontece muchos años antes que la clásica película, motivo por el que han rebautizado a esta saga como Leyendas del Cristal Oscuro. Este primer tomo –nuevamente los avispados editores de Norma no indican en ningún lado si estamos ante una miniserie limitada o una serie abierta–, lleva el subtítulo de Las guerras Garthim, y en él asistimos a las desventuras de Lahr, un joven pastor, y Neffi, una joven hilandera, ambos de raza Gelfling, que ven cómo los horribles Garthim han arrasado sus respectivas aldeas, llevándose secuestrados a todos sus habitantes, mientras ellos estaban fuera, él cuidando de su ganado y ella dando un paseo por el bosque. Sus caminos se unen en ese momento y les llevan hasta un poblado Gelfling que vive recluido dentro de una caverna. Pero la amenaza Garthim se cierne sobre ellos... Podría decirse que este primer tomo sirve sólo de presentación de personajes, pero no es así, ya que parte de la trama queda cerrada al final, aunque otra parte se mantiene abierta de cara al siguiente tomo. => Sigue leyendo esta reseña en http://wwweltemplodelasmilpuertas.com"

[James Crawford · Rating 2 out of 5]

My main question about this book is why? Why even write it? If you know anything about The Dark Crystal, you know that Jen and Kira were the last two Gelfling left. Period. At least according to the film.

So, then, you automatically know that every single Gelfing in this Garthim Wars series is going to die. Period. No ifs, ands, or buts. No matter how courageous or innovative their fight, ultimately they will fail and all fall to the enemy.

So why do such a downer series anyhow? That's one thing I can't figure out.

So, as to the story. Lahr, a male Gelfing, comes from a village wiped out by the Garthim. Sound familiar?

Neffti is a female Gelfling that comes from a village wiped out by the Garthim. Again, sound familiar?

They warn another group of Gelfling that the Garthim will soon attack their settlement, and they manage to devise a defense of sorts and are able to destroy some of the attackers. Then, Lahr and Neffti decide they will go to the castle to free the Gelfling that have been caught.

So, a male and a female Gelfling go to the castle by themselves. Sound familiar?

So, in addition to being a book that is rather depressing, when one considers what will ultimately happen to all the Gelfling characters in the book, you also have a book that is way too close to the movie itself in basic plot.

A very disappointing work.

[Laura Mcclanahan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genre- Post Modern Picture book (graphic novel)

This story falls in the world created by Jim Henson in the 1980s. It depicts two underdogs, a shepherd and an artist, who work with a village in order to save them from creatures that are about to attack and capture the occupants to feed the dark crystal. Though the hero and heroine are young and inexperienced, they learn that if they work together with others, they can make a difference. Though the plot line is not original, no one can resist a good underdog story, especially one set in a fantasy land. The book also has a great moral, teaching its readers to not give up and to find solutions together.

The book could be classified as post modern because the reader must be more active in the plot line. The story is not completely laid out, but rather jumps around a little, waiting for the reader to draw his/her own conclusions before revealing what is really happening. Also, there are several panes where there is no dialogue, and the reader must use inferential skills to determine what is happening.

[Jeff Valluzzi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately, this graphic novel just wasn't that great. The art actively worked against the majesty and unearthly beauty of the Dark Crystal world. Thra seemed so much more confined and messy than it should. So much of the story was close-in inside caves. There wasn't really much imagination spread throughout the world, either.

The story itself didn't really fit the dreamy atmosphere that I associate with the Dark Crystal universe. It was just a run-of-the-mill fantasy story, with a random prophecy thrown in at the end. The characters weren't great.

All in all, a disappointing effort. The other Dark Crystal graphic novel series, Origin Myths, is vastly superior to this one, although I will read the 2nd volume of the Legends series just to be fair. Hopefully I will enjoy that one more.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

First off, I loved Dark Crystal the movie. So I figured this would be good as well. It was alright, it is supposed to be a prequel to the movie version but the storyline is very similar to the original. The Skesis are ruling and draining gelflings (who are more abundant at this point) for their essence, to keep the emperor looking young. The Garthim (giant beetle-looking things)are still being used to round up things and Lahr, the main character of the novel, has figured out a way to kill them. He discovers another gelfling, whose village has also been destroyed, and they end up going together to warn the next gelfling village. Basically the village decides to fight and wins the battle...for now.