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Shade, the Changing Man (Collected Editions) #2
Shade, the Changing Man, Volume 2: Edge of Vision
Shade and Kathy George continue their epic, mind-bending journey into the heartland of a nation on the trail of The American Scream.
Collecting: Shade, the Changing Man 7-13
Collecting: Shade, the Changing Man 7-13
192 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 2009
9 people are currently reading
292 people want to read
About the author
Peter Milligan
1,306 books391 followersLibrarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
Peter Milligan is a British writer, best known for his work on X-Force / X-Statix, the X-Men, & the Vertigo series Human Target. He is also a scriptwriter.
He has been writing comics for some time and he has somewhat of a reputation for writing material that is highly outlandish, bizarre and/or absurd.
His highest profile projects to date include a run on X-Men, and his X-Force revamp that relaunched as X-Statix.
Many of Milligan's best works have been from DC Vertigo. These include: The Extremist (4 issues with artist Ted McKeever) The Minx (8 issues with artist Sean Phillips) Face (Prestige one-shot with artist Duncan Fegredo) The Eaters (Prestige one-shot with artist Dean Ormston) Vertigo Pop London (4 issues with artist Philip Bond) Enigma (8 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo) and Girl (3 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo).
Series:
* Human Target
* Greek Street
* X-Force / X-Statix
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name
Peter Milligan is a British writer, best known for his work on X-Force / X-Statix, the X-Men, & the Vertigo series Human Target. He is also a scriptwriter.
He has been writing comics for some time and he has somewhat of a reputation for writing material that is highly outlandish, bizarre and/or absurd.
His highest profile projects to date include a run on X-Men, and his X-Force revamp that relaunched as X-Statix.
Many of Milligan's best works have been from DC Vertigo. These include: The Extremist (4 issues with artist Ted McKeever) The Minx (8 issues with artist Sean Phillips) Face (Prestige one-shot with artist Duncan Fegredo) The Eaters (Prestige one-shot with artist Dean Ormston) Vertigo Pop London (4 issues with artist Philip Bond) Enigma (8 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo) and Girl (3 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo).
Series:
* Human Target
* Greek Street
* X-Force / X-Statix
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
April 11, 2016
Shade and Kathy find themselves drawn to Madness outbreaks, first in San Francisco then in New York. Shade and Kathy are separated and Kathy meets Lenny, a young artist. Shade, on the other hand, meets someone he never thought he'd see again...
Yeah, this is one of those times where I'm not exactly sure what I just finished reading. Peter Milligan's writing was top notch and Christopher Bachalo's art was good though still in its formative stages. I'm just not sure what they were telling me.
I loved that Lenny was finally introduced. I read the series from issue #35 on in the order I found them so I was wondering when some of my old favorites like Shimmy, Pandora, and Lenny would be introduced. I also liked that Troy Grenzer was brought back and that the American Scream still lived.
Still, I loved the art and I loved the characters. It wasn't as good as the first volume but does a good job of setting the stage for the next one.
Also, I want a coat like Shade's.
Yeah, this is one of those times where I'm not exactly sure what I just finished reading. Peter Milligan's writing was top notch and Christopher Bachalo's art was good though still in its formative stages. I'm just not sure what they were telling me.
I loved that Lenny was finally introduced. I read the series from issue #35 on in the order I found them so I was wondering when some of my old favorites like Shimmy, Pandora, and Lenny would be introduced. I also liked that Troy Grenzer was brought back and that the American Scream still lived.
Still, I loved the art and I loved the characters. It wasn't as good as the first volume but does a good job of setting the stage for the next one.
Also, I want a coat like Shade's.
July 17, 2017
Eh, nope. Where the first volume was ok and pretty readable despite its craziness, the second one is an absolutely bonkers, balls-to-the wall, impossible to follow mess, the very worst kind of nineties Grant Morrison wannabe writing. Pass.
October 1, 2022
The series picks up here! We start to have some fun with the Madness that's slowly taking over America.
I'm excited to check out Volume 3, and the rest of the series that hasn't been collected yet. I'm fortunate to have found the complete series in the original comics.
I'm excited to check out Volume 3, and the rest of the series that hasn't been collected yet. I'm fortunate to have found the complete series in the original comics.
December 22, 2010
Fans pressed with the challenge of describing Vertigo Comics’ SHADE THE CHANGING MAN may have as much trouble demonstrating its characters, themes, plotlines, conflicts, and motifs as much as a critic will have in writing a review of the series.
Not for a lack of trying, though, and with the second volume of the series, entitled, “The Edge of Vision,” it’s perfectly clear that writer Peter Milligan and artist Chris Bachalo are giving their share of effort to bridge the gap between the readers’ normal everyday goings-on
With that written, “The Edge of Vision,” serves much more as a continuation of events set in place in the previous volume of the series than as a self-contained vignette of a much larger narrative. Readers are hereby warned that if they’ve selected “The Edge of Vision” as a jumping on point for the series, they’ll need to seriously consider picking up the previous volume before moving forward. Otherwise, no knowledge of Steve Ditko’s original incarnation of Shade is necessary whatsoever.
On the other hand, what is necessary is a very open mind. Milligan & Bachalo promise to take SHADE into some truly disturbing areas with this particular volume, and the only reprieve that the narrative receives in terms of comic relief is the introduction of Lenny, who will come to play a major role in the cast of characters for the series, later on.
Once again, the British scribe Milligan finds it perhaps easy or acceptable to outline some of the greatest foibles that America possesses, and at its root, The Madness is simply that: the foibles of America. Imagine every misstep the nation has made since the late 1600s, and you could reasonably blame it on The Madness, a nigh-unstoppable force determined to unravel the very fabric of the country.
In this volume, the alien Shade finds himself struggling with his own ability to please the human Kathy George (sexually, as well as emotionally), who is about as distant and incapable of understanding the poet’s mission on Earth as readers are sometimes capable of comprehending how “The Edge of Vision” actually makes sense in an M.C. Escher fashion. Place the couple’s dysfunctional romance against the backdrop of the resolution that Kathy still seeks regarding the murder of her parents at the hands of the serial killer Troy Grenzer, and readers have their conflict in waiting. How Shade & Kathy resolve that conflict, like any magic act, will demand the reader simply accept that what they’re seeing is real, failing to ask why.
Fans of Charlie Kaufman, psychedelic 1970’s Brit punk, and perhaps even Christopher Nolan’s INCEPTION need look no further than SHADE for a series that will stretch the human brain to its elastic length…and only at the last minute allow it to snap back upon itself like a taut rubber band. Here, fans are better able to witness the development of artist Chris Bachalo’s talent, and the final chapters of this particular collection begin to resemble more and more the skill that Bachalo will demonstrate later on in the series, though “The Edge of Vision” possesses its own ‘chapter’ in Bachalo’s artistic history to make it worthwhile.
All of these elements marry with one another to create SHADE, a drug-laced cocktail that is most times more concerned with the character development that comes out of truly outrageous scenarios, than it is with justifying The Madness as scientifically plausible (or even rooted in popular supernatural myth) or with forgiving America for its strangest transgressions against the human psyche (and this volume lays the foundation for even more unsettling transgressions in the future).
The only thing ‘mad’ about it is that, the series is incredibly strong (so long as readers are willing to suspend that disbelief that the man isn’t actually cutting the pretty woman in half, to make use of one last magical analogy) and yet the series will see cancellation at issue #70, in another 57 issues or so.
Hopefully, the unraveling of the American dream that transpires here is not prophetic in its announcement that the time readers will spend with Shade is ultimately limited.
Best then to simply enjoy this vertiginous road trip while it lasts…
Not for a lack of trying, though, and with the second volume of the series, entitled, “The Edge of Vision,” it’s perfectly clear that writer Peter Milligan and artist Chris Bachalo are giving their share of effort to bridge the gap between the readers’ normal everyday goings-on
With that written, “The Edge of Vision,” serves much more as a continuation of events set in place in the previous volume of the series than as a self-contained vignette of a much larger narrative. Readers are hereby warned that if they’ve selected “The Edge of Vision” as a jumping on point for the series, they’ll need to seriously consider picking up the previous volume before moving forward. Otherwise, no knowledge of Steve Ditko’s original incarnation of Shade is necessary whatsoever.
On the other hand, what is necessary is a very open mind. Milligan & Bachalo promise to take SHADE into some truly disturbing areas with this particular volume, and the only reprieve that the narrative receives in terms of comic relief is the introduction of Lenny, who will come to play a major role in the cast of characters for the series, later on.
Once again, the British scribe Milligan finds it perhaps easy or acceptable to outline some of the greatest foibles that America possesses, and at its root, The Madness is simply that: the foibles of America. Imagine every misstep the nation has made since the late 1600s, and you could reasonably blame it on The Madness, a nigh-unstoppable force determined to unravel the very fabric of the country.
In this volume, the alien Shade finds himself struggling with his own ability to please the human Kathy George (sexually, as well as emotionally), who is about as distant and incapable of understanding the poet’s mission on Earth as readers are sometimes capable of comprehending how “The Edge of Vision” actually makes sense in an M.C. Escher fashion. Place the couple’s dysfunctional romance against the backdrop of the resolution that Kathy still seeks regarding the murder of her parents at the hands of the serial killer Troy Grenzer, and readers have their conflict in waiting. How Shade & Kathy resolve that conflict, like any magic act, will demand the reader simply accept that what they’re seeing is real, failing to ask why.
Fans of Charlie Kaufman, psychedelic 1970’s Brit punk, and perhaps even Christopher Nolan’s INCEPTION need look no further than SHADE for a series that will stretch the human brain to its elastic length…and only at the last minute allow it to snap back upon itself like a taut rubber band. Here, fans are better able to witness the development of artist Chris Bachalo’s talent, and the final chapters of this particular collection begin to resemble more and more the skill that Bachalo will demonstrate later on in the series, though “The Edge of Vision” possesses its own ‘chapter’ in Bachalo’s artistic history to make it worthwhile.
All of these elements marry with one another to create SHADE, a drug-laced cocktail that is most times more concerned with the character development that comes out of truly outrageous scenarios, than it is with justifying The Madness as scientifically plausible (or even rooted in popular supernatural myth) or with forgiving America for its strangest transgressions against the human psyche (and this volume lays the foundation for even more unsettling transgressions in the future).
The only thing ‘mad’ about it is that, the series is incredibly strong (so long as readers are willing to suspend that disbelief that the man isn’t actually cutting the pretty woman in half, to make use of one last magical analogy) and yet the series will see cancellation at issue #70, in another 57 issues or so.
Hopefully, the unraveling of the American dream that transpires here is not prophetic in its announcement that the time readers will spend with Shade is ultimately limited.
Best then to simply enjoy this vertiginous road trip while it lasts…
June 28, 2021
The jouney through America's madness and hypocrisy continues in a glorius LSD trip.
Also: Go Lenny!
Also: Go Lenny!
September 16, 2011
By the end of the 1990s, Chris Bachalo's art had turned over to the cartoonish side, in such a way that his 2000 experiment The Witching Hour, featuring computerized textures and tilted camera angels, was mostly incomprehensible. But maybe that's a growing pain for him. Shade's art is not exactly all about Bachalo, because Daniel Vozzo's colors are also of note, and if you consider the guy was also doing Doom Patrol at the time, there's a whole, somewhat dated, side of Vertigo's 90's art, before the onslaught of painted comics that descended from Sandman, or the humble storytelling of Preacher and Hellblazer. Here's a compromise between wild geometric patterns, offset shadows of flat color, and good old psychedelia. It also looks like the art team is responding with a storytelling take on Brendan McCarthy's covers, which dictate the whole mood. Just to remind you of what happened so far, Shade is supposed to contain the American Scream, a countrywide malaise emerging from the Meta dimension, which Shade's home planet shares with Earth. This volumes features hobos, the 60's Summer of Love, a tale of suburban hypocrisy built around Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and the return of Troy Grenzer, Shade's original serial killer host. The g-man from earlier issues also shows up, now ready to ally himself with Shade. Shade himself is more of a lightning rod, pulled apart by numerous demands and jumping through mental loopholes of collective paranoia. In a surprising twist, he elopes with his sidekick Kathy in this volume, but the relationship doesn't stick (she's damaged goods, he's always channeling someone else.. would it ever work?). Unlike other Vertigo comics at the time, which were about deconstructing superheroes, this comes closer to Sandman but without giving up too much of the superhero frame. Instead of building up a different kind of god, Milligan takes a transitional, Hermes-like character and picks up some noisy frequencies of american culture, which makes this sort of hauntologic. However, if at some point you feel like you're reading the same thing all over again -- well, maybe it's just you.
December 16, 2021
Shade, the Changing Man is not always a comfortable book to read. This book is always on the knife edge of taking things to far. There are moments, sequences that feel like your just about ready to fall into some kind of psychotic break if you read another word. But then, the madness does seem to be contagious. Doesn’t it? Shade, the Changing Man reads like a fever dream of raw, stream-of-consciousness insanity. But it is just too much fun to put it down. Imagine if you can, you live in a world were Santa Claus isn’t real. Where you are lied to your whole life that there actually is a Santa Claus. You discover, at some early age, that he’s not real. You’re not sure if you can trust anyone anymore. Then, years later, you see someone dressed like Santa Claus in your apartment messing with the presents under your holiday tree. You pull out a gun and shoot them. Because that’s what we do to intruders in the United States, right? Then you call the police and they show up and identify the Santa Claus as your long estranged father, who you haven’t seen in 15 years. And he was apparently going door to door leaving presents for everyone in the apartment building. And you killed him. You killed Santa Claus. It’s all your fault. Reading Shade, the Changing Man is like being able to finally focus on those weird little flashes of light that you sometimes see out of the corner of your eye, at the edge of your peripheral vision.
September 10, 2014
Man, in just one volume Bachalo goes from "serviceable" to bringing his absolute A-game and actually adding to the narrative, rather than just illustrating it. And after a somewhat heavy-handed introductory issue about Homelessness is Bad, Shade finally gets down to some serious doggone weirdness. Milligan manages to keep the stories pretty linear-ish, and it's funny to read him in a longform title like this one -- it's Grant Morrison who we've come to associate with the 90's Vertigo psychedelic freakout, but Milligan is so much better at it. He leaves the counter-culture snobbery at the door and makes the bizarre twists and turns meaningful, about something, rather than just a lot of cool-sounding gobbledygook.
Standout stories here include a hippie guru who's mentally enslaved San Francisco, and a middle-American town who feeds its people to a Normalcy Machine. Shade's serial killer arch-nemesis also shows up, and while his inclusion is perhaps kind of unnecessarily grisly, Bachalo does some of his best character work ever in bringing the bad guy to life.
Already I'm more excited about this series than I thought I would be. It's really good stuff.
Standout stories here include a hippie guru who's mentally enslaved San Francisco, and a middle-American town who feeds its people to a Normalcy Machine. Shade's serial killer arch-nemesis also shows up, and while his inclusion is perhaps kind of unnecessarily grisly, Bachalo does some of his best character work ever in bringing the bad guy to life.
Already I'm more excited about this series than I thought I would be. It's really good stuff.
May 17, 2021
Part 2 of greater arch featuring Shade against the American Scream and the spread of madness. More of the introspective reality morphing adventure with our protagonist Shade and some more characters beside him.
The Relationship between Shade and Kathy develops in interesting ways here with the series asking important questions about human desire, life, death and the subconscious.
The premise of the series is unique with a broad scope making each turn unpredictable. The power of madness straddles dimensions, warps reality making the hidden things in the human psyche real.
The antagonist; the American Scream manifests and battles Shade and Kathy in ever increasing and complex ways. Its clear that things are leading to a crescendo, the Scream itself is ever elusive.
Shade as a protagonist has grown and developed; getting to grips with his power's via the madness vest. It's clear that his comrades are critical to his success, adding and providing insights and perspectives that help Shade to confound the enemy. I am really looking forward to the 3rd and final part of this story arch.
Chris Bachalo has been one of my favourite comic artists for some time. Shade came out at an early point in his career and whilst his style has yet to reach its zenith, (as it does on his later runs of Generation X and the X-men) I still really enjoy his pencils here. Bachalo's illustrations shows a clear hand and distinct personal style.
The Relationship between Shade and Kathy develops in interesting ways here with the series asking important questions about human desire, life, death and the subconscious.
The premise of the series is unique with a broad scope making each turn unpredictable. The power of madness straddles dimensions, warps reality making the hidden things in the human psyche real.
The antagonist; the American Scream manifests and battles Shade and Kathy in ever increasing and complex ways. Its clear that things are leading to a crescendo, the Scream itself is ever elusive.
Shade as a protagonist has grown and developed; getting to grips with his power's via the madness vest. It's clear that his comrades are critical to his success, adding and providing insights and perspectives that help Shade to confound the enemy. I am really looking forward to the 3rd and final part of this story arch.
Chris Bachalo has been one of my favourite comic artists for some time. Shade came out at an early point in his career and whilst his style has yet to reach its zenith, (as it does on his later runs of Generation X and the X-men) I still really enjoy his pencils here. Bachalo's illustrations shows a clear hand and distinct personal style.
May 9, 2019
I was blown away by how good the second volume of Shade the changing man was. I always had high expectations for this series, being one of the original comics that put Vertigo on the map, but the first arc left me skeptical. It was okay, but it didn't have quite the edge I was expecting, something to make it stand out from Sandman, Hellblazer, and Animal Man. But as of now, I am fully on board.
The first half of this volume is much the same as the first. Shade and Kathy do not so much investigate as get dragged into madness across the country, ranging from a hippy commune in San Francisco to a small town deputy in Wisconsin. These issues are enjoyable, especially thanks to new character Lenny, who is a laugh riot. But like I said, if you read a lot of Vertigo, you've seen this before.
It's the title Edge of Vision arc that really makes this volume stand out. Shade tries to track down a serial killer in Chicago, but do to the nature of his powers, he needs to wrap his head around the killers madness to find him, and Shade does not like what he finds. The clash between Shade and the Killers personalities is enthralling, and well worth the purchase price.
The first half of this volume is much the same as the first. Shade and Kathy do not so much investigate as get dragged into madness across the country, ranging from a hippy commune in San Francisco to a small town deputy in Wisconsin. These issues are enjoyable, especially thanks to new character Lenny, who is a laugh riot. But like I said, if you read a lot of Vertigo, you've seen this before.
It's the title Edge of Vision arc that really makes this volume stand out. Shade tries to track down a serial killer in Chicago, but do to the nature of his powers, he needs to wrap his head around the killers madness to find him, and Shade does not like what he finds. The clash between Shade and the Killers personalities is enthralling, and well worth the purchase price.
June 16, 2021
I'm doing a reread of the series (for probably the first time in a decade), and oh my goodness the second volume is so much better than the first. Part of that is due to Bachalo and Pennington; Bachalo has started using the crazy layouts I love in his later work and the scratchiness of the first issues has faded away. The art is (usually) cleaner while still good at showing all the weirdness.
But the biggest change is due to the introduction of Lenny, the anarchistic sarcastic third wheel who is oh so needed as a foil to both Shade and Kathy. By introducing Lenny, Milligan starts turning the focus of the series from "madness manifestation of the week" to an exploration of the three main characters and their relationship to madness.
Add to all this two very good storylines (a freak out - on many levels - in San Francisco and the return of a frightening killer), and the series starts to take off.
But the biggest change is due to the introduction of Lenny, the anarchistic sarcastic third wheel who is oh so needed as a foil to both Shade and Kathy. By introducing Lenny, Milligan starts turning the focus of the series from "madness manifestation of the week" to an exploration of the three main characters and their relationship to madness.
Add to all this two very good storylines (a freak out - on many levels - in San Francisco and the return of a frightening killer), and the series starts to take off.
October 22, 2018
In the 1990's there were many talented writers and artists from Britain creating comics in America. They often brought with them a desire to take superheroes and comic books to new, deeper places. Peter Milligan used Shade, who was a strange character even when legendary Steve Ditko created him, to explore different aspects of American life. We have here 60's, psychedelic San Francisco; shared /possessed personalities and a hero flowing in the Madness Stream that is the American Scream. The fabulous art matches the wild, unexpected ride the stories provide. There really has never been a comic quite like it.
October 3, 2020
I forgot to log this. I finished it a few months ago, honestly I’ve been racing through the single issues rather than the trade paperbacks.
Shade continues to be this multi-layered character that just unfurls as the story goes on. He seems real in his struggles, and his inability to reconcile elements of life that humans go through every day feels very human. It juxtaposes his alien identity, him feeling like the most relatable character there.
Shade continues to be this multi-layered character that just unfurls as the story goes on. He seems real in his struggles, and his inability to reconcile elements of life that humans go through every day feels very human. It juxtaposes his alien identity, him feeling like the most relatable character there.
July 3, 2018
This volume was even better than the first. The madness and American Scream lends for some interesting and crazy stories. But it's the mIn story of Shade grappling with madness that is absolutely brilliant.
May 10, 2020
Mucho mejor que el primero!!
Me gusta como la temática ya es un poco mas general. No solo enfocada en los detalles "Americanos". Aquí Shade trata con problemas que afectan a todo el mundo. La historia del vagabundo y la historia de la gente Anti-Anormal son de lo mejor.
Me gusta como la temática ya es un poco mas general. No solo enfocada en los detalles "Americanos". Aquí Shade trata con problemas que afectan a todo el mundo. La historia del vagabundo y la historia de la gente Anti-Anormal son de lo mejor.
August 21, 2020
Pretty solid continuation of the series. Biggest problem is that I feel that some ideas are moved by far too quickly, giving them the illusion of depth rather than actual depth. I think the best part of this is simply Shade and Kathy's relationship.
January 24, 2023
Milligan's writing encapsulates the peak style of Vertigo, and Bachalo's art keeps getting better over time. I love how messy and sad this series is. The more fucked up stuff with is kind of bungled, but that just makes things feel more uncanny and eerie.
September 12, 2023
i have basically the same qualms with this volume as the first one. the story is sort of all over the place (even more so than the first one) which i guess is to be expected when your main characters are fighting "the madness" BUT this gave us the character lenny so it evens out
November 26, 2017
This is one of the most bizarre and psychedelic comic books of 90s but yet manages to be very poignant and thought provoking. Highly recommended.
November 2, 2021
Hellblazer à la demented American road trip vibes. Ooof.
January 15, 2023
This was a bit of a slog. It gets the idea of madness across well, but it’s a little repetitive and frustrating. I guess that’s a part of the effectiveness, but it’s not a fun read.
January 23, 2024
A bit too psychedelic for my tastes at times, but really strong and interesting writing on the madnesses of modern society and how we deal with them (or don’t).
April 25, 2024
not on cbr
April 6, 2015
Inescapably one of the finest comics I've ever read, but unfortunately, only the beginning of the series is available, and it is the weakest part. It will be a crime if the lack of success of these early bits forestalls the entire series becoming available, because it stands up as the equal of any other Vertigo title. Milligan is still trying to find his voice in these early stories, which are more standard fare, but soon he catches his stride and reaches levels of thoughtfully absurd wit to rival Moore's 'Swamp Thing', Gaiman's 'Sandman' or the better arcs of 'Hellblazer'.
Good as they can be, it's a shame Morrison and Gaiman get the lion's share of the attention for the Britwave movement, because Milligan wrote a much more innovative book. The art is solid, if not always remarkable. Bachalo is a bit weak at the beginning but he does some of the best work of his career around the middle. The illustrators who replace him for the closing of the series are competent, but don't have the same strikingly idiomatic visions.
The real star here is the writing, and Milligan is a talent who deserves to be better known and widely respected. His 'Enigma' is as unusual and insightful as Watchmen, his Extremist and Skin are darker and more transgressive than anything else put out by a major publisher. Yet Shade is his most imaginative and wide-ranging book, an amazing feat of constant reinvention with a smart, literary sensibility unrivaled in comics.
When people ask what my favorite comic is, I still say 'Shade', and I'm always sad at the lack of recognition when I say it.
My Suggested Reading In Comics
Good as they can be, it's a shame Morrison and Gaiman get the lion's share of the attention for the Britwave movement, because Milligan wrote a much more innovative book. The art is solid, if not always remarkable. Bachalo is a bit weak at the beginning but he does some of the best work of his career around the middle. The illustrators who replace him for the closing of the series are competent, but don't have the same strikingly idiomatic visions.
The real star here is the writing, and Milligan is a talent who deserves to be better known and widely respected. His 'Enigma' is as unusual and insightful as Watchmen, his Extremist and Skin are darker and more transgressive than anything else put out by a major publisher. Yet Shade is his most imaginative and wide-ranging book, an amazing feat of constant reinvention with a smart, literary sensibility unrivaled in comics.
When people ask what my favorite comic is, I still say 'Shade', and I'm always sad at the lack of recognition when I say it.
My Suggested Reading In Comics
November 17, 2019
Edge of Reason takes the raw imagination exhibited in the preceding volume and focuses it into more streamlined, polished storytelling.
In the first four chapters (issues #7-10), the craziness is directed towards social/political critique. Issue #7, which highlights the issue of homelessness, may be slightly on-the-nose, but issues #8–10 give insightful and thought-provoking deconstructions of the hippie movement on the one hand and traditionalist conservatism on the other. The comic's cerebral craziness benefits greatly from being purposed towards a discernible goal, with the thematic focus preventing psychedelia ever descending into silliness.
While the first four chapters are focused thematically, they feel a bit aimless in terms of plot, with events seeming to flit back and forth a little erratically. This problem is however rectified in the collection's closing arc (chapters 5–7; issues #11-13), which prioritize story and character. I think this arc is the series's strongest so far, exhibiting some wonderfully mind-bending concepts, while also making me care about the characters in a way that I hadn't really since the powerful issue #1.
Chris Bachalo's art is fantastic throughout, with his knack for composition adding real gravitas and grace. Seriously, most of his panels are real miniature works of art! Peter Milligan's prose is, unfortunately, not quite as artful. It's mostly fine, but it feels a little clunky at times, and his penchant for absurd similes is particularly grating.
Overall, this is a great volume that leaves me perplexed as to how Shade, the Changing Man isn't better known. I can't wait to get onto volume 3!
In the first four chapters (issues #7-10), the craziness is directed towards social/political critique. Issue #7, which highlights the issue of homelessness, may be slightly on-the-nose, but issues #8–10 give insightful and thought-provoking deconstructions of the hippie movement on the one hand and traditionalist conservatism on the other. The comic's cerebral craziness benefits greatly from being purposed towards a discernible goal, with the thematic focus preventing psychedelia ever descending into silliness.
While the first four chapters are focused thematically, they feel a bit aimless in terms of plot, with events seeming to flit back and forth a little erratically. This problem is however rectified in the collection's closing arc (chapters 5–7; issues #11-13), which prioritize story and character. I think this arc is the series's strongest so far, exhibiting some wonderfully mind-bending concepts, while also making me care about the characters in a way that I hadn't really since the powerful issue #1.
Chris Bachalo's art is fantastic throughout, with his knack for composition adding real gravitas and grace. Seriously, most of his panels are real miniature works of art! Peter Milligan's prose is, unfortunately, not quite as artful. It's mostly fine, but it feels a little clunky at times, and his penchant for absurd similes is particularly grating.
Overall, this is a great volume that leaves me perplexed as to how Shade, the Changing Man isn't better known. I can't wait to get onto volume 3!
February 18, 2022
Shade the Changing Man, Volume 2: Edge of Vision - 3.5/5
Better than tha previous volume Peter Milligan gits intae the inner mind (literally) in tis collection. Continuin tae deal wae the 'American Scream's' effects across America, Shade alsae his tae fight his ain bodies past.
Milligan continues tae hiv n impressive imagination, usasin his tools tae explore topics other tales wid need tae dae mair metaphorically. He kin get richt intae the minds've the American folken tae see how he thinks they tick.
Hooever, he continues (lik Jamie Delano's Hellblazer) tae uase actual metaphors real dodgly, wae lang, run-on sentences, filled wae a hale laid've unneeded adjectives n other descriptors. Whilst its nae as bad as Hellblazer, its still naticable n brings the beuk doon fir me.
O'eraw, characters continue tae engage (Lenny, introduced tis volume, leuks like their gonny be a stand oot), stories dae a great job aw've utilising their ability tae literalise metaphors, but the actual metaphors are tae o'erwritten wae adjectives n suchlike tae be effective.
Better than tha previous volume Peter Milligan gits intae the inner mind (literally) in tis collection. Continuin tae deal wae the 'American Scream's' effects across America, Shade alsae his tae fight his ain bodies past.
Milligan continues tae hiv n impressive imagination, usasin his tools tae explore topics other tales wid need tae dae mair metaphorically. He kin get richt intae the minds've the American folken tae see how he thinks they tick.
Hooever, he continues (lik Jamie Delano's Hellblazer) tae uase actual metaphors real dodgly, wae lang, run-on sentences, filled wae a hale laid've unneeded adjectives n other descriptors. Whilst its nae as bad as Hellblazer, its still naticable n brings the beuk doon fir me.
O'eraw, characters continue tae engage (Lenny, introduced tis volume, leuks like their gonny be a stand oot), stories dae a great job aw've utilising their ability tae literalise metaphors, but the actual metaphors are tae o'erwritten wae adjectives n suchlike tae be effective.
February 6, 2015
Between 3 and 3.5 stars. On one hand, I thought the book had some very interesting ideas but I think they just weren't explored as well as they could have been. Also, the tangents sometimes got a bit confusing. Things like a collection of Shakespeare books and Santa Fe were referred in ways that indicated importance to but I couldn't tell you what they added to the story. (in this particular issue, I mean. It would seem that the Santa Fe section is buildup for the third volume)
But aside from a few quibbles Edge of Vision was an interesting, triply, and enjoyable comic book and I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
But aside from a few quibbles Edge of Vision was an interesting, triply, and enjoyable comic book and I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
September 6, 2017
I can't say I like this. If I liked it, I'd feel...very concerned about myself. This isn't a judgement on anyone who does genuinely like this series. I'm not here for moral judgements. I just know myself and I'm glad this makes me uncomfortable. It's super compelling and trippy and all the things that really make me regret reading this right before bedtime. I've been avoiding Enigma for similar reasons. So, yeah. Time for me to break out the fluffy fanfic again.
May 6, 2012
It's hard for me to read this without comparing it to other similar revamps of goofy comic book characters, like what Neil Gaiman did with Sandman and Alan Moore with Swamp Things. That said, I do enjoy what Peter Milligan is doing here, even though I feel like it is sometimes unnecessarily abstract. I do like that the police generally seem to work with Shade, rather than against him, as typically happens in this kind of comics.
November 20, 2013
This volume includes riffs on two extremes of American culture, the hippy subculture and the very 50s conformity it was a reaction too, and via the madness injected by the American Scream, examines the dark side of both. Some good stuff and even some good guest art here, but I am increasingly fed up of the way Kathy is being characterised: love interest, damsel in distress, damaged dream girl. Come on, a central character can get a little more development than that.
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