Moomin: The Deluxe Lars Jansson Edition

Moomin Comic Strip #22-45

by Lars Jansson, Tove Jansson

A lavish celebration of Moominvalley, complete with hundreds of pages of comics, writing, and ephemera

Since the first Moomin comic strip appeared in the London Evening News, Tove Jansson’s creations have become an international sensation, inspiring TV shows, cafés, a museum, an opera, and even an amusement park. And now in this new deluxe edition are hundreds of pages of Moomin comics, starring Moominmamma, Snorkmaiden, Sniff, Mrs. Fillyjonk, and many more familiar faces.

Collected in this volume are the comics created by Lars Jansson, when his sister, Tove, grew tired of drawing a daily strip after half a decade. Lars had long been involved in the creation of the Moomin strips—he translated them into English for publication. Though he had little knowledge of drawing, Lars took over the daily comic strip. Tove taught him, and after two years of sibling collaboration, Lars authored the strips independently for fourteen years. By the mid-1970s, when the strip was at its height of popularity, the tales of Moominvalley were being syndicated in forty papers worldwide, just as absorbing to adult readers as they were to children. Even today, the stories remain uniquely resonant with readers for more than just their quirky, outlandish appearances. With silly humor, the Moominvalley characters emphasize the importance of community and respecting one’s environment to readers young and old.

Moomin: The Deluxe Lars Jansson Edition collects Lars Jansson’s contributions to the series alongside rare ephemera and tributes by cartoonists and writers. Sumptuously designed, it is a must for any fan of Moominvalley.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics

448 pages, Hardcover

First published November 12, 2019

Reviews

[StrictlySequential ArtNarrative · Rating 5 out of 5]

I cannot see his work as a "rendition" of her's because it's seemless down to the nuiance.

I read this so slowly because the end meant I would never have newMoomin again. What will I turn to cheer me up in times of misery?

[Marie Chudožilov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Legrace, ale není to Tove.

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you loved the original Tove strips, there’s a lot to love from Lars as well. He does a lot of really interesting things with the designs and characters that make his portion of the comic all his own. Definitely worth looking into.

[Martyn · Rating 3.5 out of 5]

I didn't enjoy this as much as the first volume. Lars's comics felt a bit crude in style to start off with and it took a while for him to find his feet. And I just didn't find the stories that interesting or amusing or emotive. Moominmamma felt rather inconspicuous in most of the stories. Towards the end of the volume things possibly improved a bit. But it is a heavy and cumbersome volume so not one you can just pick up easily for a bit of a light reading. Such a substantial volume does take time and effort to read and I'm not sure how much incentive I will have to tackle this volume again. At the moment I don't feel enthusiastic. There seems to be little reward to repay the effort. But I imagine I will want to read it again in time, because it is the Moomins after all.

[Mika Byar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it loved it! Lars continued on the legacy of the Moomin comics really well from Tove. The humor, stories, and creativity of the illustrations and frames were all great. They didn’t lose their touch at all. I felt that maybe I had a few less “Moomin Philosophy” moments where I saw something in the strips and it really made me think or connect to an idea or life attitude, but that could just be me!

[Judit · Rating 1 out of 5]

Other reviews say that this integrates seamlessly into the Moomin canon, but I disagree.
Why are the Moomins, the charming, chill, human-like hippo characters suddenly aggressive, mean, fatphobic, a tad racist, and stupid? Such a disappointment.

[strategian]

Some of the early comics are a bit shaky, especially compared to the Tove ones, but the quality of humour and art both improves considerably and I'd say ends up being about on par. Good.

[Katarína Harčová · Rating 5 out of 5]

Je to edicia česká, ktorá tu žial vôbec nie je a nový Goodreads dosť pokašlal pridávanie kníh/edícií.

Kniha prečítaná na viackrát. Muminie príbehy sú nádherne nakreslené. Je to super, vtipné, milé a duchaplné, v mnohom veľmi priama kritika spoločnosti!

Príbeh o ochrancoch zvierat, ktorí zachránia cirkusové zvieratá aby sa ich potom vzdali a boli vrátené do cirkusu - aka pokrytci v bežnom živote:
"Fifijonko: To máme jen sedět a nechat komáry, aby nás štípali?
Muminek Tatínek: Ano! Tohle je Spolek na ochranu zvířat před krutostí!"

Príbeh o stroskotaní na opustenom ostrove:
"M: Kde je Muminek?
M2: Šel ztroskotat na opuštěný ostrov.
M: Bože bože, pak se zmáčí a muže nastydnout.
M: Pravda, jěstě se na nej zlobím, ale je třeba pamatovat, že je to muž.
M: Hádam, že taky vyrazím, kromě toho ztroskotat muže být zábavné."

Príbeh o kopaní zlata - zlatej horúčke:
"M1: Už si zakopal naše pěkvapení?
M2: Ano a pořádně.
M3: Rychle se schovejte! Prosektoři už jdou!
M2: Ti budou mít radost, až konečne něco najdou!
M3: A taky o moc hezčí věci než zlato."

[Luke Stevens · Rating 5 out of 5]

Waiting on the day D&Q publishes the other half of Lars moomins !!!!!

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Přišlo mi to trochu víc unhinged než díly od Tove, ale i tak dobré. Dokonce se dočkáme i toho, že vyhodí hosty z domečku!