There’s always a sense of dread when a new version of a classic is announced. Why spoil something that’s proven to work? So the when a new, colored, edition of the beloved 2000AD science fiction tale by Alan Moore was announced I was skeptic. But “The Ballad of Halo Jones” proves to be a grand work even with the weight of years and modifications.
Written by Alan MooreCover by Ian Gibson
Illustrated by Ian Gibson
Colored by Barbara Nosenzo
Lettered by Steve PotterComic legend Alan Moore’s highly-influential classic of British comics, presented to a new generation coloured and remastered for the very first time.
“Where did she go? Out. What did she do? Everything…”Bored and frustrated with her life in 50th-century leisure-ghetto housing estate ‘The Hoop’, 18-year-old everywoman Halo Jones yearns for the infinite sights and sounds of the universe. Pledging to escape on a fantastic voyage, she sets in motion events unimaginable; a spell on a luxury space-liner, a brush with an interstellar war – Halo Jones faces hardship and adventure in the name of freedom in the limitless cosmos.
A galaxy-spanning story, comics’ first bona fide feminist space opera, and the first true epic to grace the bibliography of arguably the greatest comic book writer the world has ever known.
Originally published in 1984 “The Ballad of Halo Jones” was an outlier not just in the pages of its home magazine, 2000AD, but in western comics overall: a science fiction saga whose heroine is not a ‘chosen one’ or a ‘super soldier’ but just a plain old everywoman. In many ways this story is still ahead of the pack, though science fiction becomes more common in mainstream comics, it feels true to life without sacrificing the epic scope that science fiction allows. It has all the thrills one would expect from a 2000AD story, famed for their relentless pacing and action, while staying loyal to its principle of normal people in difficult situation. It finds excitement without explosive bullets and death rays.
My two big fears with regarding to this new edition were the re-coloring and re-cutting: After years of publishing all three books as a single tome I was fearful that dividing it back up to the original three books would make it too slight of a read. But I had reckoned without thrill-power, these 50 pages of story never feel short, it’s a meaty reading experience and I found myself needing a break by the end of the book. it’s a rare balancing act – keeping the story forever moving forwards without becoming too overburdened by events.
Ian Gibson and Alan Moore managed to give the characters enough room to breathe and develop in a natural manner, the story of Jones’s musician friend Ludy happens almost entirely as a series of background yet feels impactful when it reaches a conclusion, while making every page count. Gibson was always an artist with comedic edge and it here he preserves it while mining the depth of drama and pathos, while some of the expressions and designs wouldn’t be out place in lighter strips like “Banzai Battalion” it remains a work of powerful emotional impact.
The X-factor was Barbara Nosenzo coloring. I will say she got immediately on my good side by avoiding the smoothness that characterizes too much of modern comics, not bad by itself but usually disastrous when applied to older works. Her work here offers a rougher edge, blending well with Ian Gibson’s more cartoony style without overpowering the line. As I kept on reading I forgot that I was experiencing a new edition and simply enjoyed a return to a favored classic.
But while the new colors do not obstruct I must say they don’t feel very additive either. Reading with my trusty older copy for comparison I noticed only two scenes in which the colors seem to contribute significantly for the story: the use of the psychedelically infused bomb and lovely scene right after in which Halo goes outside The Hoop: the powerful ocean blues and the streaks of black winds contribute to the sense that life outside the cramped living space of the futures offers something more. Something that Halo might just want to risk everything to experience. Hopefully the next two books, with their more alien environments and open spaces, will allow Barbara Nosenzo to stretch herself a bit more; as long as the original is kept in print I don’t mind a newer editions experimenting in a different form of presentation.
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As for the story itself – what can be said that had not been said a thousand times before? The future-slang becomes a bit grating as time moves on, less like a natural form of world-building and more like normal English that has some color artificially added to confuse the readers; the custom designs might thankfully avert the overused trope of sexualizing the female characters but they never feel fashionable or complimentary, just another element to show how different the fictional present from the future.
Other than these minor quibbles it remains not only a significant story but a well told one. Too many classics are recommended as ‘necessary’ or ‘important’ but “The Ballad of Halo Jones” is something you recommend to this very day because it’s a joy to read.
