I can't even express how much better and different this book is from the movie that was spawned from it. The comparisons are striking and a bit said when I consider how a screenplay writer could mess up a story as good as this and turn it into the muck of a movie it became. I find the comparisons even more striking when compared to Moore's even more complicated work Watchmen, which funneled out a component film on that very layered book. The movie of V for Vendetta pared the book down into an action film where the message or political statement seemed to justify everything that happened. Where as the book had actually plot and characterization, while letting the political statements serve their purpose without bogging anything down. It also had enough of a mystery that helped to keep the story progressing at a good pace.
Considering how old this story is, it's relevance is still apparent in a story where Big Brother has taken control of everything in a world where fascism is the ruling power and there is only the poor and rich in society. Government serves the people with an iron fist all in the name of compassion. It is into this shackled world where the character known as "V" comes to wreck his, ultimately, vengenance on a gonvernment that has oppressed the people long enough.
This book actually dared to somewhat get into the history of what made a man turn into V. I can't for the life of me figure out why the movie would reject this plot in favor of actions scenes because the history of V is so paramount to not only him but also to the ruling government and other characters in the story. Not only that I found his history quite a riveting narrative in it's right, proving once again what a master of storytelling Moore can be. I've read a lot if his comics just so you know my background when writing about Moore: Watchmen, Promethea, The Saga of the Swampthing (his entire run), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (all of them written so far), Tom Strong vol 1 - 3, Batman: The Killing Joke, From Hell and Top 10 Comics vol 1 -2. So I have a good foundation when I write about Moore and his storytelling style. This goes without saying, this is one of best stories that he's written, it also shows how he has grown as a writer of comics, and why he's one of the best comic writers ever to write for comics.
In the comic Moore invests a lot more time with the historical aspect of not only V but also the main character Evey as we follow her transformation from an enslaved subject of a fascism government to a person inspired to create a new world. This is one of the most brilliant things Moore does with the story as he gives the reader enough of background of V's history for the reader to see where he came from but then he mirrors Evey's metamorphosis and V's. By doing this he shows how similar their change was so that the reader can fill in the pieces without feeling like questions weren't answered. Let me tell you that is a great logical way to fill in gaps and reveal things without having to actually reveal things, a great many people could learn from this.
Another thing that makes this an interesting comic is the art by David Lloyd. This is not the typical art found in comic books, this at first is quite jarring. as it took me awhile to get used to because the art is that different. But the style does work well with the story as this isn't a typical nerd comic with spandex, superheroes, or giant ideas . Lloyd's art is detailed without being distracting and his characterization of the people is his strongest suit as this is a very character driven story. Even the angles he draws in certain scenes are bold and very effective as they give the comic a movie type of feel just by the choice of "shots" within the page.
This is one of Moore's first big comic works that he did and the genesis of his amazing panel layouts have their early roots in this comic book and came to their full fruition with Watchmen and Promethea. V for Vendetta is populated in various places page by page with the panel layout I've seen in his later works but only certain scenes march out with his future panel flare and I think story works better without that flare. There's a certain realism he's working with within this story that the flare of panel layouts later one would only intrude and distract from his message, I think. By sticking with the typical panel layouts found in comics at the time Moore is using the tools and conventions of the superhero comics to unleash his vendetta on the spandex powers he so despised. Then by throwing in his unusual panel layouts in various places he was showing the comic powers that be what their comics could accomplish if they chose to think outside of the box. Make no mistake this is an outside of the box comic in all of it's glorious ways.
It does start slow but once it gets rolling I found myself thoroughly engrossed in the story being told as the characters and plot enfolded around me with its cocoon shell only to have itself emerge with beautiful and intricate wings when it broke free. How the movie could have messed this story up will puzzle me for a long time because there is so much here to enjoy from a storytelling stand point that it belittles everything to reduce it all down to an typical action movie.
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