Barbarella / Dejah Thoris Paperback – September 10, 2019

I took a chance and it paid off. Read this in one sitting. Loved the artistry. It has been a while since I have enjoyed anything Barbarella. Glad I downloaded it.

Item as described.

A scientist creates gates that allow travel between planets and between eras, and uses them to create a blind date for Barbarella and Dejah Thoris. The theme of the outing is: save the scientist's species and Thoris's. (Babs is mostly along as a facilitator.)DT comes off as imperious, B is sassy, smart, and interested in DT as more than a friend (in hints to which DT does not respond). It's not a long story, but doesn't make a lot of room for either DTs swashbuckling or B's space-smarts and enhancements to her person.Interesting premise for a crossover but, as this shows, it's not easy to merge such disparate styles into a seamless whole while preserving what makes each part special.-- wiredweird

Short Version:For newcomers interested in either Barbarella or Dejah Thoris, this is a great gateway comic that isn't too involved, and helps you get a taste of what each character could be like.Good story potential. Bland and empty dialogue. SPECTACULAR artwork and coloring (German Garcia is now on my list). Worth the price, and entertaining to a degree, but doesn't fully realize either character as it could.I give it a 7.9/10, because the weak dialogue and lack of character development/creativity actually bleeds the overall quality of this arc (held up almost exclusively by its stunning yet simple artwork and vivid coloring...and story).Long Version (potential spoilers):A collection of the four comics making up this arc, Leah Williams and German Garcia made a welcomed (yet lacking) glimpse of what one can expect from both Barbarella and Dejah Thoris as characters (although not very much). The story and its idea/premise had the potential on its own to be amazing. It is creative, mysterious, and fun. The scope of the story isn't truly realized, and not much backstory involving either character is explored (I can't blame them. It would make the arc twice as long), but it's digestible as a self contained adventure.The dialogue for both Barbarella and Dejah Thoris (ESPECIALLY Barbarella) is generic and boring. EASILY the worst part of the arc. This is especially damning, since the essence of both characters is LOST due almost entirely thanks to this under developed dialogue.In the case of Barbarella: She comes off as either a dry stoic robotic know-it-all, or a wondrous autistic emotionless little girl. In terms of the dialogue's delivery for Barbarella, it feels forced, as if your layman friend pretends to be smart. Compliments from Barbarella to Dejah Thoris comes off as sarcastic. They REALLY could have done better with her.In the case of Dejah Thoris: Her dialogue is literally "Ancient Race Princess from a royal lineage goes on an adventure," which is a shame, because anyone who read in to Dejah Thoris would find she's anything BUT a typical heroine. Sure she could be described as a typical "heroine in need" trope, but further exploration would subvert this unfair label. I think she was under-used and under-realized in this arc.One jarring action this arc takes is this weird, out of left field, love interest between Barbarella and Dejah Thoris (nothing explicit, just dialogue-based). Given the history of both characters, delighting in such "pleasures" isn't too out of character for either of them (especially old school Barbarella...oof), but in this particular case it felt like some unnecessary last minute addition for...I'm not sure what reason. I'm going to assume it was put there because someone advised it would sell sex better, and what's more Progressive than lesbian flirtation? In this particular case, it was just a miss. I would rather like to have seen these two personalities build a greater mutual respect through this dialogue, rather than how it panned out. Subtle can be sexy, too.This arc's most redeeming quality is BY FAR the artwork done by German Garcia. Stunning line work which is simple, yet uses colors that is vibrant and pleasing. In both the visual design of Barbarella and Dejah Thoris, it manages to find a nice balance between sexy, yet sophisticated. These two wear skimpy, form fitting clothes, but it's not TOO sexualized. Me personally, I don't mind this stuff (I prefer it), but I sympathize with others (probably women) who would like to see beauty that isn't exaggerated unrealistic curves. Finding this balance is very hard, and rarely achieved. In spite of that, this art style and design manages to give enough to both opposite ends of this spectrum to satisfy everyone...and ACTUALLY SUCCEEDS in doing so! I have nothing but praise for German Garcia in this arc. Barbarella's hairstyle is beautiful, like some sort of beaming sun. Dejah Thoris's EVERYTHING is the same, with a face that buckles the knees.If you want to introduce potential fans to either Barbarella or Dejah Thoris, this is a decent taste for beginners. It acts as its own self contained story, and gives a brief hint of what either characters' respective universe and personalities are like (VERY brief and lacking, but still there).The dialogue, however, is just so weak, and missed opportunities to expand on both characters. It feels like great care was put in to everything, but the dialogue was rushed due to it being an after thought or something. I came to the realization that if you put any other two characters in this situation, gave them similar dialogue and goals, then it would have worked.....which is bad. No personal mark is made by Barbarella or Dejah Thoris, and that's a shame. At least the worth can be found in the artwork.Overall, I give this entire arc a 7.9/10. If the characterizations were respected, and the dialogue was flushed out and interesting, I would have given this a 9.3/10! It had THAT much potential. But similarly, the dialogue and lacking characters was its biggest wound. We are only as strong as our weakest link, but to the credit of this arc, being a 7.9/10 means it more than makes up in all other aspects. I believe this is worth a purchase, and something to consider if you want to get newcomers in to either Barbarella and/or Dejah Thoris.

I like the Barbarellas comics recent art but this one was disappointing. Weird colors and less detail in the drawings. I couldn’t get into the story because the art sadly put me off.

Ok

was a great book highly recomend

There is barely any conflict to resolve. The stakes aren't high, the twists are predictable, and by the time you know what the adventure is all about it's over in a couple of pages. Really good art though, and the character work was nice. And very predictably the two heroines are super gay for each other which I am in full support of.