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Stickleback #2
Stickleback: Number of the Beast
TROUBLE AT THE TOP!
LONDON, THE END OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. Stickleback, the Pope of Crime, rules the capital’s criminal fraternity as the boss of a powerful gang made up of freaks, oddballs and semi-supernatural entities. But this position is far from stable and now a mysterious figure stationed on an airship soaring high above the city, is vying for power. A brutal encounter is inevitable, but one thing is for certain – live or die, Stickleback’s future is going to get a whole lot more complicated!
This sequel to the sensational England’s Glory, is written by Ian Edginton (The Victorian Undead, Hinterkind) and illustrated by D’Israeli (Leviathan, Low Life). This collection also features the bonus Stickleback Christmas tale, ‘Twas the Fight Before Christmas’ drawn by I. N. J. Culbard (Brass Sun).
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2014
1 person is currently reading
21 people want to read
About the author
Ian Edginton
494 books148 followersEdginton sees part of the key to his success coming from good relationships with artists, especially D'Israeli and Steve Yeowell as well as Steve Pugh and Mike Collins. He is best known for his steampunk/alternative history work (often with the artist D'Israeli) and is the co-creator of Scarlet Traces, a sequel to their adaptation of H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds. With 2000 AD we has written Leviathan, Stickleback and, with art by Steve Yeowell, The Red Seas as well as one-off serials such as American Gothic (2005).
His stories often have a torturous gestation. Scarlet Traces was an idea he had when first reading The War of the Worlds, its first few instalments appeared on Cool Beans website, before being serialised in the Judge Dredd Megazine. Also The Red Seas was initially going to be drawn by Phil Winslade and be the final release by Epic but Winslade was still tied up with Goddess and when ideas for replacement artists were rejected Epic was finally wound up - the series only re-emerging when Edginton was pitching ideas to Matt Smith at the start of his 2000 AD career.
With D'Israeli he has created a number of new series including Stickleback, a tale of a strange villain in an alternative Victorian London, and Gothic, which he describes as "Mary Shelley's Doc Savage". With Simon Davis he recently worked on a survival horror series, Stone Island, and he has also produced a comic version of the computer game Hellgate: London with Steve Pugh.
He is currently working on a dinosaurs and cowboys story called Sixgun Logic. Also as part of Top Cow's Pilot Season he has written an Angelus one-shot.
http://comicbookdb.com/creator.php?ID...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Edgi...
His stories often have a torturous gestation. Scarlet Traces was an idea he had when first reading The War of the Worlds, its first few instalments appeared on Cool Beans website, before being serialised in the Judge Dredd Megazine. Also The Red Seas was initially going to be drawn by Phil Winslade and be the final release by Epic but Winslade was still tied up with Goddess and when ideas for replacement artists were rejected Epic was finally wound up - the series only re-emerging when Edginton was pitching ideas to Matt Smith at the start of his 2000 AD career.
With D'Israeli he has created a number of new series including Stickleback, a tale of a strange villain in an alternative Victorian London, and Gothic, which he describes as "Mary Shelley's Doc Savage". With Simon Davis he recently worked on a survival horror series, Stone Island, and he has also produced a comic version of the computer game Hellgate: London with Steve Pugh.
He is currently working on a dinosaurs and cowboys story called Sixgun Logic. Also as part of Top Cow's Pilot Season he has written an Angelus one-shot.
http://comicbookdb.com/creator.php?ID...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Edgi...
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 13, 2016
I have to admit the first Stickleback book (again it was a collection of two serialised stories in one volume) captivated me. I am not sure if it was the story (a mixture of steampunk, fantasy and London fiction homage) or the style of artwork but I love reading and re-reading it. So you can imagine both my surprise and the speed in which I ordered the second volume.
However all is not as it seems - okay I will try not to give away spoilers but you see a dramatic turn of events in both stories in this book (yes it too is a collection of two serialised stories) where what you think is going on has been turned on its head and in the case of the second story in fact reset and restarted.
However this book (the original story was serialised in the UK comic 2000AD some years ago) does now explain references to the character and his stories as some references didnt make sense till you saw out the events of this book.
And this is where my quandary lies - I love the first book for what ever reason, however some of those reasons have now been reversed or at best changed and I am not so smitten - or am I, have I become set in my ways with my preconceptions of what Stickleback is and that that his troupe are all what they appear to be.
I would hope that there are more stories to come but unless more are written I sadly feel we have come to the end of the stories of Stickleback and the London he loves so much.
However all is not as it seems - okay I will try not to give away spoilers but you see a dramatic turn of events in both stories in this book (yes it too is a collection of two serialised stories) where what you think is going on has been turned on its head and in the case of the second story in fact reset and restarted.
However this book (the original story was serialised in the UK comic 2000AD some years ago) does now explain references to the character and his stories as some references didnt make sense till you saw out the events of this book.
And this is where my quandary lies - I love the first book for what ever reason, however some of those reasons have now been reversed or at best changed and I am not so smitten - or am I, have I become set in my ways with my preconceptions of what Stickleback is and that that his troupe are all what they appear to be.
I would hope that there are more stories to come but unless more are written I sadly feel we have come to the end of the stories of Stickleback and the London he loves so much.
August 4, 2021
Not as good as the Stickleback #1. Art is still spot on but the stories and overall feeling just seems off.
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December 14, 2014I'm not entirely sure whether this volume runs up to the most recent developments and the reveal of Stickleback's true identity, but in case it does - boy did that stink.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews