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Michael Moorcock's Elric of Melnibone
Heir to a legacy of tens of thousands of years, Elric sees the power of his decadent empire waning as the Young Kingdoms of humankind begin to stir. The 428th sorcerer-emperor to hold the ruby throne, he is unusually introspective & weak for his race - a combination that proves too tempting for his scheming cousin, Yyrkoon!
432 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1986
10 people are currently reading
930 people want to read
About the author
Roy Thomas
4,479 books271 followersRoy Thomas was the FIRST Editor-in-Chief at Marvel--After Stan Lee stepped down from the position. Roy is a longtime comic book writer and editor. Thomas has written comics for Archie, Charlton, DC, Heroic Publishing, Marvel, and Topps over the years. Thomas currently edits the fanzine Alter Ego for Twomorrow's Publishing. He was Editor for Marvel comics from 1972-1974. He wrote for several titles at Marvel, such as Avengers, Thor, Invaders, Fantastic Four, X-Men, and notably Conan the Barbarian. Thomas is also known for his championing of Golden Age comic-book heroes — particularly the 1940s superhero team the Justice Society of America — and for lengthy writing stints on Marvel's X-Men and Avengers, and DC Comics' All-Star Squadron, among other titles.
Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.
Also a legendary creator. Creations include Wolverine, Carol Danvers, Ghost Rider, Vision, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, Valkyrie, Morbius, Doc Samson, and Ultron. Roy has also worked for Archie, Charlton, and DC among others over the years.
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
December 7, 2012
I've been meaning to read this series for a while. I'm a fan of the original publishing company (Pacific), as they seemed to be one of the best indy publishers during the direct market boom of the early 80's. Alien Worlds and Twisted Tales are two of my favorite titles from this era (when is someone going to reprint those?), and with an all start team heading up this series I thought it would surely be a good time. Additionally, it seems like every Elric story is being adapted to comics, so it made sense to start with the chronologically first story.
It probably isn't fair to bash an adaptation without having ever read the original source material, so I'll lay off the story itself and only say that the plot line and pacing of this adaptation did not seem to flow very well. Cliffhanger moments seemed to happen in the first few pages or else 3 pages before the end of the chapter, and never at the actual end of the chapter where they would work much better.
The artwork in this is not great. P. Craig Russel, who did the layouts, inks and coloring in this volume, has become one of my top ranked artists, but this showing of his early work leaves much to be desired. Or maybe Michael Gilbert's pencils were what ruined it for me. I'm having a hard time deciding where to lay blame. The pages seem to be laid out well (Russel) for the most part, but the figure drawings are bothersome (Gilbert). Not much can be done about that at the inking phase (Russel), but then the colors in this series look like they were done with a 12 pack of Crayola colored pencils (Russel). I should point out that I read this in the original comic book format, published by Pacific in 1983, and it is possible that Dark Horse re-colored this story for collection in the trade as is popular to do with stories from the early Bronze Age of Comics.
Overall I'm going to have to pass on further Elric adaptations.
It probably isn't fair to bash an adaptation without having ever read the original source material, so I'll lay off the story itself and only say that the plot line and pacing of this adaptation did not seem to flow very well. Cliffhanger moments seemed to happen in the first few pages or else 3 pages before the end of the chapter, and never at the actual end of the chapter where they would work much better.
The artwork in this is not great. P. Craig Russel, who did the layouts, inks and coloring in this volume, has become one of my top ranked artists, but this showing of his early work leaves much to be desired. Or maybe Michael Gilbert's pencils were what ruined it for me. I'm having a hard time deciding where to lay blame. The pages seem to be laid out well (Russel) for the most part, but the figure drawings are bothersome (Gilbert). Not much can be done about that at the inking phase (Russel), but then the colors in this series look like they were done with a 12 pack of Crayola colored pencils (Russel). I should point out that I read this in the original comic book format, published by Pacific in 1983, and it is possible that Dark Horse re-colored this story for collection in the trade as is popular to do with stories from the early Bronze Age of Comics.
Overall I'm going to have to pass on further Elric adaptations.
September 13, 2022
Reading this a second time after reading quite a few other iterations of the Eternal Champion multiverse really hits differently. On its own, Elric can be a vague, confusing and bizarre experience that feels like reading a fever dream in motion. Read in the context of the greater multiverse, you begin to piece together all the missing gaps, mind-bending world building and the strange array of mysterious magic, demons, sorcery and evil gods. I enjoyed it even more on my second reading because I now have a much better grasp on how this universe functions.
Elric is a cynical and melancholy king, heir to a nation whose 100,000-year rule of the world ended less than 500 years hence. Born as a crippled albino do to inbreeding, he's kept alive only by powerful drugs and potions. Elric is a reluctant ruler, but he also realizes that no other worthy successor exists and the survival of his once-powerful nation depends on him alone. Elric's cousin Yyrkoon has no patience for his physically weak kinsman, and he plots constantly to seize Elric's throne by lethal force. Thus begins a power struggle between Elric and his wicked cousin, both wielding incredibly powerful swords by the names of Stormbringer and Mournblade.
On a surface level, it's a straightforward sword & sorcery tale. The characters are simplistic and the plot is all about badass dudes with magic swords fighting monsters, wielding forbidden sorcery, traveling through nightmarish dimensional portals, getting revenge and looking awesome while doing it. It takes pride in its simplicity and isn't afraid to flaunt its flashiness. Its prose and settings are heavily influenced by classic fantasy and horror such as Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos and Robert E. Howard's sword & sorcery tales. It's a fun read.
On a deeper level, you realize that the characters are intentionally one-dimensional, as they are nothing more than set pieces for higher powers playing games with human lives. In the grand scheme of the universe, they're essentially fragile little puppets for gods to do with as they please, regardless of the amount of death and suffering it causes. While the simplistic characterization and blunt Shakespearian dialogue can be a turn off to people, I eventually learned to appreciate the unique style in which the story is told.
Elric is a cynical and melancholy king, heir to a nation whose 100,000-year rule of the world ended less than 500 years hence. Born as a crippled albino do to inbreeding, he's kept alive only by powerful drugs and potions. Elric is a reluctant ruler, but he also realizes that no other worthy successor exists and the survival of his once-powerful nation depends on him alone. Elric's cousin Yyrkoon has no patience for his physically weak kinsman, and he plots constantly to seize Elric's throne by lethal force. Thus begins a power struggle between Elric and his wicked cousin, both wielding incredibly powerful swords by the names of Stormbringer and Mournblade.
On a surface level, it's a straightforward sword & sorcery tale. The characters are simplistic and the plot is all about badass dudes with magic swords fighting monsters, wielding forbidden sorcery, traveling through nightmarish dimensional portals, getting revenge and looking awesome while doing it. It takes pride in its simplicity and isn't afraid to flaunt its flashiness. Its prose and settings are heavily influenced by classic fantasy and horror such as Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos and Robert E. Howard's sword & sorcery tales. It's a fun read.
On a deeper level, you realize that the characters are intentionally one-dimensional, as they are nothing more than set pieces for higher powers playing games with human lives. In the grand scheme of the universe, they're essentially fragile little puppets for gods to do with as they please, regardless of the amount of death and suffering it causes. While the simplistic characterization and blunt Shakespearian dialogue can be a turn off to people, I eventually learned to appreciate the unique style in which the story is told.
July 4, 2016
A flawed masterpiece just like Elric.
February 1, 2013
Upon re-reading this I had a thought.
Makes me wonder why no publisher has ever collected all the P. Craig Russell Elric stories into a nice edition... I'd be willing to re-shell out a nice part of my paycheck for collections in the same vein as Mignola's Hellboy Libray Editions.
"Alas poor Elric, I knew him well"
Elric, the most manic-depressive character in all fantasy litterature.
I guess Prozacs were still a long way off.
Thomas is up to his usual standards as far as adapting a sword and sorcery novel.
And we get the perfect artist to illustrate Elric and his entourage in P. Craig Russell.
Makes me wonder why no publisher has ever collected all the P. Craig Russell Elric stories into a nice edition... I'd be willing to re-shell out a nice part of my paycheck for collections in the same vein as Mignola's Hellboy Libray Editions.
"Alas poor Elric, I knew him well"
Elric, the most manic-depressive character in all fantasy litterature.
I guess Prozacs were still a long way off.
Thomas is up to his usual standards as far as adapting a sword and sorcery novel.
And we get the perfect artist to illustrate Elric and his entourage in P. Craig Russell.
November 20, 2015
One of the best adaptations of a novel to comics that I've ever read. That said, it's P. Craig Russell's early work, which is but a shadow of what he was to produce later. But, that can be said about every creative person. Thomas, who also scripted lots of Savage Sword of Conan books, does the story justice.
January 18, 2016
Sword and Sorcery's most tragic hero, Elric is revealed in this graphic adaptation of Michael
Moorcock's Eternal Champion. I have read this more than once and it has influenced me
as an artist and writer.
July 22, 2016
El Elric del veteranísimo Roy Thomas, con un P. Craig Russell descubriendo su estilo es una de esas ocasiones en que las adaptaciones al cómic de espada y brujería miran cara a cara al original y en momentos, lo superan.
December 8, 2014
La adaptación más o menos libre de Roy Thomas para este clásico de Moorcock se beneficia de la gran sensibilidad gráfica de P.Craig Russell, ofreciendo una visión elegante en su decadencia. Perfecta para iniciarse en el ciclo del Campeón Etreno.
May 2, 2013
Awesome series, just a small fragment of Moorcock's 'Multiverse'
September 26, 2013
Guilty pleasure, classic pulp fantasy with many twists. Elric is probably the best anti-hero to come along since Steerpike.
February 13, 2018
A great adaptation of the book.
August 13, 2017
wonderful masterpiece that got me reading in the first place. The idea of evil fighting evil sent me to places that have changed me forever
August 20, 2017
Classic book. Actual fantasy with actual fighting,monsters, wizardry, gods, supernatural , .. and Moorcock doesn't spend the whole book talking about the multiverse.
Read
January 14, 2021I have read so many MM books that I've lost count.
August 9, 2021
Beautiful art on this entire series of graphic novels. It really captures the visual spendor of the written books.
January 30, 2024
When a friend asked me what I was reading, I said the answer was more complicated than it should be. I was reading this 2015 hardcover of a 1983 comic of a 1961 novel, by a publisher that also put out a new comic of the same 1961 novel.
But I'm glad I read this one. The writing is great, and I'm not surprised that this is a famous and beloved character that cornerstones a sprawling and beloved fantastic universe. But I LOVE this early-80s full-color sword and sorcery art really pushing at the bounds of what comic artwork was appearing in western comics at that time.
And then back to the writing, and the character -- all-powerful warrior sorcerer emperor of dragons is hobbled by... empathy, mercy, and a desire to do good? Hells. yes.
But I'm glad I read this one. The writing is great, and I'm not surprised that this is a famous and beloved character that cornerstones a sprawling and beloved fantastic universe. But I LOVE this early-80s full-color sword and sorcery art really pushing at the bounds of what comic artwork was appearing in western comics at that time.
And then back to the writing, and the character -- all-powerful warrior sorcerer emperor of dragons is hobbled by... empathy, mercy, and a desire to do good? Hells. yes.
January 5, 2023
This is a pretty straight adaptation, and nearly the same length as the source material, but it skips over small details regularly which give more richness to the world and characters in the original. Unfortunately, the art isn’t good enough to fill in those elements. In fact, the art is pretty bad. It was actually painful to look at after a while, which is down to the light inks on sketchy lines and some truly horrendous colors. It looks like colored pencils, and in some places like crayon.
August 5, 2024
Can't get enough of criag Russell art
September 16, 2024
A little bit old-fashioned for my taste... not exactly a full critique about the book quality.
September 29, 2012
Literatura fantástica. Acessível e envolvente q.b. Não é nenhum Senhor dos Aneís mas dá para entreter para quem gosta do género.
December 31, 2014
После Ruby Throne все комиксы про Эльрика кажутся несколько смешными. Но здесь он на обложке похож чуть ли не на Эльвиру королеву тьмы, а внутри - на исполнителя спэйс-рока. Я одобряю.
July 8, 2013
Fantastic adaptation of Moorcock's work.
Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews