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Casanova (Collected Editions)
Casanova, Vol. 2: Gula
Casanova Quinn is a secret secret agent and a pawn in a game of espionage-chess played by his father Cornelius and the forces of E.M.P.I.R.E. against all the bad guys in the world. When a mission goes haywire and Casanova disappears, all hell breaks loose across the span of the space-time continuum itself!
144 pages, Hardcover
First published July 27, 2011
5 people are currently reading
379 people want to read
About the author
Matt Fraction
1,221 books1,863 followers"How he got started in comics: In 1983, when Fraction was 7 years old and growing up in Kansas City, Mo., he became fascinated by the U.S. invasion of Grenada and created his own newspaper to explain the event. "I've always been story-driven, telling stories with pictures and words," he said.
Education and first job: Fraction never graduated from college. He stopped half a semester short of an art degree at Kansas City Art Institute in Missouri in 1998 to take a job as a Web designer and managing editor of a magazine about Internet culture.
"My mother was not happy about that," he said.
But that gig led Fraction and his co-workers to split off and launch MK12, a boutique graphic design and production firm in Kansas City that created the opening credits for the James Bond film "Quantum of Solace."
Big break: While writing and directing live-action shoots at MK12, Fraction spent his spare time writing comics and pitching his books each year to publishers at Comic-Con. Two books sold: "The Last of the Independents," published in 2003 by AiT/Planet Lar, and "Casanova," published in 2006 by Image Comics.
Fraction traveled extensively on commercial shoots. Then his wife got pregnant. So Fraction did what any rational man in his position would do -- he quit his job at MK12 to pursue his dream of becoming a full-time comic book writer.
Say what? "It was terrifying," said Fraction, who now lives in Portland, Ore. "I was married. We had a house. We had a baby coming. And I just quit my job."
Marvel hired Fraction in June 2006, thanks largely to the success of his other two comics. "I got very lucky," he half-joked. "If it hadn't worked out, I would have had to move back in with my parents.
- 2009. Alex Pham. Los Angeles Times.
Education and first job: Fraction never graduated from college. He stopped half a semester short of an art degree at Kansas City Art Institute in Missouri in 1998 to take a job as a Web designer and managing editor of a magazine about Internet culture.
"My mother was not happy about that," he said.
But that gig led Fraction and his co-workers to split off and launch MK12, a boutique graphic design and production firm in Kansas City that created the opening credits for the James Bond film "Quantum of Solace."
Big break: While writing and directing live-action shoots at MK12, Fraction spent his spare time writing comics and pitching his books each year to publishers at Comic-Con. Two books sold: "The Last of the Independents," published in 2003 by AiT/Planet Lar, and "Casanova," published in 2006 by Image Comics.
Fraction traveled extensively on commercial shoots. Then his wife got pregnant. So Fraction did what any rational man in his position would do -- he quit his job at MK12 to pursue his dream of becoming a full-time comic book writer.
Say what? "It was terrifying," said Fraction, who now lives in Portland, Ore. "I was married. We had a house. We had a baby coming. And I just quit my job."
Marvel hired Fraction in June 2006, thanks largely to the success of his other two comics. "I got very lucky," he half-joked. "If it hadn't worked out, I would have had to move back in with my parents.
- 2009. Alex Pham. Los Angeles Times.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
November 16, 2016
Bullet Review:
Other than occasional glimpses of a plot and hints of what might in other books be called character development, I am bemused by this. WHAT IS CASANOVA QUINN not when!!! What is this and what does it mean and is there a point???!
Other than occasional glimpses of a plot and hints of what might in other books be called character development, I am bemused by this. WHAT IS CASANOVA QUINN not when!!! What is this and what does it mean and is there a point???!
February 13, 2014
(Note, this review will make more sense in context of my review of the first volume of the Casanova series.
This story was either more straightforward than the first, or handled in a more straightforward way. As a result, I enjoyed it even more, and had the opportunity to settle into the world a bit and get comfortable.
This story was either more straightforward than the first, or handled in a more straightforward way. As a result, I enjoyed it even more, and had the opportunity to settle into the world a bit and get comfortable.
December 3, 2019
Writer Matt Fraction aims for Thomas Pynchon by way of Ian Fleming, but hits closer to Tom Robbins by way of Red Dwarf. That’s not meant as a judgment of the book’s quality so much as it is a judgment against its unearned pretense and smarmy tone. It’s a book that is neither as funny nor as “wildly postmodern” as it thinks it is.
Its saving grace is Fabio Moon’s art. Following in his brother’s footsteps (Gabriel Ba did the art for the first volume), Moon brings to Fraction’s script what little life, energy, and wit it does have. And because this volume follows a more legible plot and chronology than the first volume, the art too is more legible and can establish a groove much more in line with the action.
But for all of its self-conscious postmodern-ness (fourth-wall winks, abundant high and low cultural allusions, unstable character identities, etc, etc), Casanova ends up reading like the muted, distant echo of similarly wild—and far more beautifully insane—espionage comics like Michel Fiffe’s Copra, Matt Kindt’s Mind MGMT, and even Brandon Graham’s Multiple Warheads.
Its saving grace is Fabio Moon’s art. Following in his brother’s footsteps (Gabriel Ba did the art for the first volume), Moon brings to Fraction’s script what little life, energy, and wit it does have. And because this volume follows a more legible plot and chronology than the first volume, the art too is more legible and can establish a groove much more in line with the action.
But for all of its self-conscious postmodern-ness (fourth-wall winks, abundant high and low cultural allusions, unstable character identities, etc, etc), Casanova ends up reading like the muted, distant echo of similarly wild—and far more beautifully insane—espionage comics like Michel Fiffe’s Copra, Matt Kindt’s Mind MGMT, and even Brandon Graham’s Multiple Warheads.
April 21, 2019
More straightforward than the first volume but with the requisite twists to keep readers on their toes.
October 5, 2020
I decided to go ahead and read the second volume right away so I wouldn't have it hanging over me and taunting me with its incomprehensibility. I'm none the wiser. I can't tell if it's an emperor's new clothes scenario or if I'm just not willing to put the effort in to vibing with this crazy comic. We may never know for sure one way or the other.
June 24, 2015
So, this was much better than Volume 1. Casanova: Luxuria was an extremely confusing, disjointed and almost unfollowable, albeit, still kinda enjoyable, clusterfuck of a story (well, I'm sorry, I'm gonna re-read it someday to make sure). In Gula, the story kind of pulls itself together, without loosing much of the first book's craziness and sexiness and plot-twists. It gets serious and emotional at times, too, in a typical Fraction fashion.
Artwork by Fábio Moon is a nice change also. Not to say anything against his brother, Gabriel Bá, who is actually pretty great too, but Moon's art just seems to suit the style of the book better. I also highly recommend full-coloured version, because the colours are absolutely gorgeous. The Image Comics Complete Edition also comes with bonus hand-drawn, non-digitized sketches and original pannels, and I actually would prefer even more if the comic was published in this way completely, because analog colours and inks by Moon are so charming.
I am glad that I gave this series another chance, because it does get better with each issue. Now on to Volume 3, and then the ongoing 4. Looking forward to it.
Artwork by Fábio Moon is a nice change also. Not to say anything against his brother, Gabriel Bá, who is actually pretty great too, but Moon's art just seems to suit the style of the book better. I also highly recommend full-coloured version, because the colours are absolutely gorgeous. The Image Comics Complete Edition also comes with bonus hand-drawn, non-digitized sketches and original pannels, and I actually would prefer even more if the comic was published in this way completely, because analog colours and inks by Moon are so charming.
I am glad that I gave this series another chance, because it does get better with each issue. Now on to Volume 3, and then the ongoing 4. Looking forward to it.
October 28, 2025
You know that life you sometimes see at the movies? The one where this incredibly good-looking guy’s a magnet for all the chicks? He’s rich as well, and the ultra-cool iteration is some kind of agent with all kinds of astonishing gadgets at his disposal. Add a little drug chic and that’s Casanova Quinn, Agent of E.M.P.I.R.E. Although generated from 1960s archetypes, he’s an aspiration for the bedroom boys of the 21st century.
As was the case in Luxuria, Matt Fraction keeps things moving incredibly fast and throws in multiple conceptual contraptions. You’re not going to have time to wonder why Casanova’s presence is essential to the survival of the multi-quintessence because a blue skinned woman in a goldfish bowl helmet has arrived from the future. “I came from tomorrow to save you from boring. And the end of the world. But mostly from all the boring”, announces Sasa Lisi. And furthermore: “I come from tomorrow, so I know all your threats are empty. I already know how I end up”.
While still dressed as a fantasy figure, Sasa at least goes a little way to addressing the secondary roles women had in the first volume, but then along with everything else Fraction’s ramped up the sexual content, and almost every chapter is tits out for the lads. He’s taken the worlds introduced in Luxuria and inflated them further, introducing even more hateful villains, their perfidy this time more easily understood, rather than readers just being told they’re evil. That’s a good thing, as for all the joyous rush of Luxuria, no one really had much idea what was going on. Motivations are clearer here, and there’s a greater emotional depth.
Fábio Moon takes over the art, and is just as fabulous as Gabriel Bá was, delivering a kinetic rush, yet with thoughtful precision. An effect where people seem to have grown extra pairs of arms doesn’t really work, but that’s pretty well the only point at which you’re going to look at the art and find something wrong. Bá, by the way draws a short story in the back that may or may not be a secret origin. Maybe we’ll find out when Casanova continues in Avarita.
Gula picks up two years after the determining statement that closed Luxuria, and for a long time it seems that for a series bearing his name, there’s not much actual Casanova. Fraction has a clever solution to that, and it certainly reconfigures some earlier scenes in an interesting way. As before, influences are worn on Fraction’s sleeve, and there’s a nice Thomas Pynchon joke at the end.
In the hardcover edition, which is the one you really want, Fraction comes clean about sources and influences in the process pages after the comics are done. There are a lot of them, Fraction appending notes to what originally appeared in serialised comics ten years previously, including some great interviews with other creators, and confirming that those snatches of song lyrics are no coincidence.
As was the case in Luxuria, Matt Fraction keeps things moving incredibly fast and throws in multiple conceptual contraptions. You’re not going to have time to wonder why Casanova’s presence is essential to the survival of the multi-quintessence because a blue skinned woman in a goldfish bowl helmet has arrived from the future. “I came from tomorrow to save you from boring. And the end of the world. But mostly from all the boring”, announces Sasa Lisi. And furthermore: “I come from tomorrow, so I know all your threats are empty. I already know how I end up”.
While still dressed as a fantasy figure, Sasa at least goes a little way to addressing the secondary roles women had in the first volume, but then along with everything else Fraction’s ramped up the sexual content, and almost every chapter is tits out for the lads. He’s taken the worlds introduced in Luxuria and inflated them further, introducing even more hateful villains, their perfidy this time more easily understood, rather than readers just being told they’re evil. That’s a good thing, as for all the joyous rush of Luxuria, no one really had much idea what was going on. Motivations are clearer here, and there’s a greater emotional depth.
Fábio Moon takes over the art, and is just as fabulous as Gabriel Bá was, delivering a kinetic rush, yet with thoughtful precision. An effect where people seem to have grown extra pairs of arms doesn’t really work, but that’s pretty well the only point at which you’re going to look at the art and find something wrong. Bá, by the way draws a short story in the back that may or may not be a secret origin. Maybe we’ll find out when Casanova continues in Avarita.
Gula picks up two years after the determining statement that closed Luxuria, and for a long time it seems that for a series bearing his name, there’s not much actual Casanova. Fraction has a clever solution to that, and it certainly reconfigures some earlier scenes in an interesting way. As before, influences are worn on Fraction’s sleeve, and there’s a nice Thomas Pynchon joke at the end.
In the hardcover edition, which is the one you really want, Fraction comes clean about sources and influences in the process pages after the comics are done. There are a lot of them, Fraction appending notes to what originally appeared in serialised comics ten years previously, including some great interviews with other creators, and confirming that those snatches of song lyrics are no coincidence.
May 11, 2017
Ég las hana áður í blöðum, þessum æpandi bláu sem Image gaf út. Það er orðið ansi langt síðan. Nú komst ég loksins í söguna í heild, þá í þessari endurlituðu útgáfu. Hún er ekki verri, bara öðruvísi. Það er eitthvað sem virkar við bláu útgáfuna og það er eitthvað annað sem virkar við þessa.
Fraction talar um það í eftirmálanum að Avaritia, þriðju bókinni, að þegar hann hafi ákveðið að nú væri tímabært að halda áfram með söguna, hafi hann sest niður í fyrsta sinn í lengri tíma og lesið fyrstu fjórtán blöðin - Luxuria og Gula - frá upphafi til enda. Í kjölfarið hafi honum liðið líkamlega illa, vegna þess að honum fannst þetta of lélegt. Að mögulega hafi þetta verið það besta sem hafði fram að færa á þeim tíma, en nú myndi þetta aldrei virka. Ég held að þetta sé vitleysa. Ég held hann hafi orðið betri höfundur með tímanum en það kemur mér á óvart að svo tónlistarlega þenkjandi sem hann er hafi honum aldrei dottið í hug að æfðari tónlistarmaður sendi ekki endilega frá sér betri plötu en fyrir fimm árum síðan.
Allt um það.
Fraction breytir um stefnu og hann breytir um takt í þriðju bókinni en Gula stendur ennþá fyrir sínu. Ýmislegt birtist mér núna sem ég greip ekki áður -- ekki síst allar vísanirnar til The Mountain Goats. Og spurningin um líf meðal vélmenna, og um leið skepnuskapinn sem felst í því að þvinga mannlegum dauða uppá sálir vélanna. Þegar Kato ákveður að jarða kærustuna sína er að minnsta kosti ein persóna viðstödd sem skilur ekki hvað honum gengur til, en umgjörðin er rómantísk, einsog maður eigi að taka þátt í söknuði og sorg. Ég held ég hafi lesið með því síðast en nú kemur það ekkert á óvart að Kato skuli gerast andstæðingur í kjölfarið. Zephyr er með á nótunum; Casanova veit hvað klukkan er.
Þetta form á sögunni, með sjö stuttum köflum, finnst mér líka koma betur út en það sem tekur við í Avaritia. Ahem.
Fraction talar um það í eftirmálanum að Avaritia, þriðju bókinni, að þegar hann hafi ákveðið að nú væri tímabært að halda áfram með söguna, hafi hann sest niður í fyrsta sinn í lengri tíma og lesið fyrstu fjórtán blöðin - Luxuria og Gula - frá upphafi til enda. Í kjölfarið hafi honum liðið líkamlega illa, vegna þess að honum fannst þetta of lélegt. Að mögulega hafi þetta verið það besta sem hafði fram að færa á þeim tíma, en nú myndi þetta aldrei virka. Ég held að þetta sé vitleysa. Ég held hann hafi orðið betri höfundur með tímanum en það kemur mér á óvart að svo tónlistarlega þenkjandi sem hann er hafi honum aldrei dottið í hug að æfðari tónlistarmaður sendi ekki endilega frá sér betri plötu en fyrir fimm árum síðan.
Allt um það.
Fraction breytir um stefnu og hann breytir um takt í þriðju bókinni en Gula stendur ennþá fyrir sínu. Ýmislegt birtist mér núna sem ég greip ekki áður -- ekki síst allar vísanirnar til The Mountain Goats. Og spurningin um líf meðal vélmenna, og um leið skepnuskapinn sem felst í því að þvinga mannlegum dauða uppá sálir vélanna. Þegar Kato ákveður að jarða kærustuna sína er að minnsta kosti ein persóna viðstödd sem skilur ekki hvað honum gengur til, en umgjörðin er rómantísk, einsog maður eigi að taka þátt í söknuði og sorg. Ég held ég hafi lesið með því síðast en nú kemur það ekkert á óvart að Kato skuli gerast andstæðingur í kjölfarið. Zephyr er með á nótunum; Casanova veit hvað klukkan er.
Þetta form á sögunni, með sjö stuttum köflum, finnst mér líka koma betur út en það sem tekur við í Avaritia. Ahem.
April 7, 2021
The central mystery of this volume of Casanova is not where our titular hero is but where he has disappeared to - at least that's the question posed by some woman who claims to be from the future. It doesn't help that Casanova was very much present for the opening salvo of this book and then disappears after that story.
And he really does disappear - you will barely see Casanova in this adventure. This is not a real spoiler, but he's only at the beginning and the end of this volume, really. It's the in-between part that gets pretty unnerving after the direction set my the first volume.
But on the whole, it's still a very well-done book with a lot of narrative twists and turns that can get quite confusing, but that also makes for a fun espionage adventure. When is Casanova indeed?
And he really does disappear - you will barely see Casanova in this adventure. This is not a real spoiler, but he's only at the beginning and the end of this volume, really. It's the in-between part that gets pretty unnerving after the direction set my the first volume.
But on the whole, it's still a very well-done book with a lot of narrative twists and turns that can get quite confusing, but that also makes for a fun espionage adventure. When is Casanova indeed?
February 10, 2017
Lordy, I almost wanted to make a chart, diagram, or SOMETHING to make the timelines more tangible (before and during this set). And, gosh golly, I think you need a Masters in Comics to really GET THIS on a deeper level.
This is a pretty good review, especially re: the art and references to other works: http://sequart.org/magazine/54471/asa...
This is a pretty good review, especially re: the art and references to other works: http://sequart.org/magazine/54471/asa...
November 10, 2021
While this stretch of the series is more understandable, comparatively anyway (or maybe just 'cause the intro's wrapped), it's still bunko bonkers, just madcap sci-fi espionage as gleeful as it comes. It's as swingin', slangin', and winkin' as the first batch, and them pages keeps its a weird sense of cool.
May 19, 2017
I still don't UNDERSTAND it. This is written for a more sophisticated postmodern sort of nerd.
That said, the density of Mountain Goats references and jokes and pleasantly rendered cartoon breasts is enough to make me ENJOY it.
That said, the density of Mountain Goats references and jokes and pleasantly rendered cartoon breasts is enough to make me ENJOY it.
September 12, 2018
If I could give this comic a higher rating, I would. It builds on everything in volume 1, and brings the whole story full-circle in a way that's mind-blowing and emotionally affecting.
July 1, 2019
I don’t get his series.
January 14, 2020
I cannot stress enough just how insanely beautiful the art is in this book.
Also, Zephyr Quinn (yes it still counts shush) life goals or wife goals, amirite?
Also, Zephyr Quinn (yes it still counts shush) life goals or wife goals, amirite?
November 17, 2020
This is a mess but what a nice one!
June 11, 2023
Same opinion as the last volume
August 30, 2019
That comic is very great.
November 11, 2013
My review of Casanova Vol 1 mentioned that the beginning was convoluted, but once the exposition was out of the way, the book got better. This was almost the complete opposite! Everything was great until the last issue, where the plot went haywire and once again become convoluted.
It was still WAY easier to follow than Volume 1, and the art by Fabio Moon was fabulous.
It may just be the art by Ba and Moon, but I feel like this book is a spiritual cousin to Gerard Way's Umbrella Academy. And, just like UA, I liked Vol. 2 a significant amount more than Vol. 1. I am hoping that Volume 3 is where the book levels out and the beginning and end become fairly comprehensible.
A little foot note: I think that Fraction (and Gerard Way) borrow heavily from Grant Morrison's style of writing in which scenes open and close without definitive exposition or closure, leaving the reader as a co-conspirator in the plot. In fact, Fraction confirms this process in the back, though he does not mention Morrison. I think that is a fantastic way to write a comic book. It causes engagement in the story from an early point, and when it is over, it leaves room for more interpretations on a re-read. Gerard Way has proven fairly successful at this, though his method tends to be a bit on the safer side. I feel like Fraction, however, employs this method in addition to the inclusion of inside references from his life (pulling references from the aether is how he mentions it at the end of one issue). When the references are not understand or easily researched, the blanks are harder to fill in. That leaves the story a little too jumbled for it's own good.
Anyway, this bird has flown.
It was still WAY easier to follow than Volume 1, and the art by Fabio Moon was fabulous.
It may just be the art by Ba and Moon, but I feel like this book is a spiritual cousin to Gerard Way's Umbrella Academy. And, just like UA, I liked Vol. 2 a significant amount more than Vol. 1. I am hoping that Volume 3 is where the book levels out and the beginning and end become fairly comprehensible.
A little foot note: I think that Fraction (and Gerard Way) borrow heavily from Grant Morrison's style of writing in which scenes open and close without definitive exposition or closure, leaving the reader as a co-conspirator in the plot. In fact, Fraction confirms this process in the back, though he does not mention Morrison. I think that is a fantastic way to write a comic book. It causes engagement in the story from an early point, and when it is over, it leaves room for more interpretations on a re-read. Gerard Way has proven fairly successful at this, though his method tends to be a bit on the safer side. I feel like Fraction, however, employs this method in addition to the inclusion of inside references from his life (pulling references from the aether is how he mentions it at the end of one issue). When the references are not understand or easily researched, the blanks are harder to fill in. That leaves the story a little too jumbled for it's own good.
Anyway, this bird has flown.
February 24, 2013
Über die Schwierigkeit, einen Hit zu toppen
Der erste Band der Reihe, "Luxuria", war ein komplexes, völlig verwirrendes Spiel mit Zeitebenen und verrückten Personen. "Gula" führt zwar die Storyline (soweit man davon reden kann) weiter, ist aber deutlich linearer und weniger hirnverschwurbelnd als der erste Teil. Leider geht damit auch etwas von der Atmosphäre, die "Luxuria" so einmalig macht, verloren. Dazu ein neuer Zeichner: Fabio Moon orientiert sich zwar am ersten Band, doch gerade der holzschnittartige Stil Gabriel Bas und die Dreifarbigkeit wurden aufgegeben, so dass auch diesbezüglich etwas Flair fehlt.
Doch sollte man sich, wenn einem "Luxuria" auch nur ansatzweise gefallen hat, davon nicht abschrecken lassen, denn auch in "Gula" findet sich die gleiche Mixtur aus James Bond und Science Fiction, die den Leser wirklich begeistern kann. Ohne Kenntnis des ersten Bands ist die Lektüre von "Gula" allerdings nicht zu empfehlen.
Das Taschenbuch mit für meinen Geschmack zu dünnem Papier und zu labberigem Kartoneinband weist gute Farbreproduktion auf; ein Sketchbook am Ende rundet das ganze ab.
Der erste Band der Reihe, "Luxuria", war ein komplexes, völlig verwirrendes Spiel mit Zeitebenen und verrückten Personen. "Gula" führt zwar die Storyline (soweit man davon reden kann) weiter, ist aber deutlich linearer und weniger hirnverschwurbelnd als der erste Teil. Leider geht damit auch etwas von der Atmosphäre, die "Luxuria" so einmalig macht, verloren. Dazu ein neuer Zeichner: Fabio Moon orientiert sich zwar am ersten Band, doch gerade der holzschnittartige Stil Gabriel Bas und die Dreifarbigkeit wurden aufgegeben, so dass auch diesbezüglich etwas Flair fehlt.
Doch sollte man sich, wenn einem "Luxuria" auch nur ansatzweise gefallen hat, davon nicht abschrecken lassen, denn auch in "Gula" findet sich die gleiche Mixtur aus James Bond und Science Fiction, die den Leser wirklich begeistern kann. Ohne Kenntnis des ersten Bands ist die Lektüre von "Gula" allerdings nicht zu empfehlen.
Das Taschenbuch mit für meinen Geschmack zu dünnem Papier und zu labberigem Kartoneinband weist gute Farbreproduktion auf; ein Sketchbook am Ende rundet das ganze ab.
June 19, 2012
Wild, trippy, sci-fi, spy (spy-fi?) comic fun! I can't decide if I prefer Fabio Moon's art over his twin brother's- let's just say that both are great.
This is a terrific series that defies description. I read recently that the 4th issue of the current mini-series (titled Avaritia, I think) is already out so I'm hoping that the new collection will be out soon as well.
Very minor, nitpicky complaint: For a series with such great interior art, I'm surprised at how bland and boring the collection covers are (at least in my opinion). Also, I really don't like the title/logo "design" they've got going on there; maybe the intention is to make it look like a blur or something but for me it just ends up looking like they made a printing error.
These are just extremely minor complaints though, and the bottom line is this: If you like cool, mind-bending, sexy sci-fi action, you'll probably like this series.
This is a terrific series that defies description. I read recently that the 4th issue of the current mini-series (titled Avaritia, I think) is already out so I'm hoping that the new collection will be out soon as well.
Very minor, nitpicky complaint: For a series with such great interior art, I'm surprised at how bland and boring the collection covers are (at least in my opinion). Also, I really don't like the title/logo "design" they've got going on there; maybe the intention is to make it look like a blur or something but for me it just ends up looking like they made a printing error.
These are just extremely minor complaints though, and the bottom line is this: If you like cool, mind-bending, sexy sci-fi action, you'll probably like this series.
June 17, 2015
My lukewarm reaction to this book bothers me a little. It's fun and readable and a loving tribute to the 60's super spy era. There's a little James Bond and Barbarella and Modesty Blaise and who knows what else in the mix. The art is stellar. I just wish I was more into it. From the various essays at the back, Matt Fraction seems have loved writing it much more than I enjoyed reading it. I like it fine; I just don't love it more than sliced bread or whatever. Honestly, the essays at the back are almost more interesting than the comic itself, particularly the interviews with Brett McCarthy and Bryan Lee O'Malley. I'll likely read volume 3, but I wish I could shake this nagging feeling that there's something wrong with my reaction to the book, like there's something I'm not getting that's obvious to everyone else or something.
October 25, 2015
Casanova: Gula is a vibrant and original work of sequential art (another term for comic book storytelling). Matt Fraction and Fabio Moon give their full attention and unfiltered creativity to this series and it shows in every panel. However, this means that the story often falls prey to the same flaws as the previous volume of Casanova. Moments of pure genius are followed by utter inane silliness and needless shock value. The story and its meanings are often obscure to the reader and the big twist at the end actually falls a little flat. Casanova is a strange work of transition, it wants to be transcendent (and it is at times) and a fanboy fave all at once and this dual identity holds the book back when it should rightfully soar. I would recommend this volume to ADULT graphic novel fans (seriously, this series is a hard R) but it is just not on my personal favorites list.
December 11, 2008
I was disappointed to see Gabriel Ba go at first, but by the end I was just as in love, if not more so, with Fabio Moon's art. In fact, the two of those guys are probably the only artists in comics right now whose work I get really excited about - cause when we get down to it I'm a story first kind of guy. It helps then that the story in this one is deeper and more focused than in the first. Really what sold me on Fabio Moon ultimately is that his art is somewhat more sensuous than Ba's and this arc is really all about the lust, passion and femininity of these characters. This is proudly, defiantly, romantic sci-fi wackiness and it culminates in the best, most unexpected, plot twist I can remember in at least the last 3 years of my comic-reading.
February 16, 2015
Strange comic book collection about time travel
A scifi espionage story featuring highly-sexed characters including the title character Casanova Quinn, his sister, Zephyr Quinn and many others.
It seems to be tongue-in-cheek with lots of sex and violence. The main character gets lost in time for a good part of the story but all the other characters are involved in their own plots – in many senses of the word.
I found this collection quite hard to read – in the digital edition. The writing was quite small as were the illustrations on the whole. There are also an abundance of flashbacks which are not easy to recognise creating confusion – in this reader anyway.
The artwork was good on the whole and there’s a lot of information at the end about how this comic was conceived and drawn.
A scifi espionage story featuring highly-sexed characters including the title character Casanova Quinn, his sister, Zephyr Quinn and many others.
It seems to be tongue-in-cheek with lots of sex and violence. The main character gets lost in time for a good part of the story but all the other characters are involved in their own plots – in many senses of the word.
I found this collection quite hard to read – in the digital edition. The writing was quite small as were the illustrations on the whole. There are also an abundance of flashbacks which are not easy to recognise creating confusion – in this reader anyway.
The artwork was good on the whole and there’s a lot of information at the end about how this comic was conceived and drawn.
April 2, 2016
Fraction made a big mistake in the first volume. He introduced the main character and then changed the status quo at practically the same time. So the reader never really knew where the main character's motivations stood. It makes a little sense by the end, the groundwork is a little shaky. Volume two makes a lot more sense and sheds more light on the previous volume. There are still some strange questions, but the mystery is no longer so complicated. And, of course, the art and inking is amazing and everyone has a happy explosion of cum at the end. Looking forward to volume 3...
June 1, 2008
Sweet jumpin' goddammit, this book is good. Everything that worked in the first volume is thrown out the window to slow down for a thoughtful, character-driven ensemble book that kept me coming back to each issue over and over again until the next one arrived. It's a little scary to think that a writer as young as Fraction is in the throes of his masterpiece, but this sucker is gonna be seven volumes, so he'll make great time on it.
August 14, 2011
This was a 'good enough' tying off of loose ends to volume 1 of Cassanova. But, I feel like it was really far too coherent and straight-forward a tale to really stand up to the manic confusing mess that made the first volume so much fun. The story seemed to flow logically from point A to B to C instead of illogically from D to Z to A the way the previous volume did. And I feel a lot of the fun left with the incoherence.
May 11, 2015
This was good and strange with excellent art but also difficult to follow. I kept feeling like I missed something and kept going back and looking. I understand the goals was to keep it sharp and fast paced but perhaps a touch more basic exposition would've cleared the plot up a little at the beginning. That said, the book is great and this volume is beautiful. It's just that I have read much stronger from both author and artist.
October 1, 2013
So rare these days to have something this crazy, sexy, cool in any medium. Casanova is possibly my favourite of Fractions creations and works and having the inimitable messrs. Moon and Ba a part of the whole thing just makes it that much better. Very excited to hit volume III, Avaritia, but also a little saddened that it will be the last.
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