Sláine, ranked: part 10 - The shock of the new

 A bit of a coincidence, this, but we have three Clint Langley stories in a row. I know we've had a few of his efforts already, but this seems the place to really make the point that when he kicked off the absolutely epic four-year-long Books of Invasions cycle at the very end of 2002, it was a big deal. We'd not had any Sláine for close to three years, and reader fatigue with the series overall seemed high - at least, as far as one can tell just from reading the Prog and readers' letters within in.

This was promised as a proper return to roots (after the relative failure of the 'Lost Years' sequence, which I think readers liked quite a bit but editorial wasn't into, and the Secret Commonwealth which just didn't satisfy readers or editorial or even Pat himself).

It was also heralded as the big new art find since Simon Bisley, which is a BOLD claim. Your mileage will vary on that, but frankly, the photoshop stylings that Clint Langely brought to bear (VERY different from his earlier cartooning on Lord of Misrule) really did feel pretty shocking and different. It had a ring of photo-comics to it, but slathered in such detailed fantasy art that it remains very hard to tell where the photo-reference ends and the painting begins. But is it any good? Read on for my impressions...

Rank 25/60: Books of Invasions 1: Moloch
by Pat Mills and Clint Langley

The ultimate piercing
Art by Clint Langley

Where to read it: The Books of Invasions Vol 1
Original Run: 2000AD Prog 2003 (the end-of-year Prog from 2002), then 1322-1326 (mostly in the year 2003; story 38.1 in sequence)

The plot: No longer High King of Ireland, but returned to that time and place, Sláine learns that the Formorian sea demons are still causing trouble, and aids in the fight back against their leader Balor, and a new champion, Moloch of the many blades.

Essential pre-reads: Sláine the King and The Horned God would really set you up for this, just to give a sense of the long-running enmity with the Sea Demons, and also Sláine’s relationship with Niamh.

Analysis: Widely hailed as a return to form, this first of the ‘Books of Invasions’ series is notable for a) involving lots of big battles and b) the return of artist Clint Langley, but using a radically new and rather European-comics style. Specifically, the artist has used photos of himself and various friends/models to play the characters, and has painted them – one assumes digitally – into the fantastical world of Tir Na Nog. It’s both impressive and a little off-putting; there’s just no getting around the use of photos of human faces that lock each panel into a sort of rictus of an expression, somehow less fluid than the illustrated versions, even when those expressions match a line of dialogue perfectly. It’s no coincidence that the most notable art achievements are all about new villain Moloch, who has no trace of humanity about him.

Many arms, many swords, many spikes, full to the brim with EVIL.
Art by Clint Langley

Moloch really is a fantastic new creation. Based on a character from the original Celtic legends, but one has to imagine twisted beyond recognition by Mills and Langley. He’s as good a pantomime villain as Mills has conjured up, and that’s saying a lot. He has great dialogue, lots of barbed swords, weird numbers of knees, and a piercing through the eyeball. Indeed, he’s one of those figures so memorable, I could have sworn he’s around for ages – but in fact, he gets killed fairly soon in Book II of this cycle.

More Moloch! We demand MORE!
Art by Clint Langley

Before that, Moloch gets the (dis)honour of committing one of comics’ worst crimes – raping and killing the wife of the main character. If you just read this story in isolation, it’s eye-rolling stuff. Trying to give Mills the benefit of the doubt, it's not as if Niamh ONLY exists for this moment, she’s been the star of the show in many previous stories, and has her own character arc both with and without Sláine. It’s also not the case that Sláine ‘needed’ something like this happen to motivate him. In fact, the point is to show that Moloch is a lying scumbag who will renege on literally any deals made. Still, the whole thing leaves rather a bad taste in the mouth.

Luckily, this subplot is not the whole of the story. There’s some classic Sláine action at the start, with our hero and his dwarf getting into bar fights, then getting annoyed with politicians, and generally smiting his foes, and despairing about how Ireland was so much better before those dirty Formorians came and ruined it. Big Dave, eat your heart out.

A man without an axe? What's it all coming to, eh?
Art by Clint Langley.

Repercussions: death of Niamh, and also of Balor, who somehow had never got around to being killed before now.

Writing: 8/10
Art: 8.5/10 People’s mileage varies on Langley’s computer style, and to my mind he would improve on the technique later – but in fact, his basic Sláine, his backgrounds, and by golly his Moloch are all super impressive.

Brainball count: 7 sea demons + one arch-enemy

Hot on it's heels, here's the very next part of the cycle...

Rank 24/60: Books of Invasions 2: Golamh
by Pat Mills and Clint Langley

More scanning/splicing prowess from Funt Solo to get this whole wraparound.
Art by Clint Langley

Where to read it: The Books of Invasions Vol 1
Original run: Progs 1350-1355 (in the Year 2003; Story 38.2 in sequence)

The plot: A new wave of invaders plague Tir Na Nog (Or is it just called ‘Ireland’ at this point?). But this time they’re human – almost. It’s the lost tribe of Atlantis, who have bonded with a new type of Formorian sea-demon. The leaders of the group are weird sort-of hybrids, where a sea-demon has literally mounted their human host, and controls their actions. But, because these are evil creatures, the human in question still retains their own mind and faculties and morals. These mixed-up creatures are the titular ‘golamhs’. Sláine, in between bouts of grief and fighting with Moloch, is unkeen to share Ireland with them, but the High King Sethor may have different opinions. Debates and more battles ensue.

Essential pre-reads: All the action picks up directly from where Moloch left off, you’d definitely want to read that first (kind of hard not to, as they’ve always been bundled together in any collected editions anyway)

Analysis: I mean, the golamh concept and visual execution is just top tier Pat Mills /Clint Langley craziness, can’t overstate how awesome and horrible it is. 

These humans entered their bond willingly, but they sure ain't happy about it...
Art by Cline Langley

And for a book about a barbarian killing monsters with axes, I’m always delighted at how much fun Mills brings to the scenes of Sláine arguing with rival Kings about the best way to react to an invasion.

Sláine makes leadership sound so easy, doesn't he...
Art by Clint Langley

This might be the most satisfying individual read of the Books of Invasions. There’s this killer concept at the heart of it, which is given plenty of time to breathe. There’s also Sláine’s grudge-match with Moloch. And then there’s the mix of politicking and battling that is the essence of Sláine (at least, when he’s not in wandering around mode). Drama, emotions, and plenty of killing.

Repercussions: We first meet Gael and Odacon, who end up being essentially the main hero and villain of the whole Books of Invasions cycle. We get to hear a bit more about Kai, Sláine's son. Moloch, already a mighty vollain after just one story, meets his end.

Writing: 9/10
Art: 7.5/10 – Much as the Golamh concept is incredibly realised, it’s not quite as stylish as Moloch. And also the shock of the new in Langley’s style doesn’t quite sustain this second book, where he’s working out a few kinks. But, you know, every now and then there’s a panel or sequence or widescreen epic vision that is just IMMENSE. So, on balance, I'm ranking this story just above the first part.

Brainball count: 17, + 1 arch-enemy

...and now skipping right to the end, here's

Rank 23/60: Books of Invasions epilogue: Carnival
by Pat Mills and Clint Langley

Ukko's back! He has been missed, I can tell you.
Art by Clint Langley

Where to read it: The Books of Invasions Vol 3
Original run: Progs 1469-1475 (in the Year 2006; story 39 in sequence)

The plot: Sláine comes across a travelling Carnival, which is run by Ukko and includes his now-adult son Kai. Together, they solve a murder mystery.

Essential pre-reads: None – although it’s all presented as a kind of epilogue to the Books of Invasions – I guess because it reunites Sláine with Ukko and Kai? But really I think you can enjoy this one totally on its own, even if you;'ve never read any Sláine before. I guess it might help to have read The Shoggey Beast, for reasons that will become clear...

Analysis: It’s back to the ‘wandering around and having random adventures’ type of thing – hooray! It’s also another chance for Mills to show off his way with throwing us hosts of new characters who feel really properly well-realised, only for them to appear for literally this one story, never to be seen again. This WAS the norm for British comics once upon a time, and much as I wish it was still the norm, writers today are just too weary of this for whatever reason, and it has become so unusual that even when an old master does it, it sticks out as odd. Not a complaint about this story! Just an observation that happened to occur to me now.

I, for one, want to know MORE about Shock-head Red...
Art by Clint Langley

Less typical of comics then or now, Carnival is also a murder mystery. These rarely work well in comics (see also; Rick Random; Nemesis & Deadlock). Carnival is predicated on wondering ‘which of the many possible candidates is a secret shoggy, and why do they have it in for a certain person?’.

Sadly the solution to the mystery is rather muffed because the character in question turns out to secretly be the mother of her victim – only either Pat forgot to tell Clint this ahead of time, or else Clint only has access to women in their 20s to take reference photos of, because they sure do look more like sisters than parent/child. Heigh ho. (I'm withholding scans here so as not to spoil what little surprise may remain for anyone who hasn't read this) Still, as an actual plot resolution it’s OK, makes some thematic sense I guess? And also the mystery is not really the focus of the story, which is much more about reuniting Sláine with both Ukko and his son Kai, and how they react to the weird goings on around them.

Did Conan ever solve murder mysteries? Bet he didn't.
Art by Clint Langley.

Repercussions: Ukko is back! And he’ll more or less resume sidekick duties from here on. Also we get to check in on Kai which is nice. And the real enemy of the story, Crom Dubh, makes a come-back later in the saga, although he’s not terribly consequential as Sláine villains go.

Writing: 8.5/10
Art: 8/10 – look, that trouble with the relative ages of two characters aside, there’s some lovely character and creature design here.

Brainball count: 1 monster

(Those paying attention may note there's one more 'Invasions' book, and plenty more Clint Langley, still to come) But before that, we're going back to the 1980s for a couple of big experiments that are, in their own way, bright and bold success stories...