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KING DAVID softcover graphic novel
Recommended (7/10)
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DC Comics/Vertigo imprint
Writer/Artist: Kyle Baker
Editor: Karen Berger
Price: $19.95 US/$32.95 CAN |
Sure, I heard the story about David and Goliath. Who hasn't? Well, actually, I heard the short version: "David slew Goliath." Beyond that, I'm sketchy on the details. When I attended Catholic catechism, they pretty much focused on the New Testament, as I recall. So this graphic novel served as something of an education for yours truly. Though not as sharp as Baker's previous graphic novels, it's informative, in an entertaining, even goofy, kind of way.
As a child, David the harpist wows the people of Israel first by soothing mad King Saul with his music, and later by slaying the hulking Philistine warrior known as Goliath armed with nothing but his courage, outrage and a slingshot. David grows up to be a mighty warrior and wise leader... so much so that Saul fears that he will lose the throne to his protege.
Baker's art is as sharp as ever. His characters are dynamic, and they reinforce whatever mood he's aiming for in the script, from hilarity to madness to sorrow. Though his work is unique, one can see how other artists have influenced him. There are hints of Bill Sienkiewicz, Frank Miller and even Chuck Jones at play in his art. The book wasn't without its visual glitches, though. Baker's experimentation with computer-generated images sometimes intrudes on the story. The edges are too sharp and alien at times in the setting. Furthermore, the font he's chosen for the lettering can be hard on the eyes.
The greatest strength of this book is that Baker contrasts the stuffiness of legend with the casual tone of modern dialogue. Though these characters wage war with swords, marry multiple women and attempt to kill their husbands and fight for enemy nations, it's easy for the reader to hear himself in their confusion, bemusement and fear. That conflict between plot and dialogue achieves a hilarious result.
The problem is that as the story progresses, that contrast fades. Baker focuses more and more on the myth, its surreal nature and its inherent darkness as one thumbs through the pages. Though the humor doesn't disappear completely, it is eclipsed by the stuffier, Biblical tone of lengthy streams of dialogue. My interest in the story and characters waned as the dialogue shifted from colloquial to classical.
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