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Across the Universe: The DC Universe Stories
ACROSS THE UNIVERSE: THE DC UNIVERSE STORIES OF ALAN MOORE presents rare and amazing tales by award-winning and critically acclaimed comic book and screenplay author, Alan Moore. In this fantastic tome, the creator of the major motion pictures, From Hell and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, uses masterful storytelling to present thought provoking and profound adventures of the world's greatest heroes. Featuring Superman, Batman, Green Arrow, Green Lantern, Swamp Thing, Black Canary, the Phantom Stranger, and Vigilante this book acts as an extraordinary anthology of Alan Moore's groundbreaking work.
208 pages, Paperback
First published July 1, 2003
2 people are currently reading
36 people want to read
About the author
Alan Moore
1,578 books21.7k followersAlan Moore is an English writer most famous for his influential work in comics, including the acclaimed graphic novels Watchmen, V for Vendetta and From Hell. He has also written a novel, Voice of the Fire, and performs "workings" (one-off performance art/spoken word pieces) with The Moon and Serpent Grand Egyptian Theatre of Marvels, some of which have been released on CD.
As a comics writer, Moore is notable for being one of the first writers to apply literary and formalist sensibilities to the mainstream of the medium. As well as including challenging subject matter and adult themes, he brings a wide range of influences to his work, from the literary–authors such as William S. Burroughs, Thomas Pynchon, Robert Anton Wilson and Iain Sinclair; New Wave science fiction writers such as Michael Moorcock; horror writers such as Clive Barker; to the cinematic–filmmakers such as Nicolas Roeg. Influences within comics include Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Jack Kirby and Bryan Talbot.
As a comics writer, Moore is notable for being one of the first writers to apply literary and formalist sensibilities to the mainstream of the medium. As well as including challenging subject matter and adult themes, he brings a wide range of influences to his work, from the literary–authors such as William S. Burroughs, Thomas Pynchon, Robert Anton Wilson and Iain Sinclair; New Wave science fiction writers such as Michael Moorcock; horror writers such as Clive Barker; to the cinematic–filmmakers such as Nicolas Roeg. Influences within comics include Will Eisner, Harvey Kurtzman, Jack Kirby and Bryan Talbot.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 13, 2025
Moore’s range and style is unique, philosophical and quite soulful. He works with the artists like very few did before him. The story, more than his writing, the dialogue, is the aim, the end. He’s incredibly missed on this medium.
May 2, 2024
This volume reprints the various superhero stories Alan Moore did for DC throughout the 80s. A very eclectic collection, but I enjoyed them all. I especially thought it was unusual that Alan Moore did two issues of the "Vigilante" series. Green Arrow was also an odd choice for Moore. Considering most of these stories were written before he really reached superstar status, I suppose he was just taking whatever jobs came his way. The stories were all a little different than what I'd expect from Moore, but overall I really enjoyed this collection.
August 22, 2018
Como recopilatorio de Alan Moore me pareció una buena idea sacar este tebeo de la biblioteca para ir leyendo cosas suyas e ir formándome como lectora. Con estos autores que tienen una obra tan extensa me cuesta saber por donde empezar asi que creo que este tipo de obras ayudan mucho.
La mayoría de las historias no están mal. No van a ser memorables de estas que me acompañarán el resto de mi vida, pero me entretuvieron y fue un tebeo de lectura amena. HASTA cierto punto.
En una de las historias dicen litralmente, aunque añado las mayúsculas para dar énfasis. "A woman is... well, among other THINGS, it's someTHING that has babies. You know?". Y ahí lo siento mucho pero me perdí totalmente. No me parece aceptable bajo ningún concepto o bajo ningún contexto que se refieran a las mujeres como COSAS en vez de personas. Es que no me cabe en la cabeza. Y eso es algo que mi mente estuvo dando vueltas todo el tebeo. Es más, lo terminé por fuerza de voluntad, porque el leer ese tipo de cosas me hacen perder el gusto en la lectura.
Y por ello la puntuación de una estrella, porque esto ha sido algo que no me ha gustado.
La mayoría de las historias no están mal. No van a ser memorables de estas que me acompañarán el resto de mi vida, pero me entretuvieron y fue un tebeo de lectura amena. HASTA cierto punto.
En una de las historias dicen litralmente, aunque añado las mayúsculas para dar énfasis. "A woman is... well, among other THINGS, it's someTHING that has babies. You know?". Y ahí lo siento mucho pero me perdí totalmente. No me parece aceptable bajo ningún concepto o bajo ningún contexto que se refieran a las mujeres como COSAS en vez de personas. Es que no me cabe en la cabeza. Y eso es algo que mi mente estuvo dando vueltas todo el tebeo. Es más, lo terminé por fuerza de voluntad, porque el leer ese tipo de cosas me hacen perder el gusto en la lectura.
Y por ello la puntuación de una estrella, porque esto ha sido algo que no me ha gustado.
June 1, 2016
Alan Moore sure knows how to write a superhero story. This is a collection of tales that Moore authored for various DC comics. The best ones in my opinion are the Green Lantern stories. The weakest is the Vigilante story, which is the only reason this collection gets four stars. What I like about these stories is that they are intelligent, they capture the feel of the heroes that Moore is writing about (i.e. the Batman story feels like a Batman story while the Superman story feels like a Superman story), and they are self-contained. I highly recommend this to comics fans.
Read
September 29, 2019A collection of stories with no particular rhyme or uniting factor other than their author. All worth reading, though some are better than others. My favorites were "Mortal Clay" and "Brief Lives." "Father's Day" was definitely the most messed up, although "A Man's World" was an excellent disturbing short story.
I should add that my copy appears to be a different edition from some listed here. Most noticeably, it does not have "The Killing Joke."
I should add that my copy appears to be a different edition from some listed here. Most noticeably, it does not have "The Killing Joke."
July 11, 2009
I'm not a huge fan of this kind of 80s artwork that composes this book, but there's no doubt that Moore is one of the best writers in the comics industry and this collection has plenty of examples to prove that.
August 20, 2016
A stupendous collection of superhero stories that, individually, are fine but together they become a testament to Alan Moore's masterful short-form storytelling.
August 3, 2021
After being an avid Alan Moore fan for years, in time I saw that not everything he churned out was gold; far from it. Still, if someone wants to see what superhero comics (and comics in general) owe Alan Moore, they should read this volume. Not every story is good, and some are downright strange, but on the whole, it's a perspective on comics storytelling that was far from the norm in the '80s.
Eeerr... *SPOILERS* I guess...
"For the Man Who Has Everything" takes place on Superman's birthday, when he is visited by Batman, Robin (Jason Todd) and Wonder Woman. It features Mongul and the first appearance of the Black Mercy, casual (and brief) sexual innuendo, as well as ample references to the history of the DC universe. Silly moment: Robin is still wearing his basically bottomless costume - in the Arctic. Also a prime example of circular storytelling.
"Night Olympics" is a Green Arrow (probably backup) story from Detective Comics, that explores the ramifications of costumed vigilante justice on the underworld, using the Olympics as a narrative theme.
"Why Mogo Doesn't Socialize" is really British comedy the superhero way, using the Green Lantern characters, and what looks suspiciously like an '80s Warhammer 40k Orc in Chaos armor.
"Father's Day" is a surprisingly harsh story from the Vigilante comic book, that features brutal murder, incest, and child molestation (the two latter narratively, not depicted). Note, this is the Wolfman / Perez era, when the Comics Code had basically lost its power, but it is still quite shocking. It also has a massive plot hole to accommodate the story's drama.
"Brief Lives" is an Omega Men backup story that depicts the difference in time / space scale and perception between species.
"A Man's World" is another Omega Men backup, and at a mere four pages it illustrates how assumptions and ignorance can be deadly, as a sort of "alien anthropologist" entertains the notion of having sex with a member of a strange, all-male race, and ends up killed because she never took the time to understand the life cycle of this species.
"The Jungle Line" features a rather dumb Superman (not asking for help from the gazillions of scientists he knows, say Batman, when he is infected by yet another Kryptonian thimgamajig) and an extremely likable Swamp Thing. Rather forgettable.
"Tygers" is THE story that showcases what DC owes Moore (you know, besides screwing him over with Watchmen). This is the first ever appearance of Ysmault, and the very, VERY disturbing alien demons from the Empire of Tears, the Blackest Night Prophecy, Sodam Yat, and the reason for Abin Sur's death. This is what DC relied on 30 years later for the core of the Blackest Night event. It is really a space horror story that influenced the course of Green Lantern comics for at least three decades.
"Footsteps" is the second weakest story included, showing the origin of the Phantom Stranger as paralleled by the rift within an urban organization. It's kind of weird that Moore, so knowledgeable in the occult, uses distinctly non angelic names and characters for his story, such as "the angel Satan" (who looks like some sort of goat god even before the Fall), or Asmodeus, Leviathan etc. who were never related to angels.
"In Blackest Night" is a clever story about how you explain the Green Lantern Corps to someone who's never had any concept of colors or even vision in general. There is also a first, tiny seed of what will transpire in Blackest Night some 30 years later, as one of the Guardians makes a joke and that makes Katma Tui uneasy.
Finally, the weakest story is "Mortal Clay", featuring the deluded romance between Clayface III and a mannequin doll. There is this odd scene of Batman openly interacting with the police and press, but otherwise the story is rather unremarkable.
In conclusion, this is an excellent and very edifying collection. It sheds quite a bit of light to DC's history in general, and Moore's contribution specifically.
Eeerr... *SPOILERS* I guess...
"For the Man Who Has Everything" takes place on Superman's birthday, when he is visited by Batman, Robin (Jason Todd) and Wonder Woman. It features Mongul and the first appearance of the Black Mercy, casual (and brief) sexual innuendo, as well as ample references to the history of the DC universe. Silly moment: Robin is still wearing his basically bottomless costume - in the Arctic. Also a prime example of circular storytelling.
"Night Olympics" is a Green Arrow (probably backup) story from Detective Comics, that explores the ramifications of costumed vigilante justice on the underworld, using the Olympics as a narrative theme.
"Why Mogo Doesn't Socialize" is really British comedy the superhero way, using the Green Lantern characters, and what looks suspiciously like an '80s Warhammer 40k Orc in Chaos armor.
"Father's Day" is a surprisingly harsh story from the Vigilante comic book, that features brutal murder, incest, and child molestation (the two latter narratively, not depicted). Note, this is the Wolfman / Perez era, when the Comics Code had basically lost its power, but it is still quite shocking. It also has a massive plot hole to accommodate the story's drama.
"Brief Lives" is an Omega Men backup story that depicts the difference in time / space scale and perception between species.
"A Man's World" is another Omega Men backup, and at a mere four pages it illustrates how assumptions and ignorance can be deadly, as a sort of "alien anthropologist" entertains the notion of having sex with a member of a strange, all-male race, and ends up killed because she never took the time to understand the life cycle of this species.
"The Jungle Line" features a rather dumb Superman (not asking for help from the gazillions of scientists he knows, say Batman, when he is infected by yet another Kryptonian thimgamajig) and an extremely likable Swamp Thing. Rather forgettable.
"Tygers" is THE story that showcases what DC owes Moore (you know, besides screwing him over with Watchmen). This is the first ever appearance of Ysmault, and the very, VERY disturbing alien demons from the Empire of Tears, the Blackest Night Prophecy, Sodam Yat, and the reason for Abin Sur's death. This is what DC relied on 30 years later for the core of the Blackest Night event. It is really a space horror story that influenced the course of Green Lantern comics for at least three decades.
"Footsteps" is the second weakest story included, showing the origin of the Phantom Stranger as paralleled by the rift within an urban organization. It's kind of weird that Moore, so knowledgeable in the occult, uses distinctly non angelic names and characters for his story, such as "the angel Satan" (who looks like some sort of goat god even before the Fall), or Asmodeus, Leviathan etc. who were never related to angels.
"In Blackest Night" is a clever story about how you explain the Green Lantern Corps to someone who's never had any concept of colors or even vision in general. There is also a first, tiny seed of what will transpire in Blackest Night some 30 years later, as one of the Guardians makes a joke and that makes Katma Tui uneasy.
Finally, the weakest story is "Mortal Clay", featuring the deluded romance between Clayface III and a mannequin doll. There is this odd scene of Batman openly interacting with the police and press, but otherwise the story is rather unremarkable.
In conclusion, this is an excellent and very edifying collection. It sheds quite a bit of light to DC's history in general, and Moore's contribution specifically.
December 23, 2023
Oofa Doofa. Some of these have aged like milk!
Alan Moore is a mixed bag in many respects. He's a fascinating fellow and on the whole seems like a decent, if cantankerous and bizarre guy, and his writing ranges from incredibly insightful and cutting through absolutely Gonzo madness (complimentary) to powerful cishet white dude edgelord yikesfests.
This random collection of bits and bobs he did for DC is none of the first, some of the second, and quite a bit of the last. Nothing is as deep and reflective as his most famous works, there's some definite fun and truly weird and wacky stuff that was fun to read, but the sheer rollerdex of offensive, cringy, just not good or entertaining stuff made this a really tough read.
Honestly, I only recommend this for the Moore and DC completionists and comic historians. I would consider myself a rather widely read comic fan, and beyond the novelty of some of the stories and the fact that I found this at the local library, I kinda wished I had done anything else with my time.
Alan Moore is a mixed bag in many respects. He's a fascinating fellow and on the whole seems like a decent, if cantankerous and bizarre guy, and his writing ranges from incredibly insightful and cutting through absolutely Gonzo madness (complimentary) to powerful cishet white dude edgelord yikesfests.
This random collection of bits and bobs he did for DC is none of the first, some of the second, and quite a bit of the last. Nothing is as deep and reflective as his most famous works, there's some definite fun and truly weird and wacky stuff that was fun to read, but the sheer rollerdex of offensive, cringy, just not good or entertaining stuff made this a really tough read.
Honestly, I only recommend this for the Moore and DC completionists and comic historians. I would consider myself a rather widely read comic fan, and beyond the novelty of some of the stories and the fact that I found this at the local library, I kinda wished I had done anything else with my time.
October 28, 2023
Putting Moore's work all together in a collection like this really does emphasize that his best work is his most gonzo.
In this collection, the Green Lantern stories and the Phantom Stranger story are great. The Green Arrow and especially the Vigilante stories just kind of feel like edgy nonsense. And then the Superman stories here are also in another collection that includes another Superman story not here. Ultimately it feels like an incoherent collection that emphasizes to me that Moore is at his best with more out there material to work with.
Except for the Clayface story, despite being less weird that one sticks with me. It feels like Alan Moore's thesis with that one is that men don't need an actual breathing living woman to create grounds for misogyny. Which is a HELL of a thing to just say like that to all the men reading the comic and I love him for it.
In this collection, the Green Lantern stories and the Phantom Stranger story are great. The Green Arrow and especially the Vigilante stories just kind of feel like edgy nonsense. And then the Superman stories here are also in another collection that includes another Superman story not here. Ultimately it feels like an incoherent collection that emphasizes to me that Moore is at his best with more out there material to work with.
Except for the Clayface story, despite being less weird that one sticks with me. It feels like Alan Moore's thesis with that one is that men don't need an actual breathing living woman to create grounds for misogyny. Which is a HELL of a thing to just say like that to all the men reading the comic and I love him for it.
July 20, 2023
It's often said that "absence makes the heart grow stronger." In my experience reading the comics of Alan Moore, this couldn't be further from the truth. Whenever I go too long without reading one of his books, I begin to doubt myself. Could Watchmen really have been that good? Did I really like From Hell? Many comic book fans (including myself) treat Moore almost as though he's a god. Reading this collection, I was reminded why. This book has so many terrific stories that the great ones almost seem like they're somehow not as good. I want to lend this to my friends who are getting into DC right now, but I really am concerned that this might not be the best introductory material because it's just too good.
July 24, 2023
I really liked it.
Some of the stories were very short, only a few pages. Each story was nicely self-contained, and i don't feel like i have to read anything else to finish the storylines. That is a refreshing change after all the marvel I've been reading.
I will read nore DC going forward. They've won me over. Especially the green lantern stuff.
Some of the stories were very short, only a few pages. Each story was nicely self-contained, and i don't feel like i have to read anything else to finish the storylines. That is a refreshing change after all the marvel I've been reading.
I will read nore DC going forward. They've won me over. Especially the green lantern stuff.
April 7, 2022
While a better knowledge than I possess of the context of 1980's DC Comics material would be helpful, this works really well on its own as a short story collection.
May 9, 2022
Some stuff I read before, some I hadn't. Enjoyed the Vigilante story and the Clayface annual.
July 3, 2013
This is a review of the shorter, edition of the book:
"For the Man Who Has Everything" is a nice look at superhero's friendships but even more at Superman and Mongul's might [8]. The Green Arrow two-parter is a fine little story, but too small to be of much note [7]. The Mogo/Green Lantern story is very clever, and the first of Moore's story that feels like something right out of 2000AD [8]. The Vigilante story approaches some interesting issues but gets bogged down with a letter as narrative in part 2 [7]. The Vega stories again highlight what Moore might have done with the SF side of the DC universe; "Brief Lives" is great [9], while "A Man's World" could have been, but ended up a little incoherent [7]. "The Jungle Line" is an interesting bookend to "For the Man Who Has Everything" with its focus on plants and Krypton; it's a pretty good story that's a relatively unique team-up [7]. “Tygers” offers some great background on Abin Sur and even better background for the universe [9]. The Phantom Stranger origin is a good plot, but the telling isn’t great [6]. Contrariwise, the F# Green Lantern story is one of Moore’s best, for its vision of the universe [9]. Finally, the Clayface story is quite funny, though a bit long [7]. Overall, a diverse and interesting collection.
"For the Man Who Has Everything" is a nice look at superhero's friendships but even more at Superman and Mongul's might [8]. The Green Arrow two-parter is a fine little story, but too small to be of much note [7]. The Mogo/Green Lantern story is very clever, and the first of Moore's story that feels like something right out of 2000AD [8]. The Vigilante story approaches some interesting issues but gets bogged down with a letter as narrative in part 2 [7]. The Vega stories again highlight what Moore might have done with the SF side of the DC universe; "Brief Lives" is great [9], while "A Man's World" could have been, but ended up a little incoherent [7]. "The Jungle Line" is an interesting bookend to "For the Man Who Has Everything" with its focus on plants and Krypton; it's a pretty good story that's a relatively unique team-up [7]. “Tygers” offers some great background on Abin Sur and even better background for the universe [9]. The Phantom Stranger origin is a good plot, but the telling isn’t great [6]. Contrariwise, the F# Green Lantern story is one of Moore’s best, for its vision of the universe [9]. Finally, the Clayface story is quite funny, though a bit long [7]. Overall, a diverse and interesting collection.
January 22, 2014
Sono un grande fan di Alan Moore ma assolutamente poco assiduo frequentatore del DC Universe: questo volume mi è sembrata una bella scorciatoia per "acculturarmi" un po' anche sulla sponda opposta del fumetto supereroistico che mi ha cresciuto (Marvel). Bene, direi che Killing Joke è IL capolavoro e si sapeva (l'avevo già letto - Nolan ha letteralmente attinto da lì per la splendida scena del confronto in prigione ne Il cavaliere oscuro), mentre tutto il resto sono racconti autoconclusivi senza troppe pretese - anche se con un po' di guizzo in più rispetto alla media, e qui si vede la mano pur acerba dell'autore - su personaggi minori, in alcuni casi efficaci, in altri un po' insulsetti (ma al primo e imberbe Moore glielo si concede). Ho apprezzato anche l'altro racconto di Batman con Clayface, e due racconti sulle Lanterne Verdi (Mogo e Abin Sur), altri un po' creepy (penso al Pianeta dei Maschi), altri riusciti a metà (ma Vigilante che razza di personaggio è? Forse il supereroe più implausibile della storia!), altri completamente inutili (Freccia Verde).
August 29, 2014
Being such a late discoverer of the comic-novel genre, the majority of my reading has been modern, dark, corrupt, and hyperviolent. Now, having read these selections from Moore’s period with DC (1985-1987), I can see where those dark leanings developed. Moore’s stories are obtuse, graphic, surreal, deeply psychological and morbidly funny. They are also, on many occasions, desperately misogynistic, which is unfortunate, but unsurprising. Even that bastion of female power, Wonder Woman, is almost immediately removed from the one in which she appears featured, which is a similar fate suffered upon the females featured in the other stories. Despite this, this small collection is worth it for seeing the early work of a true graphic novel master.
January 13, 2015
A really nice collection and some fun insights into old friends.
NB though this doesn't contain the stories listed here (no Killing Joke or Man of Tomorrow) but rather:
Superman Annual #11 For The Man Who Has Everything
Detective Comics #549-550 Night Olympics
Green Lantern #188 Mogo Doesn't Socialize
Vigilante #17-18 Father's Day
The Omega Men #26-27 Brief Lives/ A Man's World
DC Comics Presents #85 The Jungle Line
Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #2 & 3 Tygers/ In Blackest Night
Secret Origins #10 Footsteps
Batman Annual #11 Mortal Clay
NB though this doesn't contain the stories listed here (no Killing Joke or Man of Tomorrow) but rather:
Superman Annual #11 For The Man Who Has Everything
Detective Comics #549-550 Night Olympics
Green Lantern #188 Mogo Doesn't Socialize
Vigilante #17-18 Father's Day
The Omega Men #26-27 Brief Lives/ A Man's World
DC Comics Presents #85 The Jungle Line
Tales of the Green Lantern Corps Annual #2 & 3 Tygers/ In Blackest Night
Secret Origins #10 Footsteps
Batman Annual #11 Mortal Clay
February 2, 2019
The best bits here were probably Dave Gibbons’s introduction and back-up story “Mogo Doesn’t Socialize”. The two-part story from Vigilante didn’t really work for me and I already have “For the Man Who Has Everything” in another collection.
For completists only.
For completists only.
October 12, 2007
great read
August 27, 2012
Worth reading.
January 6, 2013
Composé de plusieurs nouvelles, les histoires sont pleines d'action, de beaux dessins aussi, mais pas aussi profondes et intéressantes !
January 9, 2018
Not a great fan of the Green Latern but Moore managed to make me enjoy a couple of those stories!
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews