The Mummy Vol. 1: Palimpset

by Peter Milligan, Ronilson Freire (Illustrator), Paul McCaffrey (Cover Art)

Radical new take on The Mummy legend! Written by comics royalty Peter Milligan (Shade). Collects issues #1-5.

Genres: Comics, Horror, Graphic Novels, Fantasy

141 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 28, 2017

About the author

Librarian note:
There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name

Peter Milligan is a British writer, best known for his work on X-Force / X-Statix, the X-Men, & the Vertigo series Human Target. He is also a scriptwriter.

He has been writing comics for some time and he has somewhat of a reputation for writing material that is highly outlandish, bizarre and/or absurd.

His highest profile projects to date include a run on X-Men, and his X-Force revamp that relaunched as X-Statix.

Many of Milligan's best works have been from DC Vertigo. These include: The Extremist (4 issues with artist Ted McKeever) The Minx (8 issues with artist Sean Phillips) Face (Prestige one-shot with artist Duncan Fegredo) The Eaters (Prestige one-shot with artist Dean Ormston) Vertigo Pop London (4 issues with artist Philip Bond) Enigma (8 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo) and Girl (3 issues with artist Duncan Fegredo).

Series:
* Human Target
* Greek Street
* X-Force / X-Statix

Reviews

[Christy · Rating 1 out of 5]

While I do like mummies, the story wasn't very cohesive. It would have been nice if there was more development in characters and the world.

[Otherwyrld · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a classic example of throwing everything at the wall and hoping that something sticks. "Everything" includes 3000 year old mummies (of course), a 19th century Victorian gentlemen's club with a dark secret, another club that is opposed to them, a kick ass female lead, modern sex trafficking and a lot of mummies attacking people in the British Museum.

The problem is that instead of looking at what sticks to the wall, my eyes are drawn to the mess now on the floor and let's be honest, this is a bit of a mess. The problem is that the story tries to pull in too many directions and as a result fails to focus on anything of note. Take for instance the two clubs - the Sect of Anubis and the Pyramid Club - both were founded in the 19th century by upper class Victorian gentlemen who both have an unhealthy dose of racism, sexism and classism which treats anyone not in their club as lesser beings. The fact that they are both perfectly happy to exploit anyone not in their club is clear early on, but it's a parody of such people - I'm not saying that people like this didn't exist either then or now, but it doesn't ring true in the context of the story being told.

Or the aforementioned kick ass woman who was sex trafficked and is about to become the latest host for an ancient mummy - she knows martial arts but she is drawn and depicted purely for the titillation of the male gaze in the book. She really has very little personality or agenda of her own .

At least the mummies are entertaining, even if bandages really don't adhere to the female form like that. The art is okay, if a little muddy at times - it could have done with a few splashes of colour.

The story is based on the Hammer Horror films which is a pity because I think I would have enjoyed it more if it had been based on the 1999 film

[Alex Sarll]

Peter Milligan has written a fascinating, feverish story interweaving modern identity crises with Egyptian myth, now with then...but that was Vertigo's Egypt, 20 years ago. Like his recent return to the once-great Bad Company, Palimpsest reads more like a half-hearted Pat Mills impression, with horrible old toffs using innocent young women and stolen Egyptian ritual to prolong their own lives of privilege. Nothing in the dialogue has the least shine or intrigue, and while Freire's art does at least look like London, there are odd lazinesses and glitches, like the 'pyramid' which is in fact a tetrahedron. But then, this is also a book where one location caption reads 'London Kensington' without any of the punctuation which would make it seem remotely like something one would say. In short, if Egypt was the delightful Brendan Fraser Mummy, this is the Tom Cruise mess.

[Ashley (Red-Haired Ash Reads) · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 stars - It wasn’t great

This was a bit of a mess. This is basically a bunch of white men sacrificing women to gain immortality until the reincarnated woman finally fights back. It wasn’t a very original story to begin with and it wasn’t presented very well either. The story at times was confusing and it felt like random things would be thrown in just to try to make a cool scene.

While I liked that they had a cool heroine this was definitely a comic created for males by males because she is constantly half naked or barely covered in bandages until the end. Also she had very little personality which was disappointing.

The art was ok. It got a bit muddy at times and needed a bit more color contrast. This was disappointing which sucks because it has such a cool cover.

Trigger Warnings: sex trafficking, murder, misogyny, sexism,

[Michele · Rating 3 out of 5]

Titan partnered with Hammer Films to create a mummy comic book series that follows a sinister sect led by Anubis. The members are seeking a female vessel to complete a special ritual but finding the right woman has proven difficult. The premise had promise and while the modern storyline progressed well, the period subplots were more difficult, being disjointed and chaotic. It is regrettable because I had high hopes for this series.

[Kathryn Grace Loves Horror · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hammer (film company) has branched out into comics, and this is their first effort. Sometime comics go by too quickly for me, and I feel like I don't get to appreciate them as much as I do novels and short stories, but that was not the case here. I really grew to care about the characters, and I was invested in all of the action. Plus the illustrations are beautiful. I hope Hammer's comic line proves to be a success and that they continue on with sequels to this story.

[Gordon Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Priestess Nebetah is stuck in the afterlife attempting to resurrect herself on earth. She is 'the beloved of Kharis' - Kharis was the title character in Hammer horror The Mummy (1959) played by Christopher Lee. However, a society of nefarious gentlemen are manipulating Nebetah's resurrection to prolong their own lives. Their latest victim is Ukrainian refugee Angel Kostenko, and she is our heroine as the story unfolds.
This is an enjoyable horror/action story which held my interest. It is worth a read if you like vintage or gothic horror, and fans of The Mummy films of 1999 & 2001 with Brendan Fraser & Rachel Weisz should find enough to entertain themselves also.
The interior artwork is reasonably good with artist Ronilson Freire at his best when drawing Kharis in his mummy form. The cover art is by a different artist - Paul McCaffrey.
Extras include cover gallery and short interesting articles on Hammer horror's mummy films - The Mummy (1959), The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb (1964), The Mummy's Shroud (1966) & Blood from the Mummy's Tomb (1971) - and a very short history of early mummy fiction which includes mentions of Conan Doyle's influential short stories the Ring of Thoth (1890) & Lot No 249 (1892), and Bram Stoker's Jewel of Seven Stars (1903). All these films & stories I recommend if you are looking for more mummified horror. Also look out for The Mummy (1932) with Boris Karloff, a creepy classic inspired by Conan Doyle's Ring of Thoth.

[M.C. Chronister · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a little bit of a let down for me. I was super excited at the potential that it had from reading the synopsis but there was just so much going on that I felt like it felt like it lost focus. I personally feel like if a couple of the elements of this story were left out and there was more focus on what was left and the characters that this would have been an amazing. Like keep the mummies and the secret gentlemen’s club with a dark secret and the female lead but the rest I could have done without. All in all I’m not sure I’ll continue with this in the future.

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, Peter Milligan's take on Hammer's version of The Mummy is terrible. I'm not surprised. Picking up a Milligan comic these days is like asking Lucy from Peanuts to hold the football. You know trying to kick it is just going to hurt a lot and you'll crack your head against the ground. That's how I feel after trying to read this tripe. It's dumb and overly convoluted with muddy art.

[Dan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit to over the top, and silly to be a true Hammer Comic.

[Nicole · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Hammer information in the back was really cool to see, the story was interesting, but I am not sure if I wish to continue.

[Liz · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the best mummy comic. The back matter is fairly interesting, though.

[Kevin Harber · Rating 1 out of 5]

Based on the old Hammer mummy films, which I love along with the old Universal ones, but in a modern setting. Disappointing and uninteresting. This is one mummy that should've stayed dead.

[Martijn Van · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just like the Captain Kronos comic a nice start to what could be a great continuation of Hammer stories.

[Art · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was okay. Interesting take on the mummy idea. Some parts were too predictable for me.

[Hannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wanted to finish it, couldn't.

[Christopher M Redding · Rating 2 out of 5]

Peter Milligan has written some of my favorite comics of all time. This is not one of them.