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Lucifer (2000) (New Trades)
Lucifer, Book One
Cast out of Heaven, Lucifer Morningstar has resigned his throne in Hell for Los Angeles. Emerging from the pages of THE SANDMAN, the former Lord of Hell is enjoying retirement as the proprietor of L.A.'s most elite piano bar when an assignment from the Creator Himself threatens to change all that. Collects THE SANDMAN PRESENTS: LUCIFER #1-3 and LUCIFER #1-13.
382 pages, Comic
First published April 1, 2012
705 people are currently reading
3870 people want to read
About the author
Mike Carey
1,258 books2,952 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Mike Carey was born in Liverpool in 1959. He worked as a teacher for fifteen years, before starting to write comics. When he started to receive regular commissions from DC Comics, he gave up the day job.
Since then, he has worked for both DC and Marvel Comics, writing storylines for some of the world's most iconic characters, including X-MEN, FANTASTIC FOUR, LUCIFER and HELLBLAZER. His original screenplay FROST FLOWERS is currently being filmed. Mike has also adapted Neil Gaiman's acclaimed NEVERWHERE into comics.
Somehow, Mike finds time amongst all of this to live with his wife and children in North London. You can read his blog at www.mikecarey.net.
Mike Carey was born in Liverpool in 1959. He worked as a teacher for fifteen years, before starting to write comics. When he started to receive regular commissions from DC Comics, he gave up the day job.
Since then, he has worked for both DC and Marvel Comics, writing storylines for some of the world's most iconic characters, including X-MEN, FANTASTIC FOUR, LUCIFER and HELLBLAZER. His original screenplay FROST FLOWERS is currently being filmed. Mike has also adapted Neil Gaiman's acclaimed NEVERWHERE into comics.
Somehow, Mike finds time amongst all of this to live with his wife and children in North London. You can read his blog at www.mikecarey.net.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 349 reviews
December 10, 2015
You know how sometimes you’re standing around the water cooler at work and listening to a bunch of lawyers hash out the finer points of the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act), HMDA (Home Mortgage Disclosure Act), or TILA (Truth in Lending Act) and you’re just kind of nodding and smiling, a look of keen interest and sage understanding affixed to your face like the rictus grin of a corpse, even though you really only understand every seventh word they say (usually words like “the,” “and,” or “sometimes”) and have only vaguest idea of where the conversation is going?
That’s me when I’m reading Mike Carey’s work (sometimes). And Lucifer is no exception.
This Sandman spinoff has a deep and intriguing mythology, but it requires some close reading and, if, like me, you aren’t well-versed in Sandman lore, a willingness to accept the fact that you’re not quite going to know exactly what’s going on.
That said, it’s worth wading through—especially once Peter Gross joins the book as the regular penciler.
Here’s the pitch: Lucifer has given up his throne in Hell and opened up a bar in Los Angeles. Without knowing more than that, I thought, “Hey, I smell sitcom!” Classic, fish-out-of-water hijinks layered with a literal devil-may-care attitude. Picture it: sweaty bar patrons fanning themselves to try to cool down. Enter Lucifer, Stage Left. “Hot enough for ya?” he asks slyly. Cue the laugh track.
Turns out the book is NOTHING like that (both fortunately and unfortunately). There IS a sardonic humor underpinning the story, but it’s dark. Very dark. Like, homophobes sodomizing a guy with a broken beer bottle in dark alley dark. This is not light, fluffy pre-bed reading (as I discovered, reading it mostly right before bed). It’s heavy. Like lifting an elephant being ridden by an aircraft character.
I had concerns as I waded through the first few issues that this was a twisted version of Highway to Heaven (showing my age referencing a Michael Landon show? Yup!)—a monthly morality tale with a dark twist. That’s all well and good, but not something I’d have been willing to commit to for dozens of issues. Fortunately, an intriguing (and funny) visit to “The House of Windowless Rooms” changed the tenor and tone of the story—not coincidentally, that’s the point where Gross took over as penciler and the storytelling as a whole got better. The Carey/Gross duo, also responsible for the excellent (if occasionally frustrating) The Unwritten, is unquestionably greater than the sum of its parts (not unlike peanut butter and chocolate), and the book really hits its stride over the second half (though still had some uneven moments).
So, stick with it even if you don’t dig it right off the bat. I have high hopes for subsequent volumes. I just hope there are fewer backdoor beer bottle boffings.
That’s me when I’m reading Mike Carey’s work (sometimes). And Lucifer is no exception.
This Sandman spinoff has a deep and intriguing mythology, but it requires some close reading and, if, like me, you aren’t well-versed in Sandman lore, a willingness to accept the fact that you’re not quite going to know exactly what’s going on.
That said, it’s worth wading through—especially once Peter Gross joins the book as the regular penciler.
Here’s the pitch: Lucifer has given up his throne in Hell and opened up a bar in Los Angeles. Without knowing more than that, I thought, “Hey, I smell sitcom!” Classic, fish-out-of-water hijinks layered with a literal devil-may-care attitude. Picture it: sweaty bar patrons fanning themselves to try to cool down. Enter Lucifer, Stage Left. “Hot enough for ya?” he asks slyly. Cue the laugh track.
Turns out the book is NOTHING like that (both fortunately and unfortunately). There IS a sardonic humor underpinning the story, but it’s dark. Very dark. Like, homophobes sodomizing a guy with a broken beer bottle in dark alley dark. This is not light, fluffy pre-bed reading (as I discovered, reading it mostly right before bed). It’s heavy. Like lifting an elephant being ridden by an aircraft character.
I had concerns as I waded through the first few issues that this was a twisted version of Highway to Heaven (showing my age referencing a Michael Landon show? Yup!)—a monthly morality tale with a dark twist. That’s all well and good, but not something I’d have been willing to commit to for dozens of issues. Fortunately, an intriguing (and funny) visit to “The House of Windowless Rooms” changed the tenor and tone of the story—not coincidentally, that’s the point where Gross took over as penciler and the storytelling as a whole got better. The Carey/Gross duo, also responsible for the excellent (if occasionally frustrating) The Unwritten, is unquestionably greater than the sum of its parts (not unlike peanut butter and chocolate), and the book really hits its stride over the second half (though still had some uneven moments).
So, stick with it even if you don’t dig it right off the bat. I have high hopes for subsequent volumes. I just hope there are fewer backdoor beer bottle boffings.
January 14, 2018
The devil is a woman in a red dress.
Or maybe a hot dude with a Brittish accent?
A couple of my kids got into the Lucifer tv show. And while I wasn't as enthralled by it as they were, it did prompt me to check out the source material. As I suspected, Mike Carey's stuff isn't as campy as what's on television.
However, if you're hoping to see Morningstar traipsing around solving crimes with a cute cop you'll be sorely disappointed. Although, several of the storylines do involve Lucifer traipsing around with females. So. There's that.
Honestly, I don't know how I feel about this comic. Parts of it were cool, but once I closed the book (or e-book, in this case) I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue with the story. I had this overall feeling of quasi-boredom. Not fully bored, just...eeeeeeh.
Anyway. I think I would have liked to have read Gaiman's original story, but (alas!) it wasn't included in this digital version.
Woulda been nice...just sayin'.
PS - The best thing to happen to this title was when the first artist left. Look at that hot mess of a panel up there. Christ. Looks like they hired me to draw that shit.
At any rate, there is something interesting about the whole Devil runs a piano bar thing, so chances are I'm coming back for more of this at some point.
Or maybe a hot dude with a Brittish accent?
A couple of my kids got into the Lucifer tv show. And while I wasn't as enthralled by it as they were, it did prompt me to check out the source material. As I suspected, Mike Carey's stuff isn't as campy as what's on television.
However, if you're hoping to see Morningstar traipsing around solving crimes with a cute cop you'll be sorely disappointed. Although, several of the storylines do involve Lucifer traipsing around with females. So. There's that.
Honestly, I don't know how I feel about this comic. Parts of it were cool, but once I closed the book (or e-book, in this case) I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue with the story. I had this overall feeling of quasi-boredom. Not fully bored, just...eeeeeeh.
Anyway. I think I would have liked to have read Gaiman's original story, but (alas!) it wasn't included in this digital version.
Woulda been nice...just sayin'.
PS - The best thing to happen to this title was when the first artist left. Look at that hot mess of a panel up there. Christ. Looks like they hired me to draw that shit.
At any rate, there is something interesting about the whole Devil runs a piano bar thing, so chances are I'm coming back for more of this at some point.
April 19, 2018
I'm finally getting around to reading Lucifer. I mean, I loved him in Sandman and I happened to have seen a few episodes of the tv show, but I needed to KNOW, you know?
And it's a lot more wild than the tv show. By a lot. :)
This first book takes on the first thirteen comics and it manages to be messed up, clever, disturbing, and a great premise for more. There isn't any PD stuff. :)
There are new gods and angels, private hells, demiurge powers, ghosts, and an angelic battle to take out Lucifer right here on Earth. An all out affair.
That fails. :)
I'm hooked. It may not be the biggest and baddest comic out there, but it is definitely entertaining.
And it's a lot more wild than the tv show. By a lot. :)
This first book takes on the first thirteen comics and it manages to be messed up, clever, disturbing, and a great premise for more. There isn't any PD stuff. :)
There are new gods and angels, private hells, demiurge powers, ghosts, and an angelic battle to take out Lucifer right here on Earth. An all out affair.
That fails. :)
I'm hooked. It may not be the biggest and baddest comic out there, but it is definitely entertaining.
May 3, 2018
This was pretty good. I enjoyed the twists. This is Lucifer from the Sandman comics Neil Gaiman did. Lucifer walked out of hell and now owns a jazz club in LA. He gets pulled into some crazy stuff and God gives him a new mission.
It is an interesting character development. It turns everything upside down. Let's just say it's entertaining and interesting.
It is an interesting character development. It turns everything upside down. Let's just say it's entertaining and interesting.
September 7, 2017
The character of Lucifer initially appeared in the Sandman comic. During the events of that series, he abdicated being the Lord of Hell and went off to open a piano bar in LA. This series picks up from there.
The first part of this volume "The Morningstar Option" was published as a stand alone story, but is the genesis of this volume. The rest of it concerns topics I absolutely love- cosmic level events. An entire universe at stake and another to be born. But, strangely enough, this is also a family story.
At the very top is God. An absentee father, he is merely a presence not an actual character. As the saying goes "When the parents are away..the kids will play." What a play it is. Heaven needs Lucifer to do a job for them (something they would rather not get involved in) and in return Lucifer gets a letter of passage. I won't spoil the rest of the story-and it's a great one. The artwork and the prose of the Morningstar Option are superb. It is a shame Scott Hampton didn't become the regular artist for the series.
The rest of the book has Lucifer travelling to the Japanese pantheon's Hell and making a deal to get back his wings (which he gave up when he left Hell). This is great story about how he interacts with the "devils" of Japanese lore. It's worth reading so I won't say more.
The final part has him working with a Nephalim (an angel-human hybrid) to open a gate to the void. Now why would he want to do this? Vol 2 has the answers, though the hints of what is to come are in the first volume.
What can I say about this series? It's amazing. Lucifer is The Man. Classy, elegant, relatively polite and so powerful he doesn't even bother to use cheap displays of might. Just because he left Hell doesn't mean he is good. He just realized that the entire thing- Heaven, Hell, Earth, etc was all part of God's plan. That is simply unacceptable to the Morningstar. He decides it's time for him to change the rules and have his own Plan.
Lucifer is the ultimate rebel. To the almighty Creator and his angelic minions who drone endless homilies, his is the middle finger thrust into the air. Not only did he challange the might of God, but he took a third of Heaven's host with him. He carved out a place all of his own or as he says:
"There are no special places in Hell. Hell is a democracy". Once he tired of that-he left. That is why Lucifer is brilliant. He also points out that the whole Prince of Lies thing really is about Satan. His fall was due to the sin of PRIDE. Lucifer doesn't lie, he has NO need to. He tells you the terrible truth. The terrible truth is that most of humanity is his, has always been his and shall always be his. If the measure of "goodliness" is what is found in the Bible-then it is safe to say less than .01% of humanity is getting into Heaven. However, Hell is always open- 365 days a year end even on Christmas.
Lucifer is not here to collect souls. His game is larger. If this universe is God's, then he too will create an universe where HE writes the rules. What could be more awesome?
Great book. Great Story. Great Prose. Great Characters. Sadly- just decent to ok art (save for the superb Morningstar Option). Still the art is never bad enough to detract from the story and it does a decent enough job of conveying what is. Don't sweat that. This is abook to be read for the ideas and the wonderful prose.
The first part of this volume "The Morningstar Option" was published as a stand alone story, but is the genesis of this volume. The rest of it concerns topics I absolutely love- cosmic level events. An entire universe at stake and another to be born. But, strangely enough, this is also a family story.
At the very top is God. An absentee father, he is merely a presence not an actual character. As the saying goes "When the parents are away..the kids will play." What a play it is. Heaven needs Lucifer to do a job for them (something they would rather not get involved in) and in return Lucifer gets a letter of passage. I won't spoil the rest of the story-and it's a great one. The artwork and the prose of the Morningstar Option are superb. It is a shame Scott Hampton didn't become the regular artist for the series.
The rest of the book has Lucifer travelling to the Japanese pantheon's Hell and making a deal to get back his wings (which he gave up when he left Hell). This is great story about how he interacts with the "devils" of Japanese lore. It's worth reading so I won't say more.
The final part has him working with a Nephalim (an angel-human hybrid) to open a gate to the void. Now why would he want to do this? Vol 2 has the answers, though the hints of what is to come are in the first volume.
What can I say about this series? It's amazing. Lucifer is The Man. Classy, elegant, relatively polite and so powerful he doesn't even bother to use cheap displays of might. Just because he left Hell doesn't mean he is good. He just realized that the entire thing- Heaven, Hell, Earth, etc was all part of God's plan. That is simply unacceptable to the Morningstar. He decides it's time for him to change the rules and have his own Plan.
Lucifer is the ultimate rebel. To the almighty Creator and his angelic minions who drone endless homilies, his is the middle finger thrust into the air. Not only did he challange the might of God, but he took a third of Heaven's host with him. He carved out a place all of his own or as he says:
"There are no special places in Hell. Hell is a democracy". Once he tired of that-he left. That is why Lucifer is brilliant. He also points out that the whole Prince of Lies thing really is about Satan. His fall was due to the sin of PRIDE. Lucifer doesn't lie, he has NO need to. He tells you the terrible truth. The terrible truth is that most of humanity is his, has always been his and shall always be his. If the measure of "goodliness" is what is found in the Bible-then it is safe to say less than .01% of humanity is getting into Heaven. However, Hell is always open- 365 days a year end even on Christmas.
Lucifer is not here to collect souls. His game is larger. If this universe is God's, then he too will create an universe where HE writes the rules. What could be more awesome?
Great book. Great Story. Great Prose. Great Characters. Sadly- just decent to ok art (save for the superb Morningstar Option). Still the art is never bad enough to detract from the story and it does a decent enough job of conveying what is. Don't sweat that. This is abook to be read for the ideas and the wonderful prose.
May 23, 2020
If you've read Sandman and are looking for more, this is a good place to start. It picks up with Lucifer running a nightclub in L.A. when he's asked to do a favor for heaven. I like that even though this spins out of Sandman Seasons of Mist, Carey quickly establishes his own mythology and characters. His Lucifer is cutthroat and conniving and yet, it's easy to think he's looking out for you. Like Sandman, Lucifer isn't always the star of each story, sometimes only playing a minor character.
Scott Hampton's art in the initial miniseries is fantastic. I love how he switches back and forth between sparse colored pencils and full paints.
Todd Klein is known as the best letterer in the business. It's clear why in this story. Every character has his or her own font and way of speaking. Lettering is one of those things you typically only notice when it's bad. Here with the numerous nonhuman characters in the story, it really stands out.
The House of Windowless Rooms
This is where all the cool gods and foreign dimensions begin to come in that make this series so interesting. As we see here, underestimate Lucifer at your regret, even when he's at his most vulnerable. I love how manipulative Lucifer is. We also get to see what's behind Mazikeen's mask.
Children and Monsters
This is where Carey really begins to set up the story that will carry through the end of the series. Carey is excellent at planning ahead and building stories atop stories. It's what make this series so satisfying.
The House of Windowless Rooms also gives us the art team that will carry through most of the rest of the series. Peter Gross and Ryan Kelly with Dean Ormston filling in between the bigger arcs. Mike Carey and Peter Gross establish a creative relationship that carries over the next 20 years to The Unwritten, The Highest House, and now The Dollhouse Family.
This edition of Lucifer: Book One combines the first 2 volumes of the originally released collections.
Scott Hampton's art in the initial miniseries is fantastic. I love how he switches back and forth between sparse colored pencils and full paints.
Todd Klein is known as the best letterer in the business. It's clear why in this story. Every character has his or her own font and way of speaking. Lettering is one of those things you typically only notice when it's bad. Here with the numerous nonhuman characters in the story, it really stands out.
The House of Windowless Rooms
This is where all the cool gods and foreign dimensions begin to come in that make this series so interesting. As we see here, underestimate Lucifer at your regret, even when he's at his most vulnerable. I love how manipulative Lucifer is. We also get to see what's behind Mazikeen's mask.
Children and Monsters
This is where Carey really begins to set up the story that will carry through the end of the series. Carey is excellent at planning ahead and building stories atop stories. It's what make this series so satisfying.
The House of Windowless Rooms also gives us the art team that will carry through most of the rest of the series. Peter Gross and Ryan Kelly with Dean Ormston filling in between the bigger arcs. Mike Carey and Peter Gross establish a creative relationship that carries over the next 20 years to The Unwritten, The Highest House, and now The Dollhouse Family.
This edition of Lucifer: Book One combines the first 2 volumes of the originally released collections.
August 14, 2017
2nd read - Absolutely brilliant. BEtter the second time round as I caught on to more of what i missed the first time round.
I love what Carey has done here. It's solid.
The artwork is very good and consistent but it's the unique and interesting characters that make this such a good story. At some points throughout the story you see Lucifer as the hero, but you are quickly reminded why he is not. He is just the protagonist.
Lucifer has played out intricate plots to defeat everyone and everything to get the upper hand and make his plans a reality. Fantastic.
You can tell this is going to be a slugger with a huge end game in site. I'm excited to be on the band wagon to see where this leads.
I love what Carey has done here. It's solid.
The artwork is very good and consistent but it's the unique and interesting characters that make this such a good story. At some points throughout the story you see Lucifer as the hero, but you are quickly reminded why he is not. He is just the protagonist.
Lucifer has played out intricate plots to defeat everyone and everything to get the upper hand and make his plans a reality. Fantastic.
You can tell this is going to be a slugger with a huge end game in site. I'm excited to be on the band wagon to see where this leads.
September 3, 2018
I read Sandman and loved it. Lucifer is a spin off of the series.
Since am not a major comic book junkie, I am not one to decide on the art and prints. The question is - have you seen the TV show 'Lucifer'? Well, if you have and -
a) Loved it - then do read this comic too because it's completely different from the show so far.
b) Hated it - well read it! It's DIFFERENT! 😁
The comics is dark (well it's Vertigo after all) and I loved it.
Supernatural + dark =
The show is like candy land compared to the comics. Lucifer in the comic is cold, calculative, ruthless and committed in his hatred for heaven. He doesn't interfere unless it doesn't serve any purpose.
Mazikeen is loyal and badass. Similar to the show but more cold and ruthless. She knows what she wants and isn't afraid to seek it.
Amenadiel on the other hand is completely different too. Completely different from the show. He's decisive, relentless and no "Lucy" calling crap in this comics. Nah uh.
A MUST READ if you love fantasy, supernatural, blood and gore and not to mention a self obsessed, cold and daunting character.
Since am not a major comic book junkie, I am not one to decide on the art and prints. The question is - have you seen the TV show 'Lucifer'? Well, if you have and -
a) Loved it - then do read this comic too because it's completely different from the show so far.
b) Hated it - well read it! It's DIFFERENT! 😁
The comics is dark (well it's Vertigo after all) and I loved it.
Supernatural + dark =
The show is like candy land compared to the comics. Lucifer in the comic is cold, calculative, ruthless and committed in his hatred for heaven. He doesn't interfere unless it doesn't serve any purpose.
Mazikeen is loyal and badass. Similar to the show but more cold and ruthless. She knows what she wants and isn't afraid to seek it.
Amenadiel on the other hand is completely different too. Completely different from the show. He's decisive, relentless and no "Lucy" calling crap in this comics. Nah uh.
A MUST READ if you love fantasy, supernatural, blood and gore and not to mention a self obsessed, cold and daunting character.
December 21, 2020
Para sumergirse en la trama de Lucifer y disfrutar cada uno de sus detalles, es recomendable haber leído anteriormente Sandman, o al menos el arco Estación de Nieblas, de Neil Gaiman. Esa lectura previa nos posibilitará entender por qué en este spin off encontramos a Lucero del Alba gestionando un piano-bar en la ciudad de los Ángeles, sin alas, mientras dos arcángeles se hacen cargo de las huestes del Infierno.
En el primer tomo escrito por Mike Carey e ilustrado por Peter Gross, Chris Weston, Scott Hamton y Dean Ormston, nuestro ángel caído cumple una misión para Dios y recibe a cambio una carta de paso a cualquier lugar de la creación. La trama tienen personajes misteriosos - y varios conocidos del universo Vértigo- que se van incorporando a la historia y se relacionan de manera muy particular con el protagonista, ya sea porque tienen deudas pendientes con él, porque se han cruzado anteriormente o porque tienen referencias del antiguo amo del averno.
Todos estos elementos van entretejiendo un argumento que adquiere más y más intriga a medida que pasan las páginas y que jamás aburre. Todo lo contrario, al terminar un tomo se necesita tener el siguiente a mano.
Lucifer es atractivo como el demonio :P, sarcástico y traicionero. Las escenas en las que tiene encuentros con la hueste celestial son divertidas y ágiles. Creo que la elección de este guionista para continuar con la difícil tarea de dar preeminencia a un personaje secundario del mundo de Sueño de los Eternos ha sido una excelente iniciativa de la editora de Vértigo.
Cinco estrellas para este tomo introductorio... ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
En el primer tomo escrito por Mike Carey e ilustrado por Peter Gross, Chris Weston, Scott Hamton y Dean Ormston, nuestro ángel caído cumple una misión para Dios y recibe a cambio una carta de paso a cualquier lugar de la creación. La trama tienen personajes misteriosos - y varios conocidos del universo Vértigo- que se van incorporando a la historia y se relacionan de manera muy particular con el protagonista, ya sea porque tienen deudas pendientes con él, porque se han cruzado anteriormente o porque tienen referencias del antiguo amo del averno.
Todos estos elementos van entretejiendo un argumento que adquiere más y más intriga a medida que pasan las páginas y que jamás aburre. Todo lo contrario, al terminar un tomo se necesita tener el siguiente a mano.
Lucifer es atractivo como el demonio :P, sarcástico y traicionero. Las escenas en las que tiene encuentros con la hueste celestial son divertidas y ágiles. Creo que la elección de este guionista para continuar con la difícil tarea de dar preeminencia a un personaje secundario del mundo de Sueño de los Eternos ha sido una excelente iniciativa de la editora de Vértigo.
Cinco estrellas para este tomo introductorio... ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
August 7, 2018
I will admit that I know of this character and the series for some time having read the Sandman series long ago - I just didnt know enough about it seems.
And yes just so I make things clear I have followed the TV series (and will carrying on doing so now its been saved) however the series is NOTHING like this book in fact apart from names there appears to be very little in connection and the storyline - well no spoilers but lets say things have gone in a totally different direction.
Well what of the book - this is the first in what appears to be a series of 5 books which have collected the original comics together (there is a 52 universe storyline along with a second series which I am not really sure about apart from the title)
So what of the books - well it certainly has a lot of action in it that the series and the story portrays Lucifer in a different way which to be honest is quite refreshing although after nearly 400 pages I feel as I do not really understand his motivations (where as the TV show you found that out after 45 minutes) now is that a bad thing I say no as it means there is still so much more to discover.
The only concern I have is that when will I pick up the next book as there are so many things screaming for my attention - no seriously the series has a lot of the intrigue and feel of Neil Gaiman however make no mistake this is hmm Mike Carey someone who's work I am now taking a renewed interest in (am sure I have a signed book of his somewhere), So a lot to learn still and explore, never a bad thing if you ask me. Just check those preconceptions at the door!
And yes just so I make things clear I have followed the TV series (and will carrying on doing so now its been saved) however the series is NOTHING like this book in fact apart from names there appears to be very little in connection and the storyline - well no spoilers but lets say things have gone in a totally different direction.
Well what of the book - this is the first in what appears to be a series of 5 books which have collected the original comics together (there is a 52 universe storyline along with a second series which I am not really sure about apart from the title)
So what of the books - well it certainly has a lot of action in it that the series and the story portrays Lucifer in a different way which to be honest is quite refreshing although after nearly 400 pages I feel as I do not really understand his motivations (where as the TV show you found that out after 45 minutes) now is that a bad thing I say no as it means there is still so much more to discover.
The only concern I have is that when will I pick up the next book as there are so many things screaming for my attention - no seriously the series has a lot of the intrigue and feel of Neil Gaiman however make no mistake this is hmm Mike Carey someone who's work I am now taking a renewed interest in (am sure I have a signed book of his somewhere), So a lot to learn still and explore, never a bad thing if you ask me. Just check those preconceptions at the door!
September 8, 2018
Throughout the story, Lucifer Morningstar reminded me of John Constantine(of whatever I have seen and read). I want to read more of Lucifer to know who is more dark and astute.
July 26, 2018
I honestly can’t think of anything clever for the beginning of this review. It’s surprising since I can normally come up with a sorta dark humored thing to say when reviewing stuff like this but here... nothing... (sigh)
What’s it about?
So many think that Lucifer, the devil himself, walks around on Earth in some way. In this book he’s the owner of a club in LA who ends up finding people to go on strange adventures with so, pretty much if The Doctor had a club and was Satan.
Pros:
The story is cool. I like weird sci-fi adventures and I think most fans of these sorts of stories will enjoy this one, especially if they like supernatural themes.
The art is cool and suits the story well.
The characters are interesting in their own unique ways, both protagonists and antagonists.
The horror elements of this book are very well done.
There’s some good, exciting action scenes.
This book is very suspenseful.
This story is weird as hell (pun intended) and it’s done in a way that the reader does have a WTF reaction the entire time but the story still makes sense, I really enjoy those kind of books.
Cons:
This book tries a bit too hard to be artsy at times.
There is some unnecessary monologuing. I don’t mind it if it progresses the story or has some sort of cool element to it but in this book it USUALLY doesn’t.
This book has some various scenes that show female character’s boobs for no fucking reason other than... they’re boobs. It wasn’t all over the place or anything and I don’t even mind sexual content/nudity but here it has nothing to do with the story so it felt like it was there for no reason other than “sex sells”.
Overall:
This is a good book and I will be adding book 2 to my reading list but it’s not a masterpiece IMO. The way I feel about this book is the same way I feel about Gaiman’s Sandman (which is fitting since this is a spin-off), I enjoy it very much and would recommend it, however there are a few flaws I can’t help but notice (Lucifer and Sandman actually share many of those flaws). I think I like this one a bit more than Sandman though so yeah, I’d recommend giving this a shot!
Oh and, to any other metalheads looking into reading this: listen to Ghost, Slayer and Venom while reading this, it enhances the experience a bit I’d say!
4/5
What’s it about?
So many think that Lucifer, the devil himself, walks around on Earth in some way. In this book he’s the owner of a club in LA who ends up finding people to go on strange adventures with so, pretty much if The Doctor had a club and was Satan.
Pros:
The story is cool. I like weird sci-fi adventures and I think most fans of these sorts of stories will enjoy this one, especially if they like supernatural themes.
The art is cool and suits the story well.
The characters are interesting in their own unique ways, both protagonists and antagonists.
The horror elements of this book are very well done.
There’s some good, exciting action scenes.
This book is very suspenseful.
This story is weird as hell (pun intended) and it’s done in a way that the reader does have a WTF reaction the entire time but the story still makes sense, I really enjoy those kind of books.
Cons:
This book tries a bit too hard to be artsy at times.
There is some unnecessary monologuing. I don’t mind it if it progresses the story or has some sort of cool element to it but in this book it USUALLY doesn’t.
This book has some various scenes that show female character’s boobs for no fucking reason other than... they’re boobs. It wasn’t all over the place or anything and I don’t even mind sexual content/nudity but here it has nothing to do with the story so it felt like it was there for no reason other than “sex sells”.
Overall:
This is a good book and I will be adding book 2 to my reading list but it’s not a masterpiece IMO. The way I feel about this book is the same way I feel about Gaiman’s Sandman (which is fitting since this is a spin-off), I enjoy it very much and would recommend it, however there are a few flaws I can’t help but notice (Lucifer and Sandman actually share many of those flaws). I think I like this one a bit more than Sandman though so yeah, I’d recommend giving this a shot!
Oh and, to any other metalheads looking into reading this: listen to Ghost, Slayer and Venom while reading this, it enhances the experience a bit I’d say!
4/5
January 30, 2016
3.5 stars
The problem with Lucifer is Mike Carey. He is nowhere near as good a writer as Neil Gaiman. It feels like Carey tries to tell a very complex and huge story, but he is talking very fast and he leaves out important chunks of the story, only to later remember that and say "by the way, yeah, that also happened then, I guess". This volume just doesn't feel like it's going anywhere, at least not until the last couple of issues. The story flows too slow and focuses too much on seemingly unimportant parts, while not giving enough attention to the good bits.
Still, by the end of the last arc I found myself actually enjoining the book, more or less. So maybe it does get better in later volumes.
What I really enjoyed in this book, though, is the artwork. A lot of different artists contributed to this big volume, and every single page looks great. The colours are gorgeous. And I really like the quality of paper, it is kinda chalky and pretty thick, and it does the artwork justice. So yeah, at least this book is really nice to look at.
Anyway, I probably will give the next volume a read in a while, but so far, I am not very happy with this series.
The problem with Lucifer is Mike Carey. He is nowhere near as good a writer as Neil Gaiman. It feels like Carey tries to tell a very complex and huge story, but he is talking very fast and he leaves out important chunks of the story, only to later remember that and say "by the way, yeah, that also happened then, I guess". This volume just doesn't feel like it's going anywhere, at least not until the last couple of issues. The story flows too slow and focuses too much on seemingly unimportant parts, while not giving enough attention to the good bits.
Still, by the end of the last arc I found myself actually enjoining the book, more or less. So maybe it does get better in later volumes.
What I really enjoyed in this book, though, is the artwork. A lot of different artists contributed to this big volume, and every single page looks great. The colours are gorgeous. And I really like the quality of paper, it is kinda chalky and pretty thick, and it does the artwork justice. So yeah, at least this book is really nice to look at.
Anyway, I probably will give the next volume a read in a while, but so far, I am not very happy with this series.
July 14, 2015
Good writing. If you liked Sandman or Neil Gaiman, it's a spinoff from that, so it's a no-brainer for you. I'm not really a fan of the "intentionally sloppy" school of art, but I liked it well enough. There are 3 or 4 different artists. Much more sophisticated than your typical cinematic marvel or dc comic. I'll probably check out something else by this writer, like Hellblazer (Constantine), The Unwritten, or The Girl With All The Gifts. Soon to be a tv series. I'm not sure I like the sound of a "campy tv version".
October 24, 2020
I wasn't sure what to expect from this. I've been meaning to read Lucifer for quite a while, since I loved Mike Carey's later series, The Unwritten. And since that was pretty dark and violent, I wasn't entirely surprised by how dark this turned out to be. But whoa, it is very dark.
But it was also just as creative and intriguing as I expected it to be, and with awesome continuing threads through the story arc -- I had to keep flipping back to previous installments, because virtually every detail turned out to be important later. I really admire that storytelling technique.
This is not for the faint-of-heart (which I would normally consider myself), and a lot of the story is rooted in deep and terrible sadness. And yet I enjoyed this enough that I promptly put the next volume on hold and will be reading it soon. Hopefully it will stay on that edge of tolerably dark for me, without passing over to unbearable.
(Note: I've never seen the TV series, but from what I Googled up about it, it seems quite different from the books. So maybe someday I'll watch it as its own entity.)
But it was also just as creative and intriguing as I expected it to be, and with awesome continuing threads through the story arc -- I had to keep flipping back to previous installments, because virtually every detail turned out to be important later. I really admire that storytelling technique.
This is not for the faint-of-heart (which I would normally consider myself), and a lot of the story is rooted in deep and terrible sadness. And yet I enjoyed this enough that I promptly put the next volume on hold and will be reading it soon. Hopefully it will stay on that edge of tolerably dark for me, without passing over to unbearable.
(Note: I've never seen the TV series, but from what I Googled up about it, it seems quite different from the books. So maybe someday I'll watch it as its own entity.)
December 20, 2020
I can see why they changed so much for the TV show.
Lucifer is 100% what you'd call a SLOW BURN. It is basically a lot of set up of why Lucifer is the way he is. But it's actually mostly individual stories of people that come to know Lucifer, and that could be a very good thing or a bad thing. The first story is about a girl who travels into the realms to save her brother after he suffered an attack and makes a pact with Lucifer. Another story is about a girl who can see the dead and how she also has to work with Lucifer. We have one about weird demons running around and Lucifer rounding them up. Basically, in Sandman fashion, it's all about the individual stories of character interacting with Lucifer.
I did like it but holy fuck is it dense. I felt like reading one issue took me the time to read multiple issues in most other stories. It felt slow and padded at points. It felt like characters were explaining things instead of talking to each other half the time. Saying all that, the actual plotting was interesting and I can see Carey laying the foundation of his long term storytelling here. I also enjoyed the art a lot, especially after the first 4 issues.
Overall it was good and I enjoyed it, but I don't know if I'll be jumping into the next volume anytime soon. A 3 out of 5.
Lucifer is 100% what you'd call a SLOW BURN. It is basically a lot of set up of why Lucifer is the way he is. But it's actually mostly individual stories of people that come to know Lucifer, and that could be a very good thing or a bad thing. The first story is about a girl who travels into the realms to save her brother after he suffered an attack and makes a pact with Lucifer. Another story is about a girl who can see the dead and how she also has to work with Lucifer. We have one about weird demons running around and Lucifer rounding them up. Basically, in Sandman fashion, it's all about the individual stories of character interacting with Lucifer.
I did like it but holy fuck is it dense. I felt like reading one issue took me the time to read multiple issues in most other stories. It felt slow and padded at points. It felt like characters were explaining things instead of talking to each other half the time. Saying all that, the actual plotting was interesting and I can see Carey laying the foundation of his long term storytelling here. I also enjoyed the art a lot, especially after the first 4 issues.
Overall it was good and I enjoyed it, but I don't know if I'll be jumping into the next volume anytime soon. A 3 out of 5.
February 7, 2023
Great stuff! Mike Carey never disappoints.
December 12, 2021
We have Neil Gaiman to thank for this debonair, chiseled David Bowie interpretation of Lucifer; he first appeared as a show-stealing supporting character in the Sandman comics. When the 10th anniversary rolled around, Mikey Carey pitched a spin-off series that ended up running for 75 issues—the same length as The Sandman—and picks up right where
Season of Mists
left off: Lucifer has abdicated as Lord of Hell, and retired to Los Angeles, where he runs a sophisticated piano bar with the help of devoted demon Mazikeen.
The three-issue Morningstar Option is what got DC/Vertigo to pick up the series, and it's easy to see why: The art is painted rather than drawn, and easily among the most beautiful graphic novel artwork I've ever seen, rivaled only by Sandman: Overture . Unfortunately, this style was only kept for this short mini-series, but the plot is a portent of things to come—it's self-contained enough that you can gauge whether you'd like the rest, but also forms the beginning of the main storyline: Lucifer does Heaven a favor, and is granted a letter of passage in return. This book collects the prelude, and the first four interconnected story-arcs of the main run: A Six-Card Spread (3 issues), Born with the Dead (single issue), The House of Windowless Rooms (four issues), and Children and Monsters (five issues).
Even though the tone is similar to Sandman, which was also recommended for mature readers, it's clear from the get-go that Lucifer is even darker. Carey's ideas are ambitious, and the plot so complex and loose that it got rather confusing in parts—it constantly feels like he's building new stories on top of stories that haven't been completed yet, which makes for a slow-burning start. I can't quite say whether he manages to bring all these disparate elements together to form a cohesive and coherent whole yet, but I'm certainly intrigued, and at the end of the volume I felt like I had at least an inkling of an idea of where Carey intends to take the story, but I mostly gleaned it from between the lines. There's so much going on: Ancient magical forces granting wishes, Navajo creation lore, a neo-Nazi gang, a sentient pack of tarot cards, a British schoolgirl who can speak to the dead, Japanese mythology, a cursed Sumerian priestess, and a portal to the outside of creation that everyone wants to control, bringing the Host of Heaven down on Los Angeles for a mighty battle...
The character of Lucifer is crafty, suave, cunning, and delightfully devilish—I love that even though he's commonly referred to as the Father of Lies, he prides himself in keeping his promises, and only speaks the (sometimes ugly) truth. On the other hand, the secondary characters lacked depth and were mostly used as plot-devices (this especially applies to the women, Rachel, Jill, and Erishad, with Elaine being the one notable exception, which is why the single-issue arc in which she is introduced was easily my favorite). The first proper arc was my least favorite—it felt like an inflated filler, which isn't a good way to start (it's also set in Hamburg, Germany, and not a single word or phrase of German was correct, which is a big pet-peeve of mine). My favorite of the longer arcs was the one in which Lucifer goes to the Japanese underworld to retrieve his wings—I love it when different mythologies are interwoven.
In many ways, the reader is thrown in the deep end and kept in the dark about Lucifer's plan, but I must admit that even though I occasionally struggled with the muddled plot, it still managed to keep my interest throughout, and I'll definitely finish out the series; I spent quarantine revisiting Sandman, and a year later, still in lockdown, it seemed only right to take the plunge into the spin-off about my favorite minor character. At its heart, this is a story about a son rebelling against a tyrannical father, and I look forward to see where it'll go.
—————
My other Lucifer reviews:
01: Book One · ★★
02: Book Two · ★★
03: Book Three · ★★
04: Book Four · ★★
05: Book Five · ★★★
The three-issue Morningstar Option is what got DC/Vertigo to pick up the series, and it's easy to see why: The art is painted rather than drawn, and easily among the most beautiful graphic novel artwork I've ever seen, rivaled only by Sandman: Overture . Unfortunately, this style was only kept for this short mini-series, but the plot is a portent of things to come—it's self-contained enough that you can gauge whether you'd like the rest, but also forms the beginning of the main storyline: Lucifer does Heaven a favor, and is granted a letter of passage in return. This book collects the prelude, and the first four interconnected story-arcs of the main run: A Six-Card Spread (3 issues), Born with the Dead (single issue), The House of Windowless Rooms (four issues), and Children and Monsters (five issues).
Even though the tone is similar to Sandman, which was also recommended for mature readers, it's clear from the get-go that Lucifer is even darker. Carey's ideas are ambitious, and the plot so complex and loose that it got rather confusing in parts—it constantly feels like he's building new stories on top of stories that haven't been completed yet, which makes for a slow-burning start. I can't quite say whether he manages to bring all these disparate elements together to form a cohesive and coherent whole yet, but I'm certainly intrigued, and at the end of the volume I felt like I had at least an inkling of an idea of where Carey intends to take the story, but I mostly gleaned it from between the lines. There's so much going on: Ancient magical forces granting wishes, Navajo creation lore, a neo-Nazi gang, a sentient pack of tarot cards, a British schoolgirl who can speak to the dead, Japanese mythology, a cursed Sumerian priestess, and a portal to the outside of creation that everyone wants to control, bringing the Host of Heaven down on Los Angeles for a mighty battle...
The character of Lucifer is crafty, suave, cunning, and delightfully devilish—I love that even though he's commonly referred to as the Father of Lies, he prides himself in keeping his promises, and only speaks the (sometimes ugly) truth. On the other hand, the secondary characters lacked depth and were mostly used as plot-devices (this especially applies to the women, Rachel, Jill, and Erishad, with Elaine being the one notable exception, which is why the single-issue arc in which she is introduced was easily my favorite). The first proper arc was my least favorite—it felt like an inflated filler, which isn't a good way to start (it's also set in Hamburg, Germany, and not a single word or phrase of German was correct, which is a big pet-peeve of mine). My favorite of the longer arcs was the one in which Lucifer goes to the Japanese underworld to retrieve his wings—I love it when different mythologies are interwoven.
In many ways, the reader is thrown in the deep end and kept in the dark about Lucifer's plan, but I must admit that even though I occasionally struggled with the muddled plot, it still managed to keep my interest throughout, and I'll definitely finish out the series; I spent quarantine revisiting Sandman, and a year later, still in lockdown, it seemed only right to take the plunge into the spin-off about my favorite minor character. At its heart, this is a story about a son rebelling against a tyrannical father, and I look forward to see where it'll go.
—————
My other Lucifer reviews:
01: Book One · ★★
02: Book Two · ★★
03: Book Three · ★★
04: Book Four · ★★
05: Book Five · ★★★
February 14, 2016
Book wasn't bad, and the story itself was quite interesting, but there was something missing. When it's recommended by Gaiman, I expect more... :/
June 11, 2020
I allways shied away from this because of multiple reasons, first how do you follow up on neil gaimans magnum opus that is sandman and the birthplace of this version of the character? I am convinced not even gaiman would know the answer to that. Still I was curious enough that I would give it a chance one day... but the TV-Show they made out of this, convinced me otherwise yet again.
It wasn't till my fiance bought me the first tpb that I would actually start reading it. (thanks)
And color me surprised it is good... like actually good and that in a similar vein of what we are used to from the character lucifer. Not only did I actually feel like visiting old places and characters without feeling odd, it also had me hooked from the first pages. I only got two points I have to critique, the art change in the beginning and the overall story lacked the depth of what I expected. But considering this was written by Mike Carey and this being my first time reading anything of him, I have to give him credit. Very recommendable especially if you are a fan of the sandman universe.
4.5 stars out of 5.0 stars
It wasn't till my fiance bought me the first tpb that I would actually start reading it. (thanks)
And color me surprised it is good... like actually good and that in a similar vein of what we are used to from the character lucifer. Not only did I actually feel like visiting old places and characters without feeling odd, it also had me hooked from the first pages. I only got two points I have to critique, the art change in the beginning and the overall story lacked the depth of what I expected. But considering this was written by Mike Carey and this being my first time reading anything of him, I have to give him credit. Very recommendable especially if you are a fan of the sandman universe.
4.5 stars out of 5.0 stars
June 9, 2013
It seems that almost anything related to Gaiman's Sandman universe is going to be excellent, but Carey's Lucifer is a very different kind.
The stories of Lucifer don't even feature him very much, only having him plot and plan in the background (mostly) whilst others do his dirty work for him, only to sweep in at the end and reveal his perfectly concocted schemes and 'save' the day.
This is expertly plotted stuff that all builds on itself but has each story stand alone too, which makes it even more enjoyable as things from past arcs reappear and play vital roles going forward in the larger narrative.
It's all very clever stuff, being both unpredictable and surprising - I'm quite sad that the next volume isn't out for a long time.
The stories of Lucifer don't even feature him very much, only having him plot and plan in the background (mostly) whilst others do his dirty work for him, only to sweep in at the end and reveal his perfectly concocted schemes and 'save' the day.
This is expertly plotted stuff that all builds on itself but has each story stand alone too, which makes it even more enjoyable as things from past arcs reappear and play vital roles going forward in the larger narrative.
It's all very clever stuff, being both unpredictable and surprising - I'm quite sad that the next volume isn't out for a long time.
March 8, 2014
Based on my experience with The Unwritten and now this collection, I'd guess that Cary books tend to be slow starters. It took quite awhile for Unwritten to really connect, but when it did, it really did. One of the best-written comics I've ever read. After 13 issues of Lucifer, I'm still not quite there. I like it all well enough, but there's still something a bit off-putting about the whole affair. Lucifer himself is a hard character to warm up to. And the stories themselves read like warmed-over Neil Gaiman. I've got Book 2 all ready to go, but might have to take a break with some lighter weight fare before I come back to this.
March 20, 2016
Dark & heavy reading material that gets weighed down by its own mythology. The story gets better halfway, when Peter Gross picks up the pencilling duties.
October 22, 2022
Lucifer Book One collects issues The Sandman Presents: Lucifer 1-3 and Lucifer 1-13 of the DC Vertigo series written by Mike Carey with art by Peter Gross, Ryan Kelly, Dean, Ormston, Scott Hampton, Chris Weston, James Hodgkin, and Warren Pleece.
Set in the Sandman universe, the book starts after Lucifer has given up the throne of Hell and is currently supervising a piano bar in LA (as he would.)Lucifer is approached to a favor for the Kingdom of Heaven.
Like Sandman, I struggled to get into the series and found the first arc incredibly boring and tedious. It took me a month to get through the whole book. I finally started to get into the series during the “House of Windowless Rooms” story arc. The books is very similar to Sandman (and many Sandman characters appear throughout the first volume) where Lucifer may not be the star of each story, but his presence is always shaping what is happening. Curious to see where the story goes from here.
Set in the Sandman universe, the book starts after Lucifer has given up the throne of Hell and is currently supervising a piano bar in LA (as he would.)Lucifer is approached to a favor for the Kingdom of Heaven.
Like Sandman, I struggled to get into the series and found the first arc incredibly boring and tedious. It took me a month to get through the whole book. I finally started to get into the series during the “House of Windowless Rooms” story arc. The books is very similar to Sandman (and many Sandman characters appear throughout the first volume) where Lucifer may not be the star of each story, but his presence is always shaping what is happening. Curious to see where the story goes from here.
August 2, 2016
Imagine a person : highly articulate, well informed on almost every topic, fiercely intelligent and capable of deal making under the most pressing of scenarios. No, he is not a diplomat and neither is he a human being and in fact I am not entirely certain if I can refer to this person as a ‘he’. The person in question is an angel and the name is Lucifer Morningstar. We know him as the Devil. That’s right : no fire and brimstone, no cloven hooves, no horns and forky tail and none of the theatrics that the role asks for in popular mythology. Lucifer is introduced as more of a has-been for he has resigned his role as the lord of Hell (utter boredom with the monotony) and now runs a piano bar on earth. He is still not someone to be trifled with for all the things that made him formidable once still lurk under the surface. This collection is a series of short stories in which Lucifer travels all over Earth and his former dominion to find resolution for multiple crises. There is a whiff of nostalgia when he remarks approaching the gates of hell : Home again, home again. Jiggety jig.
There arrives a missive to Lucifer from the throne high above the clouds with a pass attached that wants to recruit him for a particular job. With nothing better on his list of appointments, he accepts and is then hurled headlong into an adventure filled with ancient gods, clairvoyant teenagers, his former minions and all powerful shamans. I liked Morningstar for his poetic turn of phrase even when it is about describing absolutely terrifying things :
Understand me. Whatever lived there then lives there still, though your kind abandoned this place half a million years ago. There are forests of black oaks, a hundred feet tall, standing invisible in the dark. There are creatures…predators..that have not eaten in geological ages. You have forgotten the voiceless, but they have not forgotten you. They want you to come home. Want the feel of your fear and your worship. But while the darkness is a home for them, for you it was only a womb.
Lucifer does not come across as a hero or a villain but he has his own agendas to fulfil. His next move is to a version of the Japanese hell where he goes in search of his wings and which he reclaims even while he is in mortal form (utterly powerless and without defences). This is where Lucifer becomes a personification of hard, cold intellect and it suits the character the most. He is dismissive of wasteful excess and also of trivial conversation and is guilty as charged of being a ‘devilishly’ charming and manipulative bugger. The last sequence of stories ‘Children and monsters’ is a prolonged confrontation between the hosts of heaven and Lucifer. But then he trumps them all with a move which is in itself a classic. Mike Carey does not make the character either good or evil but all head. There might be machinations that Lucifer is planning to set in motion but none of those are revealed in detail here.
I did happen to see a couple of episodes of the TV series and the Lucifer of the book does not have any resemblance to the beefcake in the series ! The book is far more interesting (isn’t it so almost always ? ). Recommended.
All stories are lies. But good stories are lies made from light and fire. And they lift our hearts out of the dust, and out of the grave.
When the Devil wants you to do something, he doesn’t lie at all. He tells you the exact, literal truth. And he lets you find your own way to Hell.
There arrives a missive to Lucifer from the throne high above the clouds with a pass attached that wants to recruit him for a particular job. With nothing better on his list of appointments, he accepts and is then hurled headlong into an adventure filled with ancient gods, clairvoyant teenagers, his former minions and all powerful shamans. I liked Morningstar for his poetic turn of phrase even when it is about describing absolutely terrifying things :
Understand me. Whatever lived there then lives there still, though your kind abandoned this place half a million years ago. There are forests of black oaks, a hundred feet tall, standing invisible in the dark. There are creatures…predators..that have not eaten in geological ages. You have forgotten the voiceless, but they have not forgotten you. They want you to come home. Want the feel of your fear and your worship. But while the darkness is a home for them, for you it was only a womb.
Lucifer does not come across as a hero or a villain but he has his own agendas to fulfil. His next move is to a version of the Japanese hell where he goes in search of his wings and which he reclaims even while he is in mortal form (utterly powerless and without defences). This is where Lucifer becomes a personification of hard, cold intellect and it suits the character the most. He is dismissive of wasteful excess and also of trivial conversation and is guilty as charged of being a ‘devilishly’ charming and manipulative bugger. The last sequence of stories ‘Children and monsters’ is a prolonged confrontation between the hosts of heaven and Lucifer. But then he trumps them all with a move which is in itself a classic. Mike Carey does not make the character either good or evil but all head. There might be machinations that Lucifer is planning to set in motion but none of those are revealed in detail here.
I did happen to see a couple of episodes of the TV series and the Lucifer of the book does not have any resemblance to the beefcake in the series ! The book is far more interesting (isn’t it so almost always ? ). Recommended.
All stories are lies. But good stories are lies made from light and fire. And they lift our hearts out of the dust, and out of the grave.
When the Devil wants you to do something, he doesn’t lie at all. He tells you the exact, literal truth. And he lets you find your own way to Hell.
March 25, 2016
To view all my reviews visit http://dancinginth3dark.blogspot.com
My feelings after reading this graphic novel? Meh.
I do not know about you but I am in love with this brand new show on Fox called Lucifer.
Oh yes you do!
I love the actor who plays Lucifer and it's been months since I haven't read the comics and I decided that I should read it to figure out what is the general plot for the television show. I am afraid to announced that the show is completely different from the comics and I am still curious if that makes the fandom quite divided or makes these two universes separate for both parties to enjoy. The only thing that the show and the comic have in common is Satan has quit ruling Hell and is residing in Los Angeles, California.
Lucifer is living the luxurious life among humans with his own club/restaurant called Lux when an angel messenger from God appears seeking Lucifers help. Apparently there is this evil spirit lurking in the shadows that helps provide wishes for mortals and with each wish granting this evil spirit gets superior in force. Heaven cannot get in the mix with Earth so they need the devil to do Gods work.
Lucifer does not have an issue with accomplishing this task in exchange for a letter of indulgence from God. At first it seems such a silly wish nonetheless God grants him the letter. Knowing Satan, he has calculated everything and follows the necessary precautions to achieve his plans and to void detection. By having this letter, Satan is able to open a portal that enters a realm outside of creation meaning with the right set of skills and power he can create a whole universe and become God.
I was disappointed with this series mainly because it's nothing like the television show. I believe if the show never existed I would have enjoyed this graphic novel but the other issue that lies in this series is organization. Lucifer plans are not revealed to us at first and it is through the course of the story that we see his plans unfolding as we meet different characters who will become important by the end of this first volume.
There is nothing wrong introducing countless different characters in a series but the writers lack the skills of how to properly introduce this characters and not interrupt the flow of story arc. What would catch me off guard would be that 100 pages would go by and everything is about Lucifer and his plans then out of nowhere come the next page and you meet a random girl who can talk to ghosts. It would take about another 50 pages to see Lucifer again and his connection to the girl.
In all honesty I believe the writers could have done a better job at connecting the dots with these characters and their ties to Lucifer and hopefully in this next volume the story gets polished. I want to continue this series because I have faith in Neil Gaiman but I am not in any hurry to read the next volume. Hopefully we can see the qualities that we love in the tv show reflected onto the book.
My feelings after reading this graphic novel? Meh.
I do not know about you but I am in love with this brand new show on Fox called Lucifer.
Oh yes you do!
I love the actor who plays Lucifer and it's been months since I haven't read the comics and I decided that I should read it to figure out what is the general plot for the television show. I am afraid to announced that the show is completely different from the comics and I am still curious if that makes the fandom quite divided or makes these two universes separate for both parties to enjoy. The only thing that the show and the comic have in common is Satan has quit ruling Hell and is residing in Los Angeles, California.
Lucifer is living the luxurious life among humans with his own club/restaurant called Lux when an angel messenger from God appears seeking Lucifers help. Apparently there is this evil spirit lurking in the shadows that helps provide wishes for mortals and with each wish granting this evil spirit gets superior in force. Heaven cannot get in the mix with Earth so they need the devil to do Gods work.
Lucifer does not have an issue with accomplishing this task in exchange for a letter of indulgence from God. At first it seems such a silly wish nonetheless God grants him the letter. Knowing Satan, he has calculated everything and follows the necessary precautions to achieve his plans and to void detection. By having this letter, Satan is able to open a portal that enters a realm outside of creation meaning with the right set of skills and power he can create a whole universe and become God.
I was disappointed with this series mainly because it's nothing like the television show. I believe if the show never existed I would have enjoyed this graphic novel but the other issue that lies in this series is organization. Lucifer plans are not revealed to us at first and it is through the course of the story that we see his plans unfolding as we meet different characters who will become important by the end of this first volume.
There is nothing wrong introducing countless different characters in a series but the writers lack the skills of how to properly introduce this characters and not interrupt the flow of story arc. What would catch me off guard would be that 100 pages would go by and everything is about Lucifer and his plans then out of nowhere come the next page and you meet a random girl who can talk to ghosts. It would take about another 50 pages to see Lucifer again and his connection to the girl.
In all honesty I believe the writers could have done a better job at connecting the dots with these characters and their ties to Lucifer and hopefully in this next volume the story gets polished. I want to continue this series because I have faith in Neil Gaiman but I am not in any hurry to read the next volume. Hopefully we can see the qualities that we love in the tv show reflected onto the book.
April 23, 2022
2022 - While not the first time I have read this graphic novel, it was long enough ago that I did not remember all of it. This time I kind of binged on it - reading almost continuously - and I have already ordered the next two volumes. I am going to try reading them soon after the first.
As with the first time I read it, I was struck with the often great artwork and the different elements to the story. The story revolved around Lucifer (duh) as he is, living In America post-abdication, running a piano bar; Lux, and then he is asked to do a job for heaven. The job involves killing old gods, and Scott Hampton's beautiful, dynamic artwork complements the story of how Lucifer hijacks a teenage girl with Navajo heritage to use as a guide through the layers of reality. Great story.
But then, much of the rest of the novel relates to the payment Lucifer demanded (and received) for the job is a letter of passage, and despite the fury and fulminations of the angel who delivers the message he gets it.
For the rest of the book (while the letter of passage is the overreaching story arc), there are whole heaps of stories and characters, mostly bizarre and impossible, complemented by several different art styles, which make for many excellent stories. I am more than ready for the next one now.
2018
Mike Carey does great work in general, with his offbeat take on reality and his ability to (apparently) effortlessly invoke the mythic value of stories. In this compilation, he tells the story of Lucifer, the Lucifer that Neil Gaiman gave us in the Sandman. The one that got bored with ruling Hell, quit and now runs a nightspot in LA where he plays the piano.
In this story Heaven offers him a contract, for which, if fulfilled, he can name his own price and so begins a series of stories that wander through realities, hells and other alternative dimensions. The cast of characters is wide and fascinating, several will be familiar to Sandman readers, and many take completely different forms.
There are a number of different artists who have worked on this series of comics. While all the artwork was good (loved what they did with the Tarot people) I especially loved the artwork in the first, Scott Hampton has a glorious, deft way of making people look like watercolour paintings that I love and coupled with the dynamic, often vivid backgrounds it is extraordinarily effective.
Great story, satisfying ending.
As with the first time I read it, I was struck with the often great artwork and the different elements to the story. The story revolved around Lucifer (duh) as he is, living In America post-abdication, running a piano bar; Lux, and then he is asked to do a job for heaven. The job involves killing old gods, and Scott Hampton's beautiful, dynamic artwork complements the story of how Lucifer hijacks a teenage girl with Navajo heritage to use as a guide through the layers of reality. Great story.
But then, much of the rest of the novel relates to the payment Lucifer demanded (and received) for the job is a letter of passage, and despite the fury and fulminations of the angel who delivers the message he gets it.
For the rest of the book (while the letter of passage is the overreaching story arc), there are whole heaps of stories and characters, mostly bizarre and impossible, complemented by several different art styles, which make for many excellent stories. I am more than ready for the next one now.
2018
Mike Carey does great work in general, with his offbeat take on reality and his ability to (apparently) effortlessly invoke the mythic value of stories. In this compilation, he tells the story of Lucifer, the Lucifer that Neil Gaiman gave us in the Sandman. The one that got bored with ruling Hell, quit and now runs a nightspot in LA where he plays the piano.
In this story Heaven offers him a contract, for which, if fulfilled, he can name his own price and so begins a series of stories that wander through realities, hells and other alternative dimensions. The cast of characters is wide and fascinating, several will be familiar to Sandman readers, and many take completely different forms.
There are a number of different artists who have worked on this series of comics. While all the artwork was good (loved what they did with the Tarot people) I especially loved the artwork in the first, Scott Hampton has a glorious, deft way of making people look like watercolour paintings that I love and coupled with the dynamic, often vivid backgrounds it is extraordinarily effective.
Great story, satisfying ending.
February 27, 2019
I’m tempted to give this five stars, it came close.
When I started this out, I was only banking on maybe three stars. So what happened?
Basically everything was a little jarring and piecemeal at first. I wasn’t sure where it was all going and couldn’t figure out what Lucifer’s goal was.
Then I realized the angels had no clue what lucifer was doing either, so at least I wasn’t alone.
Each story in this built off the piece before it until it’s revealed what lucifer is trying to accomplish. By the end of this first book everything started clicking into place and I’m very intrigued at the possibilities going forward.
The only issues I had here were that some of these magical based Vertigo titles have confusing “rules.” They may have logic in something, but it’s not always as clear of spelled out (Books of Magic post-Gaiman was very confusing for instance). I know what Superman or Batman can do. Not so clear what mythology they’re pulling from or if they just made a rule out of thin air.
But lucifer seemed to make more sense than others under the Vertigo banner at least.
Going to read on for sure.
When I started this out, I was only banking on maybe three stars. So what happened?
Basically everything was a little jarring and piecemeal at first. I wasn’t sure where it was all going and couldn’t figure out what Lucifer’s goal was.
Then I realized the angels had no clue what lucifer was doing either, so at least I wasn’t alone.
Each story in this built off the piece before it until it’s revealed what lucifer is trying to accomplish. By the end of this first book everything started clicking into place and I’m very intrigued at the possibilities going forward.
The only issues I had here were that some of these magical based Vertigo titles have confusing “rules.” They may have logic in something, but it’s not always as clear of spelled out (Books of Magic post-Gaiman was very confusing for instance). I know what Superman or Batman can do. Not so clear what mythology they’re pulling from or if they just made a rule out of thin air.
But lucifer seemed to make more sense than others under the Vertigo banner at least.
Going to read on for sure.
April 30, 2014
A graphic novel series starring Lucifer, the former lord of Hell who abdicated? It shouldn't have worked, but it really does. It's a little brother to Sandman; never gaining as much acclaim, but really pretty close in quality (it's actually more approachable than Sandman, and more cohesive, which are both pluses and minuses). The first volume introduces this incarnation of Lucifer in his current role, as well as several of the other characters that populate his world. And they're fascinating and disturbing. Mike Carey has gone on to the Unwritten, which is of similarly wonderful quality. This is where he started his long form work, and he started with a bang. If you can get over the main character, you'll find an amazing work of comics. It helps to have read Sandman (and if you haven't, you really should), but it isn't required. This can stand on its own, even while it exists in Sandman's shadow.
November 17, 2014
69th book read in 2014.
Number 130 out of 412 on my all time book list.
Follow the link below to see my video review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YK_OS...
Number 130 out of 412 on my all time book list.
Follow the link below to see my video review:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YK_OS...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 349 reviews