Rohan at the Louvre (Louvre Collection) [Hardcover]

I'm a huge fan of Hirohiko Araki and his comics, so when I heard that Rohan at the Louvre was being published in English, there was no question I'd buy it; in fact, I already had it in the Japanese magazine serialization and the hardcover French edition. It's a five-star for me, or for several other groups of people, but there are some problems with this volume regardless.

It's a gorgeous volume; the hardcover binding isn't too hard or too flimsy-feeling, like a nicer picture book. The printing quality is excellent, and while the author is known and loved for occasionally garish color use, the beautiful coloration on the interior pages is soft and dreamy, with colors reminiscent of early 1900s children's books accented with splashes of blacks and brights. If you're a fan of Hirohiko Araki's art, you want this regardless of whether or not you like the story as the single most inexpensive "artbook" you'll ever find.

The story is a decent standalone; its themes are similar to some of the other Rohan short story one-shots that haven't been published in English, but that's not necessarily a drawback. What is a drawback is that you really will get far more out of this comic if you have already read some of Araki's other work including Rohan Kishibe as a character, none of which has ever been published in English. There's a charming scene where three characters from Diamond is Unbreakable show up to say a few lines; for a dedicated Araki fan this is a wonderful shout-out, but for someone who hasn't read those comics, you might be left wondering who these people are. In fact, while Rohan's "ability" is explained very simply in the first few pages, its name is never given; if you're a pre-existing fan you might know that it's Heaven's Door, but when Rohan later refers to it AS "Heaven's Door", it's not explained, nor are some of the mechanics of how Heaven's Door works which wind up being crucial to the comic. I loaned my copy to someone who had no previous knowledge of Araki's works, and while they enjoyed it, they were a bit confused. Even so, it's a nice self-contained story, and the Louvre setting elements add to the story rather than feeling like they were shoehorned in just for product placement.

As far as the English editing and translation goes... The translation itself is quite good; it preserves the distinctive speaking style of the original comic while still being readable (delightfully so, in fact) in English, and the section in the back about the Louvre collections is a good primer for those who've never been there. However, as a long-time manga reader some of the editing is a bit sub-par. There's a few typos near the end, and some rather dubious typeface usage that I really don't agree with. The fact that the dialogue and the SFX subtitles are all set in the same typeface is a bit jarring as well.

I'd recommend this to anybody who enjoys the art of Hirohiko Araki, or to anybody with an interest both in artwork and in horror stories (because this IS a rather creepy horror story, with some pages full of strange gore). It isn't a perfect book, nor is it a perfect edition, but it's still good enough to have a place on my shelf for years.

I loved this book. "Rohan at the Louvre" reminds me of a Poe poem brought to life, almost the Casque of Amontilado, this time, the Art of Araki brings the same intense feeling of dread, release, and love lost.

The art is stunning, and the story is evocative of much, much, more. The question of what art is, is central to the story. What emotion does art evoke in its' viewers? What inspired the art? What part does the art play in history? The last painting by Nizaemon was so much more, was a mystery unlike any other. Reading this reminds me of the Black Museum radio series, actually, this could be an episode of such.

The book is a good example of exactly why NBM has risen to the top of the graphic novel realm. Their Papercutz products are award winning, and these should be too.

This comes highly recommended for art (almost Gil Kanish), story telling, and the international favor it brings to our book shelves.

Tim Lasiuta

I'm very pleased with Rohan at the Louvre. I've always been a big fan of JoJo, so when I heard that it was coming out in English, I was ecstatic. The discount and early shipping were just icing on the cake. There are a handful of minor grammatical errors, but nothing that will prevent one from enjoying this unique little story. Hirohiko Araki is the patron saint of illustration combined with tension-building storytelling and just plain weird stuff.