REVIEW: Joe the Barbarian

PLOT: Collecting the acclaimed 8-issue miniseries! Joe is an imaginative eleven-year-old boy. He can't fit in at school. He's the victim of bullies. His dad died overseas in the Iraq war. He also suffers from Type 1 diabetes. One fateful day, his condition causes him to believe he has entered a vivid fantasy world in which he is the lost savior—a fantastic land based on the layout and contents of his home. His desperate attempts to make it out of his bedroom transform into an incredible, epic adventure through a bizarre landscape of submarine pirate dwarves, evil Hell Hounds, Lightning Lords and besieged castles. But is his quest really just an insulin deprived delirium—from which he can die if he doesn't take his meds—or something much bigger?

REVIEW: I'm half tempted to just write "wow" and leave the review at that, because that is how stunned I am by Joe the Barbarian. I picked this up not really knowing what to expect, but figure that if Grant Morrison had written it, that it was at least worth a shot. I have a love/hate relationship with Morrison as he's been hit or miss with me in the past. I love his work on Batman for the most part, but All-Star Superman never hooked me (not that any Superman comic really has yet). This is the best comic I've read this year in 2013, I have been blown away with everything about this graphic novel. I don't want to go too much into how the side-by-side stories relate to one another, because it's so wonderful to read on the page as we follow our hero Joe through the book. I do love the little cameos by familiar characters throughout the book as well, which gives the story it's very hyper-fantasy feel.

Grant Morrison writes a story that serves as two stories in one, and reminds me of other fiction I've read before but he gives it his own cool spin. It's truly just great writing, as Morrison proves once again that there's a reason behind his name being towards the top of the list when it comes to original comic writers today. I really like Joe as the main character, even though he's a young boy and is obviously struggling throughout the book, he's never completely down or out. His love for life and his pet Jack are brought to life through Morrison's writing, but also the artwork of Sean Murphy who does an outstanding and remarkable job here. This is an A+ comic all the way around, and after reading this entire brilliant volume, one can only hope that Grant Morrison either has more Joe the Barbarian or similar quality stuff still in him. It's not really a super complex story, which can sometimes be expected from Morrison, and that's what amazes me so much is the simplicity of the story yet the gigantic emotional and visual punch it packs is out of this world.

This book is a must-read for all fans of comics and/or fantasy. You will not be disappointed. A beautiful book, truly amazing.

WRITING : ( 9 / 10 )
ARTWORK : ( 9 / 10 )
STORY : ( 10 / 10 )
COVERS : ( 8 / 10 )
AWESOME : ( 10 / 10 )
FINAL RATING : ( 10 / 10 )