Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #173149 in Books
• Published on: 2003-11-21
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
The Matrix comics, like all the other spin-offs from The Matrix films (such as Animatrix and The Matrix games), are meant to enhance the central storyline of the cinematic trilogy. In the world of The Matrix machines rule, but the vast majority of humans don't even know this. The world that most of us see is a supremely realistic virtual reality: in the real world, our sleeping bodies are kept alive (and dreaming) by the machines, who cultivate us as living fuel cells. Only a small number of humans--inhabitants of the underground city of Zion--inhabit the "real" world, acting as freedom fighters against the machines.

It's in this world that the 12 stories of The Matrix comics are set. Written and illustrated by some of the top names in comics--as well as some lesser-known creators--the stories don't focus on any particular characters or places, allowing for greater creative freedom. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Neil Gaiman's prose story about a heroic double-life outside of the Matrix is inspiring and beautifully written--it easily stands out amid the gloom and bleakness of the other stories. Conversely, The Matrix creators Larry and Andy Wachowski's back-to-basics science-fiction story (ably illustrated by Geoff Darrow) provides a gruesome and thought-provoking prologue to the whole Matrix trilogy. Other standouts include David Lapham's tragic tale "There Are No Flowers in the Real World" and Paul Chadwick's hopeful "The Miller's Tale". The remaining stories are less successful. Though few are bad, several do suffer from the pretentiousness and bogged-down ideas of their cinematic counterparts--they're just not as clever as they think they are. Still, fans of The Matrix films will find this an entertaining addition to the canon. --Robert Burrow

Synopsis
"The Matrix" revolutionized the science-fiction action film for ever, and this collection of stories delves deeper into the world of the movies, exploring every aspect of the struggle between machine and mankind, between what is real and what is illusion.

Customer Reviews

A great follow up
If you liked the Matrix trilogy, and especially if you like it enough to buy other spin offs such as the Animatrix, and Enter the Matrix, this is definately for you. It features 12 new short stories (in comic form of course!) based in the world of the Matrix. Like the first edition it has a mixture of "inside" stories, stories with people living ordinary lives with some perception that the world isn't quite right, and "outside" stories, based on those who know the truth about the Matrix.
My favourite story is Run, Saga, Run! About one of the "potentials" with the Oracle, who escapes agents to get out of the Matrix. It also features two stories set after Matrix Revolutions during the truce period between the Machines and the Humans.
If you love the world of the Matrix, and want a bigger glimpse into what is going on in that world I definately recommend this book to you.

Through The Looking Glass
This collection of stories is what I think of as a true anthology, blending together a number of different styles and aspects of the Matrix to create something diverse and imaginative. There's something in this collection for everyone, be it humour, tragedy or adventure.

The graphic styles vary between stories and ranging from Neil Gaiman's short story with a few illustrations to the more common 'comic book' presentation. Each style has its own merits and I'm sure you could argue your favourite between them all. Personally, I like the slighlt rough and comical 'Sword Of A Different Colour', or whatever the title was.

The different stories span per-film, post episode one and post-film eras, with some showing the origins of the ideas portrayed in the films while other expand on those ideas, much in the way 'Animatrix' did.

Overall I'd recommend this to any fan of the Matrix, with something in here for anyone interested in the world and concepts of the Matrix.

The Matrix Comic
if you liked the Matrix and especially if you like the animatrix then thisbook is for you. if has a collection of 11 comic strips and 1 short storyset in and around the matrix. theonly problem i ahve is there should be lots more matrix comic books outthere.