Reviews

From Hell, by Alan Moore

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thepunktheory's review against another edition

4.0

Full book vs. movie review on my blog!

Alan Moore didn't just come up with the story for this on a whim. He based most of it on meticulous research and at the end of the graphic novel you get a detailed list of sources. In fact, you get a list of just about each panel in the comic and the source that inspired it. That's a whole other level of dedication!
While I enjoyed the idea behind From Hell, I did have some problems with the execution. The whole thing is in black and white. On one hand, I like it as it underlines the somber atmosphere but on the other hand, it made it pretty difficult to actually see what's going on. From time to time I actually had a little trouble following the story as I couldn't figure out right away who the characters in the panels were supposed to be. That got on my nerves pretty quickly.
Honestly, I think the only reason I was able to make sense of the story was that I had seen the movie some years ago.
Furthermore, this one is pretty long. So unless you are interested in Jack the Ripper (and made already read some books on the matter to help make sense of this) I am not sure I would recommend it. Although I found From Hell very interesting, it took me a while to finish it and did drag on at times.

mznomer's review against another edition

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5.0

The story of Jack the Ripper (and all the conspiracy and speculation surrounding it) is fascinating. I read the appendix along with the graphic novel itself (I'd read a few pages, then flip to the back). It was not a very effecient way to read, but the clarification of what was pure fiction, what was commonly acknowledged fact, and what was rumor based on rumor based on a snippet of truth, was almost more interesting than the main story itself. Of course the latter couldn't exist without the former.

roenfoe's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

As someone who greatly enjoyed V for Vendetta and Watchmen, I knew I would eventually read From Hell. I went into it almost completely blind, unaware that it was an examination of the Jack the Ripper mythos. From Hell is easily the most well-thought-out comic I have ever read, and is certainly better written and researched than many regular history books. Moore balances an absurd dedication to historical fact and detail with invented elements (such as supernatural architecture and hallucination) that establish From Hell as a wholly unique work of Jack the Ripper fiction.

While I often found the art style muddy, ugly, and difficult to read, it reflects the time and place in which the story occurs. It was appropriately filthy, irreverent, and dark.

Intriguing themes abound; power, class dynamics, the occult, and female sexual liberation and slavery.

Spoiler

The time travel/premonition (?) aspect of Dr. Gull's story was a shock to the system; especially his commentary on the "hell" that a modern person inhabits. We would consider "his" world to be horrible and not worth living in... while he finds our white collar wage slavery even more repulsive.

From Hell wasn't perfect; at times it was a slog. At the end of each chapter I would spend an equal amount of time reading footnotes about mundane street names and obscure tertiary characters. Overall, though, it remained extremely compelling. I'll be thinking about it for a long time.

Content Warnings

bodger's review against another edition

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5.0

Extremely dark and disturbing. An excellent tale of a possible Jack the Ripper.

amgel's review against another edition

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challenging mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

stadkison's review against another edition

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5.0

Wow. What a piece. Dense, layered, full of a mixture of fact and fiction. If you are interested, it’s all helpfully lain out in the extensive Appendices.

Alan Moore casts upon the Jack the Ripper murders his visions of magic, time, (psycho)geography, and history, casting it as the major occult ritual that pushed the 19th century into the 20th. Eddie Campbell lovingly realizes this world full of freaks, monsters, eccentrics, and ordinary people. His art is itself dense, but when he steps back and shows you the psychically hostile architecture of London, it is moving beyond all measure. His lettering really adds a lived-in feeling. All the characters, even the ones beyond comprehension, feel like real people.