The art was fun to look at. The stories were simple, fun, and silly. Nothing classic here, but still I found it to be quite entertaining. I will read more of Mr. Monster in the future.

Good job Mr. Gilbert on reviving a very obscure character who only appeared in one story many decades ago.

while reading it you can plan what to read later, which subjects to think, desiding update movements, etc.

If you ask most people who read Alan Moore's America's Best Comics line, they'd probably tell you that "Tomorrow Stories" is at the very bottom of their list of favorites. For myself, however, I'd place it pretty near to the top. (Other titles under the ABC banner include "The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen", "Promethea", Tom Strong" and "Top Ten".) The thing is that "Tomorrow Stories" is an anthology, and, typically speaking, readers (American readers especially) don't like anthologies as much as they would a comic that contains just a single ongoing story with characters and plot that flow in the traditional way that most comics do.
Reading "Tomorrow Stories", I get a nice blend of Alan Moore's different writing styles every month: "Greyshirt" and "The Cobweb" fall under the category of basic superhero/crimefighter, "Jack B. Quick" is a science fiction tale about a boy inventor experimenting with the most bizarre laws of science. "Splash Brannigan" is a funny little strip to do with making comic books, and my personal favorite and possibly the funniest, "First American", a hilarious superhuman satire mixed with just a little good old American patriotism.
I've read almost everything that Moore has written for comics in the past two decades, and I've found him to be very, very versatile as a writer. The genres he explores in his work are vast. For mystery, there was "Watchmen", obviously, historical fiction: "From Hell", for horror, you have his incredible run on "Swamp Thing", "V For Vendetta" is a frightening political thriller, in Sci-Fi there's "The Ballad of Halo Jones", if you prefer superheroes, you can't forget his revision of "Marvelman" and later "Supreme", philosophy and fantasy with "Promethea", insane humor with "D.R. & Quinch" and "The Bojeffries Saga", his lyrics and poetry in "Songbook" and "Magic Words", the autobiographical "The Birth Caul", and even "Lost Girls", which falls in the category of erotic fiction. He writes everything! And with very few exceptions, he does it all amazingly well. I have yet to find something of his that I would consider just out-and-out terrible.
That's why I believe that "Tomorrow Stories" is majorly overlooked, especially among members of his fanbase. To my knowledge, its the only ABC title besides "Promethea" to win an Eisner. It showcases his many unique writing talents, but particularly his humor. If you'd seen a picture of the guy, you probably wouldn't think he have much of a sense of it. But,as the cliche goes: "You can't judge a book by its cover."

A book consisting largely of senseless, desultory, inept prurience. Save for Burroughs and Ballard, the editors presume much in claiming for these nobodies a place approaching the original Lovecraft's style and wit. No Bloch or Clark Ashton Smith here, these are all lurid, incontinent emulators of weird fiction, and undeserving of that rubric. What's curious is that Lovecraft influenced many a great author, from Michel Houellebecq to Will Self. Why be laden with posers and third-raters? I returned this book with in 24hrs. or receiving it. Buyer be warned.

This anthology, overall, is IMHO quite horrible. There are so many disgusting sexual references and appearances of excrement that one wonders if it was a requirement for the stories' acceptance for the book... In particular, "Walpurgisnachtmusik" brings to mind the ludicrous over-use of the [f word] in the first 10 minutes of Tarantino's "From Dusk Till Dawn."

The ONLY reason I don't condemn it entirely is that there ARE a few good things in here. Most notable is Coulthart's graphical adaptation of "The Call of Cthulhu," an excellent adaptation indeed. Some others stand out- Lumley's "The Night Sea-Maid Went Down" (a reprint, admittedly), Conway's "Black Static" (just ignore the unpleasantness at either end), Webb's "The Sound of a Door Opening," Moore's "The Courtyard" (again, dodge the few unpleasant bits, which seem especially superfluous here), and Mitchell's "Ward 23." Campbell's "Potential" is tolerably good, as well.

In short, if you can buy this book cheap, it's probably worth it; otherwise, give it a pass until you CAN find it cheap. If nothing else, buy it for the Coulthart segment, the one part that Lovecraft might have truly considered a tribute...

Within the confines of Lovecraftian tributes there are sometimes successes that combine elements of the fantastical with the bizarre, mixed results that couple the failings of one author with the successes of another, or - in the most rare instances - there are failures that can be found utterly without merit. These are the wonderful worlds that we throw ourselves into whenever purchasing a set of names attributed to a larger creator, and its something I normally fear because I've touched the eye of the proverbial oven one too many times. Still, within The Starry Wisdom, you have something of the middle man of the bunch, giving you pieces of the lore that are actually well-written and concise, as well as pieces that have no redeeming qualities, however. Unfortunately that is the lifeblood of many collected pieces, however, and everything has to be taken as such because of this. Happily, though, I have to say that there are some things in the book that I wouldn't want to be without.

Of all the stories within the chronicled tales here, there is an artistic adaptation of Lovecraft's Call of Cthulhu done by John Coulthart that is immaculately done. The quality of the work is fantastic and captures the visions within the madness so very well. Few things merit praise as much as this does, and it truly makes the book worth buying by itself. Still, there are other noteable contributions that add to this as well, including a little Robert M. Price (A Thousand Young), some Brian Lumley (The Night Sea-Maid Went Down), David Conway (Black Static), Ramsey Campbell (Potential), William S. Burroughs (Wind Die, You Die, We Die) and a little Allan Moore (The Courtyard). There are also pieces from Grant Morrison (Lovecraft in Heaven), James Havoc and Mike Philbin (Third Eye Butterfly), Henry Wessel (From This Swamp), JG Ballad (Prisoner of the Coral Deep), Dan Kellet (Red Mass), Simon Whitechapel (Walpurgisnachtmusik), DF Lewis (Meltdown), John Beal (Beyond Reflection), CG Brandrick and DM Mitchell (The Exquisite Corpse), Micheal Gira (Extracted From the Mouth of the Consumer, Rotting Pig), Adele Olivia Glawell (Hypothetical Materfamalias), Don Webb (The Sound of a Door Opening), Rick Grimes (Pills Fro Miss Betsy), Peter Smith (The Dreamers in Darkness), Stephen Sennitt (Nails), and DM Mitchell (Ward)that can be hit-or-miss depending on what you demand from your authors. Many of these titles have come and gone through various books in the past, some more than others, and there are many that I really didn't like in the set. Still, the illustrated portion of the book was done in ways that made it seems so wondrously worth obtaining and I'm glad I put it into my collection because of it.

For fans of HP Lovecraft's works, then you might want to look into these titles - provided that you don't own them already. I would also suggest picking it up because of the reason I listed before, noting that the illustrated portions of the book are something done in the most commendable of ways. Even if you aren't a fan of Lovecraft but you love some of the things doe with his ideas, then this would be worth at least looking into because of the tendrils making sweet music in the background of nightmarish dreams. To a point, depending on your ownership already, it comes recommended.

Above average comic book fare, but not even in the same plane as Watchmen or V for Vendetta. I would suggest looking elsewhere. From Hell and Swamp Thing are also both supposed to be very good.

Above average comic book superhero fare, but unfortunately that's not saying too much. Enjoyable, but no depth--but not even in the same plane as Watchmen or V for Vendetta. I would suggest looking elsewhere. From Hell and Swamp Thing are also both supposed to be very good

This book (or these books, as this is a collected edition) are great stuff - Alan Moore crafts a wickedly poignant tale around the return of the original C.A.T.s from their homeworld of Khera. While they originally went to Khera thinking it a utopia of paradise, they leave when events turn bitter. Arriving home on Earth, they find themselves right in the middle of the crime war the new WildC.A.T.S. have started. The conclusion is classic Moore, and the art (a mix of Travis Charest and Kevin Maguire) is top notch, Charest's in paticular. If you are a fan of Alan Moore, WildC.A.T.s, or just good old fashion intergalactic superhero action, this book's for you.

What promised to be a battle-heavy trip into the world of comic turned out to be an animated soap opera. While I expected more "gang wars" as promised by the title, I found that the bulk of the book is devoted to the stormy relationship between The Spartan and Yavolda. In fact, the entire book is this couple's meetings at several social events, and although the first dinner scene is amusing, the subsequent dinners and weddings drone on and on. The "witty" dialogue comes off as trite ( especially since the two love-birds are decked out in super-hero gear ). So call me mean, but two meta-humans casting longing glances over cups of expensive coffee is a step down for the comic world.

Noted for groundbreaking work such as The Watchmen, V for Vendetta and more recently, From Hell, Alan Moore is the most influential and critically acclaimed active comic book author. In this comic, Alan Moore again proves his dominance in the much maligned field of comic book writing. Those who dismiss the dialogue as wordy likely have no formal education in writing, preferring action to subtlety. Precisely there lies Moore's mastery of his craft. Integrating subtle moments fully draws the reader into the story, unlike most comics. The difficulty some may have is that with Moore, if you don't pay attention/reread, you're likely going to miss something.

Most of the reviews here talk about how great the writing is in Story of the Year, and how bad mouch of the art is. Truthfully, the art didn't bother me at all. Sure, it wasn't brilliant, but it served the story well enough. On the other hand, I really didn't think much of the story, and I wonder about the people who do. This story takes place about half in present time, and about half in flashbacks, presented as 50's style comic books. The present-time story is moderately interesting, as Supreme tries to piece together his past. The flashbacks are (brilliant? masterful? Alan Moore at his best?) no, they're really just plain BORING. Yes, Alan Moore has managed to recapture the simplistic story-telling style of that period, with all of the bad puns, goofy costumes and ridiculous villians. But why? Why bother? Moore normally writes with such sophistication, why would he intentionally forget everything comics has learned over the decades? Everything, frankly, that makes me enjoy modern comics in a way I never did the older stuff. And bad enough that this dreck takes up half of the pages; even the modern sequences have a much more simplistic writing style than anything else I have ever read of Moore's. I guess this is because all of the characters, though living in the present, are still mentally trapped in the 50's. BOTTOM LINE: If you are someone who loves nostalgia, maybe you will get into this series. If, on the other hand, you are looking for modern writing and art with a retro-style story, I would recommend you skip this and buy Tom Strong instead. Or even better, Astro City by Kurt Busiek.

I wanted to address some of the criticisms of other reviewers. First of all, while the reproduction isn't top notch, and doesn't match the quality of the majority of TPB's, it is acceptable, and didn't diminish my enjoyment of the story. The lack of refinement and general smoothness in the colors is noticeable, however, so if you think this might bother you, check it out in a store, library, friend's collection, whatever, before you buy it here.

The many flashback sequences all have a legimate authentic golden and silver age look and feel to them. While the idea of presenting the story of Supreme with this technique is inititally clever and effective, over the course of this 300+ page TPB, Moore goes to the well too often. If I had read this collection in the original monthly installments, I wouldn't have minded it, and probably would have even looked forward to the next issue. While I'm not sure which segments I would jettison (because they're all individually drawn and written with care and imagination), the repetition starts to weigh in, especially if you try to read the whole book in one or two sittings.

This is a fun read, suitable for audiences of all ages. This is much more in line with Moore's work on Tom Strong, and especially, Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow. Fans of Moore's more "serious" work: Watchmen, From Hell, V For Vendetta, and Swamp Thing, may be disappointed with this.

Almost all of these reviewers have got it all wrong. This is genius Alan Moore. The flashbacks sequences are comic satire at it's best. This is one giant post-modern take on Superman. If you liked what he did with "Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?" or the Superman Annual that he did ("For the Man who has Everything") then this collection comes as a super-sized portion. Through the silver age flashback sequences, Moore disects and lovingly reconstructs over sixty years of Superman mythology. This book is a brightly crafted ode to Comics; a more optimistic Watchmen. I wish they showed what "Grim-Eighties Supreme" looks like. What a wonderful collection. Forget the transfer. The previous reviewers have grossly exagerrated the mistakes. This a beautifully crafted story on one of history's most mythical and beloved figures.

I love it, and you should, too.
I'm patiently waiting for the return!

This pamphlet is a type of sequel to THE BIRTH CAUL. It's not a sequel in the sense that it follows on the events of THE BIRTH CAUL (were there any events in THE BIRTH CAUL?). Rather, it's a sequel in that it's by the same creators, has the same length, is written and drawn in the same style, and uses the same expository tone of voice that THE BIRTH CAUL uses. Like its predecessor, this one has no actual story, but functions as a type of artistic "statement".

The earlier work had some interesting points, but I went into this one frowning and came out frowning. Something about the nature of art and how it's related to magic. According to the credits page, SNAKES AND LADDERS was originally presented live to the Society of the Golden Dawn, so parts of the book may have something to do with the philosophy of that particular, um, fellowship of believers, but I couldn't get enough out of it to figure out what's what.

It might be more interesting to people who haven't already read THE BIRTH CAUL, but I got tired of it pretty quickly. I'm not sure if Moore and Campbell intend to make a series out of these things, but if so, this is as far as I'm going. Well, maybe.

This book isn't for everyone, but if you're not everyone (and you could be anyone, natch) then it may fascinate. As the prior reviewer noted, this is a meditation on "magic" and art, via an exploration and "invocation" of the life of writer Arthur Machen, a quite amazing man who, amongst many prose achievments, wrote THE GREAT GOD PAN and several horror tales which influenced Lovecraft. The very idea of "imagination" is both the canvas and the brush which Moore uses to explore Machen, life, death and creativity. To those looking for another WATCHMEN, this might be an abstruse, impenetrable read, but for anyone interested in Machen and/or visionary writers (in the literal, William Blakean sense) will find much to impress. This comic is an adapation of a performance piece by Moore, which is available from RE: search records. I must confess to not fully "getting" the comic upon my hasty first read, but hearing Moore speak the words added a new level of illumination, not that buying the CD is in any way a necessity. Moore's continuing exploration of his ideas about imagination, creativity, writing and their logical extension "magic" (the comic reveals what this is) are fascinating, thought provoking and delightfully lucid.

Although the title of the book indicates that it is about multimedia, it is almost entirely about sound. Animations receive hardly any mention. I was disappointed by the book for that reason.

Considering Alan himself described his work for Image as "rubbish", I can't see this book being seriously considered as a "great story". There are some good parts, particularly in the early issues, but the storyline flags and meanders down back alleys, and eventually seems to get lost.

Honestly, you're much better off with Moore's Watchmen, V for Vendetta, From Hell, or Miracleman series...you'll lose very little by missing this.