Crossing Midnight, Vol. 1: Cut Here

Crossing Midnight #1

by Mike Carey, Jim Fern (Illustrator), Mark Pennington (Illustrator)

Miyazaki's Spirited Away meets Asian horror in this inital volume of CROSSING MIDNIGHT, collecting the acclaimed first five issues of the series by writer Mike Carey (LUCIFER) and artist Jim Fern (FABLES). A compelling fantasy/horror series set in the heart of present-day Nagasaki, Japan, CROSSING MIDNIGHT begins when extraordinary twins are born — one just before midnight and the other just after. They discover the huge impact this small difference has on their destinies when one of them is inducted into a world of supernatural beings and events that intersects with our own world. Together, the twins will try to stay one step ahead of their terrifying fates while they learn how far their new world of terror intersects with their own.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Horror, Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Comic Book

128 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

About the author

Librarian 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.

Reviews

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you don't know who Mike Carey is, you should. He's one of the best comic writers out there in my opinion.

If you haven't read Crossing Midnight, you should. It's brilliant. It draws on mythology sorely neglected by most western authors. It manages to draw on the unfamiliar while still managing to be very readable and accessible. No easy feat there...

Best of all, these three books form a complete story arc. That counts for a lot. I hate starting a comic series, reading 4 books, then finding out it was canceled.

You should try it. Absolutely worth your time.

[Kathryn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am torn between 3 and 4 stars. No, torn is too strong of a word. I am simply not feeling strong enough about any aspect of this piece to rate more than 3 stars.

The story is original and entertaining but I have read enough of Carey to know that his spark felt slightly dimmed within these pages. The idea is excellent, involving Japanese kami interacting with our world, but the story was not dense enough for me. I did not like the father's storyline one bit, though the other characters were quite promising. The art is solid, just nothing that blew me away.

I remember feeling unsure of Carey's Lucifer series until the 2nd and 3rd collection. That series ended up as one of my favorites, to rival Sandman even. I loved Carey's Hellblazer run, and he came into the series far from the beginning. I am starting to think that Carey just takes some time to warm a story up, to get everything flowing. I am more than happy to let a good story steep but I am concerned since the Crossing Midnight run is only 3 trades long. That may not be long enough for a truly satisfying Carey tale to develop. Either way, I will eventually get my hands on the next two, though I am in no dire rush to do so.

[Brent · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this, more than I thought I would.
Recommended.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the better "lesser known" Vertigo titles I've read. The title, Crossing Midnight refers to the main characters in the story being twins that were born on the opposite side of midnight; one born just before midnight and one born just after midnight. The one born after midnight become caught up in the mysticism of another world, and of course her brother ends up drawn into the situation as well.

Set in Japan, the story delves deep into Japanese mythology, although I'm not that familiar with the themes covered here so it could also be stuff Carey has made up.

The art is exceptional and the story is well done. Good material from Vertigo.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Waaaaauuuuuuggh!!!

That's what I shouted when I came to the end of "Crossing Midnight: Cut Here". Because it's only volume ONE of a story-arc that cuts (no pun intended) through several graphic novels- at least two more that I see...

I have to get them.

Yes, HAVE TO.

This story was REALLY well written, amazingly illustrated, and it carried me forward through the storyline with surprising ease. I was instantly invested with the Hara family and the twins problems and perils.

I can tell you very little about this story, without spoiling it. That it has to do with the supernatural, is obvious- the Kami, spirits of /things/ we use or make- like swords, or needles for sewing. That they have investment in the human world is not surprising... but watching them reach into it, and USE that investment. Well now. That is another thing entirely!

I loved this book, and am now on the prowl for the 'rest' of the story- before I go half crazy imagining the myriad of ways it could turn out.

Save yourself! Buy or check out all three, before you start reading...

[47Time · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved how the adults resorted to just looking intently to their children for answers instead of demanding them verbally. I intend to eventually use that skill for my own kid, even though the Japanese culture may make kids more susceptable to it than the European one. Japanese religion is also exotic in the story, given its seamless overlapping with the real world. The gods are very real, vengeful and ultimately things will likely go their way, with the humans being mostly unable to resist them.

Kai and Toshi seemed to be regular twins for the first few years of their lives. At grandma Akiko's demand, a survivor of the Nagasaki bombing, Kai and Toshi's parents Yasuo and Miya made a promise to some old gods called the Kami to ensure a healthy birth. Now Aratsu, the master of swords, has come to collect. He declares himself Toshi's master and demands that she come with him, but she refuses. Meanwhile Kai meets another god that is Aratsu's enemy and who tells him that Toshi must refuse Aratsu three times to escape him. Their last encounter ends with Toshi's mother dead, so Toshi joins Aratsu in exchange for her mother's life.

While waiting for his mother's recovery in hospital Kai encounters Nidoru, the master of needle and pin, who saves him from black gremlin-like creatures called Araburu before they can steal the comatose Miya's soul. She offers to heal Miya's soul and also save Kai's father from being killed in a gunfight with the Yakuza. Kai is forced to accept. Nidoru heals the mother and heads for Yasuo with Kai in tow. Yasuo is being forced by the Yakuza to kill an auditor who found irregularities in his company's papers. The Yakuza and the auditor are killed by Nidoru in spectacularly bloody fashion.

Yasuo wants to save his sister, but is as yet ignorant to the obligations of being in a deal with Nidoru.

[Juan Fuentes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Más cercana a Lucifer que a Unwritten, plantea una mitología curiosa e interesante. Bastante bueno.

[Homewood Public Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here’s a graphic novel that is different from my usual super hero fare. It’s a mix of horror and fantasy set in modern Nagasaki, Japan. For film fans, think of Miyazaki’s Spirited Away given a Ringu twist. Which is a warning: this is not a graphic novel for kids. The horror is, well, pretty horrifying.





The covers are in the flattened style of Japanese wood block prints, but with the rich decorative touches of Klimt. Which, considering his influences, makes sense. The interior art, however, is more realistic, drawn with clean lines. The colors, while probably applied digitally, look like watercolor washes. All in all, Jim Fern's artwork is appropriate for the tale and a pleasure to view.





The protagonists are an unusual pair of twin teenagers. Toshi Hara was born a minute before midnight, while her twin brother Kai Hara was born a minute after midnight. Though the timing of their births is a symptom of their cursed heritage, rather than the source of their problems. Because of the actions of her ancestors, Toshi can’t be cut by edged weapons, and on her birthday is visited by a supernatural being named Aratsu, the Lord of Knives. Aratsu wants Toshi to be his servant, and he does not take her refusal well. He tells her he will return and ask her again, after she has seen the grisly results of his displeasure.





The rest of the book relates Toshi and Kai’s struggle to escape Aratsu’s demands. As might be expected, some of their actions involve the supernatural and other kami, like Nidoru who presides over the Needle and the Pin, and a dragon of shadows. But other more mundane avenues are explored too, which involve school bullies and, of all things, an unexpected Yakuza connection to their family. It’s not as complicated as it sounds, but I don’t want to give too much away. I really enjoyed this graphic novel and discovering a mythology I’m not familiar with.

[C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I'm going to track down future volumes -- not everything about the book was great (the twin's childhood friend disappearing into the fairy realm was far too sudden and bizarre to really fit, and the whole "born on either side of midnight" struck me as a bit too Midnight's Children) but I was hooked into the plot and character's rather quickly, enough so that I assume it will actually improve as things are set in place and the story develops. The premise of normal people being swept up into the hidden world of magic is so common place as to be cliche, but its a concept that, if done right, can always be interesting.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

This Vertigo book takes elements of Japanese culture and mythology and repackages them for the Western reader as a horror book about twin siblings torn apart by forces beyond their control. It's well-drawn and well-crafted, and amongst the number of great ongoings Vertigo is currently publishing (including American Virgin and Scalped), Crossing Midnight stands out as the best.

[Bel · Rating 4 out of 5]

In modern Nagasaki, twins are born either side of midnight, and an ancient debt comes due. This is a great imagining of the Japanese animistic beliefs, very similar to folkloric traditions in Europe (thanks author's note!). The artwork ranges from average comic fare (which is good!) to a few really beautiful splashes. There is little experimentation with form so far, which is fine as the story is really well done. I particularly appreciated how rounded both the teenagers and the parents are (frequently a story will focus on one to the detriment of the other) and of course I love to read anything set in Japan to remind me of my time there.

Solid start - very interested to read on! Thankfully, book 2 is right next to me, it's Sunday, and the deck chair is already in the garden!

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a review of the entire Crossing Midnight series.

I loved this series from the very first issue.

First of all, let me say that I am biased. This book dealt with the spirit world of Japanese myth and legend. I am very interested in the folk lore of other countries in general, so I was basically guaranteed to like Crossing Midnight as long as it was at least halfway decent.

With that being said, this book was definitely more than halfway decent. It was great. The characters were all interesting with their own things going on. Carey did a good job developing the characters (even in the span of just the first few issues) and they felt realistic. The secondary characters were also strong and did a great job of supporting the main characters and plot. This was also one of the (very) few western comic books I've seen with no white characters.

The story was set up well with a strong back story, but I suppose the story follows the same basic plot lines of any "hero journey": The characters are born with abilities that they have to learn to live with; they're contacted by another world, and then they're asked to journey into that world in order to save the people and world that they love. However, the plot was unique by virtue of being set in Japanese culture. I liked the way everything evolved and I think the ending was perfect. It's unfortunate that the series had poor sales because I think Carey could've done more great things if he had the chance to write more issues. The story doesn't feel very rushed, but it could have used more detail.

There is only one part of the story that I would take issue with. I don't want to spoil anything (because I really think you should read the series yourself), so let's just say one of the characters is instructed to kill another character. This happens around the middle of the second volume and it's a major plot point for the second half of the series. It definitely made things interesting, but I'm not totally clear on the motives behind the vendetta. Actually, I think that character had to die for the story to be fully realized. Mike Carey probably knew that and so he made it happen. He just didn't devote as much time as I would like to explain why the characters wanted it to happen.

Overall, I loved this series. I highly recommend it. It explores a different culture than the vast majority of American comic books and is a worthwhile based purely on that. Mike Carey wrote an afterwards for the first and second volumes, which put some of the uniquely-Japanese elements into context for the western reader (like me).

[Krishnakumar Mohanasundaram · Rating 4 out of 5]

The story has an interesting start.

Beginning with a father praying to a small shrine for the birth of his baby - unknown of the fact that the lord of the sword is going to come back later for his share.

The mother soon gives birth to twins, a boy n a girl. While the touch of the boy stops any magic, the girl finds herself resistant to any cuts by any objects.
Well into their teens, the lord of the sword visits them and wants the sister to come with him to serve him for the rest of her life. The resistance by the siblings soon leads up to brutal slaying of their family dog and their own mother, before which the girl accepts and follows the lord of the sword.

[Highland G · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wasn’t sure what to rate this as the concept is very interesting and the story comes together overall The language used at times is difficult to follow or just doesn’t read correctly. Art was fine but not great. Things can get confusing at times, especially with the wafer thin pages, kept having to check if I flipped one page or two.
I plan to read on but I’m very mixed on my views at this stage so it gets a middle of the road score for now.

[Colin Oaten · Rating 4 out of 5]

Modern day meets ancient Japanese folklore in a very interesting series from the pen of Mike Carey as twins, born either side of midnight, face the consequences of a fathers decision and a deal made with an entity.

[Shahna (VanquishingVolumes) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am interested to keep reading as this volume was clearly the set up for a supernatural battle that has been building for centuries with two mortal twins stuck in the center. Good set up but I think the action will happen later on.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Magic and terrific

[P. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can see how this would be very exciting for some readers, but not me.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this novel, it is bloody but steeped in the Japanese culture. The events take place in modern day Japan and all of the deities are from Japanese folklore. I was not familiar with any of them so it added an exotic element and I did not know what to expect next. The story of the twins born before and after midnight and their parents is a great framework to have all the crazy events occurring around. I liked the artwork and am excited to see what happens next, I recommend this book its an interesting read.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought the first short trade paperback collection of the Crossing Midnight series because I had heard many good things about it, but it took me nearly a year to actually finish the trade - which I think is saying a lot because it's comprised of only 5 issues, and I generally read single issues of comics in under two minutes – at least the first time through, anyway. There is something incredibly... dense, and a little hard to get into about these first issues, most likely due to the difficulty of simultaneously trying to set up realistic and interesting characters, to be respectful and faithful to the Japanese setting, and to start digging into the amazingly complicated Japanese folklore world, all while beginning to tell what will hopefully turn out to be an engrossing and entertaining story. But if you can manage to sink in, I suspect Crossing Midnight will be worth it.

Mike Carey, writer of the long-running Lucifer series, has always been a little hit-or-miss for me in some aspects, but he's an ambitious writer and while sometimes certain phrases falter or details ring false, his overarching plots and concepts are grandiose and moving in a way a la Sandman or Watchmen that I tend to love. I look forward to reading more of Crossing Midnight. While some issues will hopefully have really good moments, and other issues or story arcs may likely fall flat, the overall series definitely has the potential to be interesting and poignant and an exciting, fantastical story.

I would love to know what those more into Japanese culture, or who have read more Manga centered around Shinto beliefs and ancient animistic Japanese folklore think of this series, especially as it goes on and the plot threads began in this first arc develop further.

[Tiamat_the_red · Rating 3 out of 5]

A friend told me that this comic is like The Unwritten only based on Japanese fairytales. That's sort of true. It's much less like The Unwritten than it is like it, except for the author's fascination with the stories we tell each other. In The Unwritten, it's mostly about Western Literature, classics by the likes of Herman Melville (*shudder*), Rudyard Kipling and Mark Twain. In Crossing Midnight, it's Japan's supernatural realm.

In Japan, the folktales feature Youkai (loosely translated as demons) and Kami (loosely translated a sprits) and Crossing Midnight imagines what might happen if they really existed. I really enjoy how matter-of-factly all of it is treated. The people who know the spirits are there know it and it's not scary or horrible, it's just a fact. The ones who don't know never will.

The other thing I really enjoy about this series is that the main characters are twins but they're normal siblings, too. I am a twin and I HATE it when you get twin characters who are only whole when together or have mystical twin-tastic powers. They are, naturally, concerned about each other but they're concerned like any siblings would be. It feels much more realistic that way and doesn't detract from the normalcy of the spirit world the way magical twin powers would (for me, at least).

Enjoyable so far.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Twins, a boy and a girl, are born on either side of midnight – only a few minutes apart. While still in the womb, their parents made an offering to the Kami in their grandmother’s shrine. The Kami are spirits of the natural world, like earthquakes, and of everyday objects – for example a bowl or a knife. In return for the blessing the parents pledge to repay the Kami with their worship. One day when the twins are around 10 years old, the sister falls out of a tree onto a spiked metal fence. Instead of impaling her, the spikes bend and she realizes she is impervious to being cut by sharp metal objects – no knife can harm her. When the twins are in highschool, the Kami returns to collect the debt owed to him, and he wants the sister as payment. He will ask only three times – and if she says no, there will be consequences. If you like horror, and stories of the supernatural you’ll like this graphic novel.

I can't wait for the next installment of this story! The illustrations are amazing (if a little gorey). I like the way the plot includes Japanese folklore in a modern setting. The Afterword in this edition explains how the Kami fit into the Japanese folkloric tradition.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

My husband first picked up the Crossing Midnight series because we both like Mike Carey a lot. Lucifer was awesome, and David loves the Hellblazer stuff he wrote. This is a series centering on Japanese mythology involving kami and yokai, types of spirits from the spirit world. Toshi and Kai are twins, one born just before midnight and one just after. They both have remarkable abilities that they don't notice until they're about 14 and just starting high school, but they're not the same abilities. Toshi notices that sharp things will not cut her, and Kai can sort of disable magic. A kami from the spirit world, Aratsu, comes to claim Toshi as his own, and while she fights him at first, he threatens her family if she does not come, so she ends up going. In the meantime, Kai promises to help a different spirit, an enemy of Aratsu, if she will heal the damage done to his mother by Aratsu. The artwork is beautiful, and I had a hard time putting the story down - I read all three trades that are out currently in one sitting.

[Mely · Rating 3 out of 5]

Twins in Japan, the boy born before midnight and the girl after. The girl is promised to a kami associated with her family, and knives can't touch her; the boy appears to have mysterious associations of his own. They become entangled with a mysterious world beyond their ken.

I have no idea whether Carey's version of Japanese folklore is authentic, but it is convincing and fun and slightly horrific. The series is taking a while to get up to speed, though, possibly hampered by its focus on the cautious boy twin, Kai, who seems beyond his depth; impetuous Toshi is strangely a supporting character rather than the protagonist. Also, the obigatory Yakuza element makes me roll my eyes.

Mixed feelings about how color is used in the book, and I have the uneasy feeling the twins' family's features are getting less Asian as the series goes on.

[Cale · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mike Carey explores Asian folklore and mythology and religion in this surprising series about two teens born on opposite sides of Midnight and get sucked into a world of Kami and Yokai as secrets of their birth come to play. The mythology is unfamiliar which makes it both exotic and enticing, and the story built around it is the same. It's a little harder to follow just by virtue of the different culture, but the concepts are fascinating. And some of the imagery is very disturbing. The descent from real world into the mystical takes a while to set in, but by grounding the characters first, it gives an extra sense of depth to them. This is very much the first volume of a series, without any real conclusion arrived at; most of the major pieces are only given the most basic of introductions. But at the same time, that makes it a very enticing first glimpse into a very different world.

[Melanie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Crossing Midnight by Mike Carey, Jim Fern and Mark Pennington

This is a weird manga graphic novel. There is a family curse, scenes with people getting cut up then put back together again, and sacrificing themselves for their loved ones. I found it to be too “graphic” in sexual innuendos, blood and gore.

Aspects that appeal to teens:
The fact that there’s only a little reading. Comic book style. Blood and gore. Sexual content.

Will teens relate:
No, the story didn’t make any sense.

Developmental areas:
How can there be any developmental areas in such a book? I guess caring?

Believable or not:
No, didn’t make sense.

How promote book to teens:
I wouldn’t.

VOYA codes
1Q2PMJS

[Jaimie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is off to a very promising start! Having seen Carey work within the realms of Christian mythology (to great success) and the Western literary tradition (to a slightly less successful degree) I am very interested to see how well he handles Japanese folklore and mythology. He's already brought kami and youkai/yokai into the fray, so it'll be interesting to see whether he chooses to rework the traditional stories of Japanese mythology and work with the range of established gods and goddesses, or if he goes the more general route of fox spirits and nature gods - or a blend of the two. I just hope the he manages to keep his plot line a little more tight than in the Unwritten, since it didn't really work out so well in the long run.

[Karl Whitney · Rating 3 out of 5]

I usually like Mike Carey's writing but this one seems like he wanted to play with Japanese mythology without getting too involved in Japanese culture. The family at the centre of this story doesn't feel like a Japanese family. There are too many clichés from Western suburban families including the moody daughter, the working father and the grandmother that gets shipped off to a nursing home. Even though Carey is a Westerner and admits to it, one would think that this kind of careful and nondescript version of a Japanese family is a sad alternative to Orientalism.

Beyond that, the story is okay. There is the chosen birth trope, the evil spirit that wants to take one twin to train her or something and plenty of ghosts in Nagasaki. It seems like he researched the ghosts and spirits well.

[Lara · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this four or five years back, after it was recommended to me by our favorite comic book store owner, and I remembered really liking it, but not much else about it. Since someone (was it you, Jaime?) recently loaned me the second and third volumes, I figured I'd better reread the first one, since I was pretty fuzzy on the details at this point. I liked it just as much the second time through as I did the first, and am looking forward to finding out what happens next, now that twins Kai and Toshi are both bound by bargains to beings on different sides in a centuries-long conflict between kami. On to volume 2!

[Coffeeboss · Rating 4 out of 5]

This graphic novel combines fantasy, graphic horror, and Japanese mythology into one gripping read. Twins, a boy and a girl, are born minutes apart, one before and one after midnight. To appease grandmother, their parents ask for a blessing from the Kami at their family altar. Turns out that in return, the girl child grows up immune to being cut with sharp objects. The Kami spirit comes for her, as she is is the payment for the blessing. This is basically a horror comic, and some of the pictures are surprisingly graphic. The book ends with a cliffhanger, so I'll be looking for the next one for sure. Oh, and if I ever get a dog, I want to name him or her Superdog Sen. :)