Product Description

You are thousands of years old. You have amazing powers. You have watched civilizations rise and fall. So why does no one remember any of this? Bestselling Author Neil Gaiman (Marvel: 1602, Anansi Boys, Sandman) is joined by superstar artist John Romita Jr. (Amazing Spider-Man, Wolverine) to present a tale that will change the Eternals and the Marvel Universe forever! Collects Eternals #1-7.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #31369 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-06
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 256 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Jack Kirby's old Eternals series gets a serious dusting-off from Gaiman (Anansi Boys) and artist Romita. The Eternals, a super-race, are now scattered and forgetful of their powers and immortality, living mortal human lives of supreme normalcy (Sersi is a New York party girl, while Makkari believes himself to be Bellevue ER doc Mark Curry). Meanwhile their age-old enemies, the Deviants, stalk the earth with nefarious intentions, and at least one of the super-duper-race Celestials (who created both Deviants and Eternals eons ago) may be returning to Earth. The source of all this forgetfulness and strife appears to be the eternally 11-year-old Sprite, who desires to be allowed to age like an actual human. It is easy to spot Gaiman's touch in this modern-day clash between ancient forces, as he shies away from Kirby's '70s-era, Chariots of God–style alien mythologizing to focus more on the characters' slow coming to grips with the enormity of their identity and the loss of humanity that comes from being an Eternal. Romita's storytelling is strong without coming near Kirby's epochal original. While Gaiman fans will still sign up, it isn't long before the tale gets tangled in the Olympian scope of this often baffling struggle. (May)
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Customer Reviews

Setup, but it's Neil Gaiman doing another comic series-- how can you go wrong?
Neil Gaiman, Eternals (Marvel, 2007)

Neil Gaiman working on a superhero comic? I signed up for this one as soon as I heard about it, and it didn't disappoint. Not much, anyway. (My disappointment will vanish entirely as soon as there is a volume 2.)

Eternals is basically set-up for a larger, as yet unrealized, series; we get to meet the characters, all of whom we already know in other flavors through the Marvel universe, and then we get the scene set for us. The characters, of course, have Gaiman's touch added to them, and a fine touch it is, as anyone who's perused his Sandman books is well aware. So you're not really reading this one for plot (though I don't mean to suggest there's no action to be found here; there certainly is), but just to get a feel for what's happening. The obvious-setup angle made me think about other series that simply started off with a bang and built up from there (Azzarello's 100 Bullets is the one that comes most quickly to mind); Eternals is a great example of the fact that a nothing-but-setup book is quite capable of working in the correct hands. Can't wait to see where this one is going. ****

Entertaining but Lifeless Blockbuster from Gaiman and Romita
Marvel Knights fans will recognize the central conceit here from Paul Jenkins's Sentry reboot--longlost superheroes from another era have forgotten who they were, and so has the world. The main difference between the two series, however, is that the Sentry was a modern-day creation by Paul Jenkins and Jae Lee, while the Eternals were created by the legendary Jack Kirby in the 1970's.

In the case of the Eternals, at least one person remembers them--Tony Stark--although it's not clear why he does. There's a mythology here involving three alien races, the Celestials, Deviants, and the Eternals, and something vague about the origins of life on Earth. The script, by Neil Gaiman, has its moments, while John Romita Jr.'s art is as visually stunning as always. Unfortunately, it's pretty clear that the mandate here is to re-introduce the characters into the Marvel Universe--and not to tell a complete story. While Gaiman doesn't stay entirely faithful to Kirby's Eternals mythology, one ends up wondering if Kirby's original creation, that lasted only 19 issues, was strong enough to warrant bringing back.

Fantastic short reading experience
This comic book masterpiece is a pleasure to read! The quality of the art together with a well written story generate a book you do not want to put down in the middle. I really wished it wouldn't end so soon.